Previously, I discussed how Indianapolis web development has changed, and I provided a theory on what the next trend will become. I talked about how business blogging and social media community interaction has become the latest trend in providing relevant information to customers. Now we will see search engine marketing at the forefront in how web development is approached for businesses.

Customers have been using search to find goods and services rather than looking for specific businesses. While it is important for your business to be visible (e.g. Fusework Studios) in the search engines, it is even more important that your business is found for specific keywords based on your goods and services.

The next phase in Indianapolis web development will be about playing an integral role in search engine marketing and finding ways to get new content out and fast for what customers are looking for. Search engines are looking for sites and blogs that update often and have relevant content to what their users are searching for. It's not about "if you build it, they will come" anymore.

Early on in web development, it was about telling your story -- the whole story. Unfortunately, this requires time and money to be able to put all that work together. When print marketing is put together, it is customary to hand out a brochure, poster or some form of quick communication about the product or service. I recommend you actually follow suit for initial website release, and over time, you can add the additional content you probably would have initially included before.

The reason is Google and other major search engines value up-to-date content. New content is very important. The sites and blogs that are most active about putting content up for their visitors are getting special treatment because they are viewed as more likely to be current for their customers - those people that search. There is no magic tool or button you can use to get these results. It's about building upon a foundation to be found in search.

Contact Fusework Studios for more information about building a strong foundation to win customers through search and inbound marketing.

The year 2010 brings on new opportunities for businesses across the country including Indianapolis. The economy is slowly on the mend. Jobs are starting to come back. Businesses are strategizing on how to attack their marketing plans and grow. Indianapolis, in my opinion, is no different from this trend.

When I first came onto the web development scene, it was primarily about having a website. Your website was more of a brochure. There was little thought to a full web based strategy or social media community involvement for businesses. The primary focus was having a great looking web design and plenty of content for people to read.

Then came the next phase which was to measure the analytical data provided for your website. Soon, it was found that people often didn't spend more than 1-2 minutes on the site. This didn't help support the theory to have more than twenty pages of content. The next step was to find a way to convert those visits into money by creating calls-to-action. These calls-to-action were provided as forms, buttons and/or videos.

The most recent trend is how to use social media marketing and business blogging to benefit your business. Search engine marketing is taking the forefront, and more businesses are implementing corporate blogs and social media as a part of their web strategy. I believe this trend is going to add a new twist to how websites will be developed beginning in 2010.

With Google Live Search and the rise of blogging as the premiere method in getting recent and relevant content, the next trend is all about flexibility and the process of getting search content out to the masses. It will be about monitoring what people are looking for and providing that information. Businesses will be taking an ever-more increased role in talking WITH their customers (not just TO their customers). Websites and strategies will be taking on a new look to feed how people will find out about their business(es), goods and services.

I will be touching on how to take advantage of this new trend in my upcoming post. For now, I wanted to get you thinking about how sites will be developed differently with this in mind. I'd be interested in hearing some thoughts from you on what you see coming in the next year.

This is not only huge for organic search engine optimization, but also for your social media optimization. Google just announced a real-time search feature integrated near the top of every Google search results page. It features the latest news from major newspaper websites, popular blogs and even Twitter. If you search for "tigers mistress," you will currently see a link to a news site, a link to Perez Hilton's blog and random Tweets from people talking about the recent Tiger Woods scandal on Twitter.

Imagine if someone searched your company name and found an interesting Tweet near the top of Google from you, and decided to follow you? Getting followers from search engines, pretty cool right? But what if someone mentioned your company name in a negative light on Twitter, and it showed up on the first page of Google?! 

Social media is real folks; you just can't ignore it anymore. Google has also worked out deals with Facebook and MySpace to include public feeds in the real-time search results. If your corporate Internet marketing strategy does not include social media, maybe you should consider working with a social media marketing company. You need to advertise. You need to monitor your brand reputation, and you can make new relationships all at the same time.

Are you spending a lot of money on PPC Marketing? Why not throw a few of those dollars towards a social media marketing optimization plan and get even more search engine results in the top area of Google.

People can now find live information about you on Google. Does this sound scary? Maybe, but should you put your head in the sand and ignore it? No way! Take advantage of this new form of search engine marketing and free social media advertising in the place everyone wants to be - the top of Google!

Search engine marketing is a huge part of making an internet marketing strategy work for you.  Just like a business, if no one is showing up, it will not matter how great your website is designed.  In the video below, Evereffect President, Jim Brown discusses the importance of search engine marketing and how he got started in the industry.  Jim also briefly touches on a local internet marketing conference in Indianapolis, the Masters of Business Online.

 

There are many business out there spending thousands and thousands of dollars on pay per click campaigns and Search Engine Optimization. Do these methods work, of course they do. Google wouldn't be worth billions if their pay per click methods didn't work. There are also many search engine optimization companies who do a great job and definitely help with your Website strategy of driving traffic to your site.

I am here to tell you there is another solution. It will take a little more work on your part, but it will cost you significantly less and I believe that it will deliver better results. This magic solution is something that has been around for years. It is the practice of blogging.

I have seen companies hire web consultants, social media agencies, and every other specialty out there and not have the results that a simple blog post can bring. Why do you think I try and blog each and every day. Sure I want to connect with you, the reader. I also want to educate potential customers to the many possibilities of Internet Marketing, but I also want you to find Fusework Studios when you search for Indianapolis Search Engine Marketing. 

That is why my team blogs each and every day. You see when you blog you create new fresh content for your Website. Who just happens to love new and fresh content? Yep you guessed it, our good friends at Google.

When most companies launch their new Website is is fantastic. It has fresh content, it looks great and is easy to use, but what happens over time. Employees leave, new products are introduced, but the site never changes. It started out with 15 pages of information for Google to index, but those 15 pages haven't changed for years, so why should the search engines care.

That's where blogging comes in. Every post is a new page for Google to index, it's new fresh content, and it gets rewarded. At Fusework Studios we use an even more advanced strategy that allows each post to become even more effective. Any way you choose to approach it, blogging can dramatically change your search engine placement and success.

Is it for everyone? Absolutely not. You have to make an effort. You have to make time to type a new post; to be creative and to care about your web business strategy. However, if you are willing to take this leap, you can win search at a fraction of the cost of other solutions.

The Wikipedia definition of interactive advertising agencies is an interesting one. It discusses the nearly meteoric rise of these types of businesses due to the explosion of technology and social networking. It explains these companies differentiate themselves by use of web design/development, search engine marketing, internet advertising/marketing or e-business/commerce consulting.

Just as any business would have a board of advisors such as accountants, attorneys and other business professionals to help them make decisions, consider employing the services of an interactive advertising agency or social media agency to help develop an interactive strategy, brand awareness and online reputation management plan that will help give your business a meteoric rise and turn web conversions into a return on your investment.

Ways to identify a strong interactive agency:

• Ask for references;
• Ask for a portfolio/case studies;
• They lead with ideas and follow up with steps to turn those ideas to reality;
• Look up their social media presence;
• And do they practice what they preach?

Today I had a discussion with a fellow co-worker about what I should write about as I was drawing a complete blank. He had a suggestion that really struck me about how you have to have an attitude of continual learning in our industry. You have to have an open mind to learning each and every day in our field whether it's internet marketing, social media or website strategy.

Primarily my background comes from the development of applications to be used in social media and websites, but I have forced myself to come out of my comfort zone to learn more about social media and internet marketing to understand the value and impact of what I build has on the complete internet marketing picture.

There is so much to learn about, and I hope this quick list gives you insight as to why continual education is so important:

• Search engine marketing - How do you optimize your content for search engines? Why is it important?
• Internet brand management - How does the world perceive your brand? What are things you can do to improve or enhance brand recognition in a postiive light? Is this just for corporate use, or can the same practices be used for personal use?
• Social media optimization - With so many communities and tools how do you know where to target your efforts? What tools are best? How do you encourage interaction with your brand?
• Websites and business strategy - Which is more important: design, content or functionality? How do you optimize conversion? What is your conversion? How do you retain customers while still impacting new customers?

Every day I am preaching social networking and blogging to my clients. And almost every day someone says to me, “I am so busy with my other responsibilities when would I have time to write a blog post?” My immediate response each and every time is how can you afford not to take the time to blog?

Each blog entry adds another page of content to your site. Another page of content on a site is one more opportunity for Google to notice you. One more opportunity for Google to notice you might result in you moving from page 2 on a Google to page 1. Moving from page 2 to page 1 could result in you receiving hundreds or perhaps thousands of additional hits on your site each month. These visits, (if you have a solid website strategy) will result in more success for your business.  All of this can happen from you taking a few minutes to write down your thoughts a couple of times a week.

In case you are wondering I have been typing this particular post for approximately 2 minutes. Just stop and think. How much time each day are you spending posting what your family did on Facebook? How many tweets of useless information are you sending each day that takes away from the precious bank of your time? Not to say these are bad forms of marketing, but so far I have yet to see social media advertising deliver the same impact that a few simple blog posts can provide.

Of course these are just my thoughts, but that's what a blog is all about, so I guess I am doing this right.  Jump start your search engine marketing strategy by blogging.  By the way, this took a total of five minutes and 15 seconds.

I came across an interesting poll today from some of the leading SEO experts on how long does it take to rank well in Google following a new site launch.

What I found most interesting is that the majority of those that participated in this poll said three to six months followed by six to nine months. This makes it ever more important to have a strong search engine marketing and internet marketing strategy upon completion of your site.

Website strategy is often one of the more overlooked aspects of building a website. It's not surprising. I get very excited every time I complete a project.

If it truly takes time for your site to be higher ranked on Google after a launch, then social media and marketing becomes either your most powerful ally or worst enemy. Here are some ideas to essentially to resist this trend:

• Create a blog and talk about the project and the site.
• Interact with social media communities to drive traffic to the site and make it known.
• Hold a launch party to create buzz and excitement.
• Publicize the site any way you can including print, video, audio and word-of-mouth.