Why is it that some firms get so hung up on rankings? Now, don’t get me wrong, we like pages that rank for high volume keywords that convert to sales. (Revenue is still a good thing.) Where the problem comes is when site owners or marketing departments focus on rank instead of revenue.

Search Engine Optimization provides an avenue to let the world know about your product and service offerings – simply one part of your online marketing strategy. Many years ago, a close friend of mine told me that no matter how beautiful your website is, it’s a “Post-it in the desert” unless visitors can find you. This was before the SEO industry took off but the logic is the same today… except the number of sticky notes and people peddling sticky-note marketing has exploded.

The real opportunity is taking advantage of the fact that Google, Yahoo, Ask, MSN are all trying to provide relevant results. Why should your site show up on Page 1? The more relevant your site seems to the search engines, the better the traffic (better, not necessarily higher). Why should other sites link to yours? The trick here is really no trick at all; become more relevant.

This is where a competent SEO consulting firm can help. If you have a solid offering that the market wants, they can help you with an online marketing strategy to take advantage of the niche problems you solve. Although digital marketing can be broken down into many parts, there is nothing easy about it. Online marketing done right takes solid strategy, consistent execution and time.