It is not too long ago that merely having a website was
enough for you to be considered as staying abreast of the world of online
marketing – but how things have changed and how quickly!

The sheer scale of the Internet is mind-boggling and it
continues to experience exponential growth. Uploading new information is
literally child’s play.

Searching for something even reasonably specific will
present millions of web pages for you to explore. The majority of people do not
search beyond 2 or 3 pages of their preferred search engine before their
attention span demands more instant gratification.

This then should prompt the following question:

“What are you trying to achieve through having a website and
having considered this, do you have the right priorities for it?”

If your site is intended merely as a repository for
information to which you simply direct people then fine; Beyond the site
looking attractive and functioning well then it’s job done. For example, we
have a client who is active in the field of pharmaceutical regulatory services.
This is such a well-defined niche, with the people in the industry knowing the
key players well, that there is no benefit in fighting for a page one ranking
in the search engines.

On the other hand, for those businesses that actually want
their websites to be found by potential customers, having a site that looks
good and functions efficiently, but isn’t found by the searcher, is a waste of
time, effort and money.

For such businesses that want to generate leads (or for true
E-commerce sites, to generate sales) then the order of priority has to be as
follows:

1. To
   be found by interested parties
2. To
   convert site visitors into leads or customers
3. To
   function efficiently
4. To
   look attractive

The first challenge is to understand which search
expressions (known as keywords or keyword phrases) people are using to find the
kind of product and service that you offer.

The next is in utilising these keywords in the content of
your website to make it as relevant as possible to the search engines. Whilst
there are a raft of activities to be undertaken to achieve high page placements
in the search engines, basically, good, relevant content is still a key
component to success.

To achieve this objective requires a different skill-set
from purely web design and development. Search Engine Optimisation is becoming
increasingly important to the online marketer and something that Brackenhill is
very aware of, both when we undertake a new website build, or in helping our
clients move their current website into a much more prominent position.

If you’re interested in finding out more about how
Brackenhill can improve the performance of your website then please call Andrew
on 01904 608200 or email andrew.forshaw@thebrackenhillgroup.com