SEO MYTH # 2: Search engines are not as valuable as other media.

It seems surprising that anyone could question the value of top rankings in today's Google centric world - but it does happen. Many people don't fully understand the impact of top rankings on their site. So, let's take a look at the truth and debunk this myth once and for all.

SEO TRUTH # 2: Search engines are the NUMBER ONE way people find what they are looking for on the internet.

"Top Ways Websites are Discovered - It's Not What You Think!"

Banner ads 1%

Targeted email 1.2%

TV spots 1.4%

"By accident" 2.1%

Magazine ads 4.4%

Word-of-mouth 20%

Random Surfing 20%

Search Engines 46%

An old article on the front page of USA Today (which means it really is big news) talked about why companies are willing to pay for SEO and correction of SEO Friendliness issues on their site. Keep in mind this was 4 years ago and it has only gotten bigger and more important since then.

"Companies pay because about 80% of Internet searches are performed with Google technology, says an online newsletter. That's 200 million searches a day, whether on Google or on affiliates such as America Online, Yahoo and CNN.com."

(Source: For Google, many retailers eagerly jump through hoops ; Jefferson Graham. USA TODAY. Feb 5, 2004. pg. A.01 )

So, now that you understand the importance of SEO, here are some things to consider when looking at various different marketing options:

1. What are my costs for direct mail, banner ads, print ads, booths at trade shows, etc? Compare that to your SEO costs.

2. Would it be worth $10-20 per day to my business to have every aspect of SEO taken care of by professionals who guarantee results? Can I really afford NOT to have this exposure in the engines that my competitors do?

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying to ignore other forms of marketing - of course you should test, try out and use various marketing campaigns (the key is track the results so you know which ones to keep). However SEO should be your foundation, in addition to other marketing that you are doing.