What is SEO? In my opinion SEO is one of many techniques that are part of the realm of Internet Marketing (e-Marketing). SEO is about a series of steps that pretend to provide first visibility in a search engine, second better ranking for an specific keyword or group of keywords, finally, invite a potential prospect to perform an action (conversion). In marketing if we apply the AIDA model, (A for Attention) would be accomplished by being visible, (I for Interest), generate interest by being one of the top ten results for a particular keyword, (D for Desire) will be generated in the site and finally (A for action).
So the most important aspects of SEO is to call attention, generate interest and perhaps increase the desire.
What makes SEO effective? SEO by itself is dead. Being number one in Google® for a specific term is as good as nothing if nobody clicks on it. That same ranking has no value if people click and immediately go back to the search engine.
My recommendation is to not pay attention to your location on the search engines. Build your marketing online as you would offline: Offer a great product or service, with a fair price, with an outstanding business model and promote it to the point that your brand is more important than your product.
For example, if you are a hotel owner in Australia and you want more reservations, then first provide a good product and service (work on your rooms and service), then think of a competitive price. Then, find a differentiating factor in your business model: the most relaxing rooms, the closest to the airport, the best quality rooms or any other competitive advantage. Finally represent that in a clean, professional website.
As an e-Marketing consultant I have seen many websites and in my opinion the most successful ones are neither the ones with better rankings nor the ones with more traffic but the ones with good ideas.
If you don’t have good ideas then not even the best SEO will get you the extra mile.
