Pretend you're a campaign manager in an upcoming election. How are you going to ensure your candidate secures the most votes? Most people start by hanging posters, making buttons, and telling friends–wielding a hammer and nailing flyers to the bulletin board space provided by other establishments. Online marketers often advertise a new website in the same fashion, only on the internet it's called SPAM. Often times we are so eager to promote, we forget to clarify the message we are spreading. Let’s examine the steps to running a successful campaign.
Understanding the System
Who do people vote for? For the most part they vote for whoever everyone else is voting for, right? At least to a certain extent websites aren’t much different. People often visit sites recommended to them by 1) A close friend or 2) A prominent, credible source. We'll focus on the latter because that's where search engines come in. Google’s job is to guide you to the most useful content based on your query. Have you ever wondered how they do this? The long answer involves a mysterious algorithm hidden in the same secret vault that houses Colonel Sander’s original recipe and the name of the guy Carly Simon thinks is so vain, but I can tell you what I believe to be the short answer.
Think of a search engine as a super fast vote counter. When you perform a search, you are trying to find out what "candidate" (website) currently holds what "office" (subject of your query). Google tallies the votes and passes that information along to you. To see how this works, do a search for "pizza" on Google and you will discover Domino’s is the mayor of pizza and Pizza Hut is the first runner up. This is because Domino’s has the most "votes" for the keyword "pizza". So how does a webpage cast a vote for another site you ask? By linking to it. Really, that’s it. The anchor text determines the "office" your "candidate" is running for. Unlike traditional voting, however, some votes carry more weight than others. For example, a vote from CNN.com is more influential than your sister’s Boy Meets World fansite. Let’s say I have a blog and on it I declare Groundhog Day to be the best movie of all time and link to IMDB’s corresponding page. In doing this I am effectively “voting” for that IMDB page to hold the office of "best movie of all time". In other words I am hoping that when someone types, "best movie of all time" into Google’s search box, it will be the #1 result. Unfortunately, not everyone else thinks that way, so a different result is returned.
To prove this theory, go ahead and search for the phrase "click here". Guess what comes up? Adobe’s PDF reader. Although "click here" may be the most widely used anchor text on the web, because the overwhelming majority of "click here" links send users to a page where they can download Adobe’s free PDF reader, the page holds that office because it has the most votes.
Defining a Platform
The first step of running a successful political campaign or online marketing campaign is the same. Define what sets you apart from the competition. This might be difficult because you probably have a list a mile long of why people should choose you and paring it down to a few items is tough! How do you narrow it down? You may need to solicit "voter" feedback. Tools are available to see what searches are being performed and how often. Be realistic about what truly differentiates you from the competition and focus on the top 3 or 4. These will be your keywords, otherwise known as the offices you are campaigning for. Why so few? This allows you to focus on the core of your campaign and helps concentrate your efforts. When other pages link to you, they won’t wonder what to use for the anchor text. Note: If you already have pages that link to you that aren’t using the anchor text you want, you can explain you’re re-focusing your campaign and encourage them to use your chosen keywords.
Keeping Up Appearances
Could you imagine if, after announcing a campaign, the candidate was never heard from again until election day? What if he showed up in shorts, flip-flops, and a tank top? Even the strongest endorsements won’t be able to sustain credibility if the candidate doesn’t look the part. What if the candidates' campaign was built upon lowering taxes, but the topic of his next speech covered public transit? Voters might wonder if they were coming to hear the correct candidate. So in addition to having a professional looking website, you want to make sure the 3-4 keywords you chose for your campaign are sprinkled throughout your site. What you say about yourself needs to match what you are asking others to say about you. Make sure that when people find your site using a specific search phrase, they will know they are in the right place.
Choosing a Campaign Manager
If you decide to hire an online marketing professional, be cautious of firms that promise you a specific position on a search engine results page (SERP). Think of this process as hiring a campaign manager. A good campaign manager can help you get endorsements, tell you what to wear, and write your speeches, but at the end of the day you still have to deliver it and there is no guarantee you will get elected. A good firm can largely increase your chances, though.
Final Thoughts
Although information on the internet moves fast, building a strong reputation might not happen overnight. Avoid the temptation to take shortcuts through bribes, cover-ups, or buying votes. In the industry these are known as black hat techniques and can destroy all prior legitimate efforts in a hurry. If you read SEO advice that sounds questionable, avoid it. When done honestly and correctly, your search engine optimization efforts will be very rewarding and provide long-term, sustainable exposure for your website.