SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING [SEM]
SEM is mostly about paid advertising, especially on the major search engines. Because some keywords are very difficult to optimize for your site (especially new sites, or those introducing new product lines...), there are many ways to pay for relevant traffic. These are some of the ways we can help:
Pay-Per-Click [PPC] advertising with the major search engines
Basically, we would "auction" for keyword placement on Yahoo, Google, MSN, and other search engines so that your website shows up in the "Sponsored Links" area of the search pages. There is huge research around the validity of gaining traffic through these sponsored areas, all with different results around exact keyword placement, auction/bidding techniques, and watching competitors battle for position. Though we advocate these services, it is important to work out the details and to know how to balance the goals with the clients' marketing budget and the ability to make conversions.
Pay for Performance
These solutions take real analysis, because the client only pays the referring source when there is a sale made...so, it should be easy to understand and do the math, right? Well, maybe, ... but, there are plenty of pitfalls and risks, just as with any other method of marketing.
Banner Advertisements
We advocate this method in some cases. Paying 'per click' to a reputable source that sells banners on their site may be a great way to target potential customers, and to do it very economically.
Shopping Portals
There is great traffic that goes through shopping.com, shopzilla.com, mysimon.com, shopping.yahoo.com, and any number of other large shopping portals. We can do the research to make sure it makes sense.
Google Adsense [content match]
These are the 'Ads by Google' on many sites that allow Google to use their online real estate. The traffic usually costs less than regular Google advertising, but it's less targeted to any specific keyword search. Still, it's another venue for exposure and deserves recognition.