According to Internet World Stats, Internet usage in South Africa increased by 91.3% between 2000 and 2008. “This is an indication of how people interact with companies and brands today. Instead of referring to the Yellow Pages for example, consumers now turn to Google and other search engines to research and make contact with companies. This is one of the reasons why it is vitally important to have a good online presence,” says Christine da Silva, AlterSage Founder and Online Strategist.

It has been reported that over 90% of search engine users only refer to the first three pages of the search engine results (Yahoo Search Marketing blog). This makes it vitally important for your website to outrank your competitors on search engines.

Everyone felt the pinch during the last two quarters of 2008 and is keen to recover and excel in 2009. You can maximise your company’s business potential though an online presence and by increasing your position on Search Engine Result Pages (SERP) for relatively far less investment than traditional print media.

To increase a website’s position on the SERP’s, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is utilised. “SEO is one of the cornerstones of online marketing and the results from such a campaign are sustainable. A SEO campaign is an effective way to increase traffic and consequently Return on Investment (ROI) from your company’s website” says da Silva.

To maximise the results of a SEO campaign, other online marketing elements like Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising or social media marketing can also be utilised to increase the success of the campaign.

Unlike traditional media, online media is completely measurable and can be tracked by using an analytics package. These tools can track amongst others: number of visitors, demographics of visitors, keywords used to find your site, how visitors interact with your site and whether they convert to leads or clients. By analysing this information, one can improve the message, targeting and reach of your company’s website and increase ROI.

In addition, it is imperative for companies to implement an Online Reputation Management (ORM) strategy that enables them to track what is being said about them in the online sphere, be it positive or negative, and respond in an appropriate and timely manner to either claim or save their reputation. The Internet has made it easier for companies to interact with consumers and form relationships, especially via social media like Facebook groups or blogging.

By determining your needs and goals, an online consultancy can design a long-term online strategy that may start out with SEO as the foundation, and grow as your website provides return on investment.

If you would like to increase the ROI for your website, contact us to conduct a complimentary Lite Website Audit which will highlight areas that can be improved.

Contact Information:
AlterSage
www.altersage.com
tel: (+27 21) 462 0036
fax: (+27 21) 465 2613
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