Delighted that the press release caused so much of a stir. Even though our PR company sent out the wrong version (oops) it seems that we differ in opinions guys.
First things first. We DO think we are quite good at SEO. I searched on the phrase Internet marketing today on Google UK (Yeh - OK - it is UK, but then we\'re British and I also used the phrase \"Internet Marketing\"). Page 1 result is at
http://www.dixonjones.com/fyi.htm so unless one of you is Grant at Ambergreen then be careful who you rubbish. We don\'t cloak and don\'t spam. I hope that this post doesn\'t have anyone rushing to try to knock us off.
So - having established our credentials I hope I can make a few points.
The first is a thank you to the person who pointed out how long this thread was getting. She knows who she is and I owe her a drink.
The second is one of scaleability with natural listings. The truth is that as soon as 50 companies become adept at SEO on any specific keyphrase, then SEO becomes a gamble, instead of a certainty. That is fine and dandy, but other routes offer large companies more measurable results. Scalability also affects large companies when they wish to market on large volumes of search terms. They are left with cloaking or microsites, neither of which appeal to big brand corporate mentality. It is highly effective for niche marketing, of course, but big brands don\'t want niche - they want world domination.
Third - I think that Webmater T hit the nail on the head then hit his hand with the hammer in two sentences:
Hmmm, sounds like Receptional is going to be a purely SEM company! If I was a client and I read this I would head straight to the letterhead to make out the request to terminate the contract. They must be getting out of the SEO business or are so busy that they can afford to loose and not get new clients!
Yes - we are now SEM - or rather we call ourselves an Internet Marketing company as we believe that pure SEO in isolation is not best for our clients. To ignore PPC is putting one\'s head in the sand. To also not spend time concentrating on click track analysis is also an easy way to halve your ROI as visitors wander off into the abyss. We even measured the effectiveness of banner advertising on Opera the other day and guess what? It made a profit.
The very point that makes webmaster T suggest that our clients might wish to head for the door is also the very point that gets our clients interested in the first place - a holistic approach with a healthy reaction to change.
To use SEO to the exclusion of other Internet Marketing does not offer big businesses a rounded Internet marketing solution. That\'s why large companies are hard to break into.
Lastly a case study. I have just returned from presenting a report to a new client. The report said that in their industry, using PPC alone to dominate the UK market would cost them US$35,000 per month. The powerpoint presentation then was going on to say how natural search would be far more cost effective in many areas of their business... but when they saw US$35K per month they said \"is that all?\" making the next few slides superflouos.
It is a question of scale and seeing the bigger picture. I am no magician, but some of this thread has been misguided.
All the best - fire away...
Dixon.
