While it’s never been easier to find something using an online search, it’s still a bit mysterious to some who are trying to be found through online searches. Fortunately for those who do business in Pennsylvania, there is help, and that help is increasingly ranked higher and higher.
Wilkes-Barre-based Solid Cactus and Webpage FX in Carlisle are among the leaders of a growing number of internet-based marketing agencies in Pennsylvania that focus on both traditional marketing and public relations campaigns and those that are more web-specific, such as pay-per-click advertising (when an advertiser pays their site host a certain fee for every click their ad receives) and managing banner ads. By all accounts, companies that have been wary of exploring new media are really missing out on potential customers.
“The Internet is becoming the Number One driver of leads,” says William Craig, president of Webpage FX. “Your website becomes your salesperson–it’s always on duty, 24/7. Without rankings or traffic, a business becomes invisible.”
That goes for not only the big cities but for the whole Commonwealth. There’s also PA Internet Marketing in Glenmoore, Chester County touts itself as a Google Ad Words-qualified, Green Office-certified outfit led by IT veterans Susan and Jim McCrossin. OneSky Media in Lancaster provides a wealth of free information on its home page dealing with SEO and specializes in organic search.
The old “location, location, location” adage is just as key for websites and online searches as it is for a brick-and-mortar store. Search-engine optimization (SEO)–embedding appropriate key words into a business’ website so that their company name is one of the first to appear in an online search–is a major driver for Internet marketing; Craig said that 65 percent of Webpage FX’s business comes from organic SEO work. The company has been so successful with these types of projects, they were ranked as one of the Top 20 Organic Optimization Companies in 2009 by Topseos.com.
Keywords act as a heading for a company’s name or main product or service, much like the categories in the average phone book’s yellow pages. No matter the size or industry, developing a comprehensive, informative website with effective key words is a worthwhile investment. In today’s tough economic climate, it’s practically a must for any business. But what if a business is not sure of what keywords to target? This is where an expert Denver SEO agency (or an equally capable local firm) can shine bright. Experienced SEO establishments are skilled in the art of different optimization techniques (on-site SEO, authority content, and technical SEO to name a few), and together they can provide an online venture with the visibility and reach it deserves.
“Whether a business is based on the web or not, people will very often search online first for information,” says Donna Talarico, interactive marketing specialist at Solid Cactus. “Does a company want the yellow pages and other generic directory listings to show up first? Or, would they rather a potential customer find an official website with company information, important details and other selling points? The latter is more effective. It builds trust and makes the business seem credible.
“We’re so accustomed to turning to search engines even to find directions or hours of a local business. Think of a website as an informational brochure or full-page phone book ad. You don’t have to go hog wild or spend a lot of money to be online.”
Craig and his team have developed a website scorecard tool that allows visitors to the Webpage FX’s website to test the effectiveness of their website’s keywords. The lower the ranking, the less effective their keywords are, thus resulting in lower-ranking results in online searches.
Besides marketing, both Webpage FX and Solid Cactus handle back-end management solutions for online retailers.
“Many people who own online stores also have day jobs, or are very small operations,” says Talarico. “That said, they don’t always have time or manpower to handle customer service or focus on effective marketing campaigns, so, we offer Internet marketing services and Call Center Services. For Internet marketing, we can manage a client’s PPC (pay-per-click) advertising, SEO (search engine optimization) efforts, affiliate programs, e-mail marketing or comparison shopping engine feeds.”
The difference between a website and an e-commerce site is where a standard website typically lists the products, services, and a bit of the history of a company, an e-commerce store is a bit more involved but runs just as any brick-and-mortar establishment would, complete with call centers, shipping departments, and marketing representatives.
Although the process sounds very high-tech, the truth is that Internet marketing still has many elements of traditional marketing and public relations agencies, and has a strong need for creative folks from a variety of backgrounds. Craig says that he hires many graduates right out of college.
Furthermore, a number of firms (such as Horizon Peak Consulting) also offer content strategies that are customized to meet the needs of brands requiring particular services in terms of content creation. Poor language or communication can often be the downfall of a brand. This is where experts play a vital role. Getting the information across is as important as developing the products or services.
“There are a lot of different aspects [to Internet marketing] so we’ll hire a lot of majors out of school,” says Craig. “We have IT, but we also have other majors like English and public relations.”
New hires complete a 90 day bootcamp where they learn the various aspects of the company’s philosophy and about the field itself. Internet marketing is a rapidly growing industry; Craig’s seo company has doubled compared to last year. Despite the cutbacks and lean times that all industries have been experiencing, Craig says that his field has been unaffected for the most part.
“We’re not 100-percent immune, but for every person who said they were freezing spending, there was another customer saying they had to make the most of every dollar,” he says. “We’re seeing more of a cost-consciousness among our customers. We just continue the forward momentum and keep going.”
Craig’s company has been able to reap the benefits of being one of the few of its kind in the South Central Pennsylvania area, a small but attractive consideration for new hires. Folks interested in this field can do the same work the larger tech companies in New York and Silicon Valley are doing without having to relocate. “We have a competitive advantage being in Pennsylvania,” Craig said. “[Pennsylvania] has the most colleges and universities out of any state, so we have a big recruiting pool to draw from. We’re just looking for a higher level quality type of person. Locally, there’s not a ton of competition so it’s had a positive effect on our growth.”
Solid Cactus, a Keystone Innovation Zone company in Luzerne County, has seen a change in ownership over the past year–the company was bought by Web.com, a strong provider of online tools and marketing solutions in its own right, in 2009–but has been able to maintain a strong foothold in the e-commerce world by further streamlining their current offerings and rolling out some new ones.
“This year Solid Cactus launched our own shopping cart platform, Solid Cactus eCommerce, which offers some robust tools, including an unsurpassed e-mail marketing system,” Talarico says.
They, too, have made it through the recent economic downturn fairly unscathed. Talarico says their customers seem to be making smaller enhancements to their existing sites rather than doing a complete overhaul.
“On the marketing end, since we focus more on solely Internet-based businesses, I think that people aren’t necessarily spending less, but instead, spending smarter,” she says. “This can be done with more targeted campaigns. Also, people may be doing more e-mail marketing (and trying to build those lists) which is more cost-effective than other Internet marketing efforts because you are targeting people already familiar with your brand. Also, people may focus more or organic search and social media than investing in paid ads.”
Like Webpage FX in South Central PA, Solid Cactus is one of the few businesses of its kind in the Northeast, and has been able to draw on a large pool of available talent who may not want to leave the area. “We have about 10 local colleges in our surrounding counties that consistently feed our staff with talented designers, programmers, writers, account managers, and more. Natives from our area are hardworking – it’s the old coal and blue collar mentality,” she said.
Companies that are reevaluating their marketing efforts may want to take a look at their website and see if it couldn’t be working harder for them by including stronger keywords.
“It’s common for over 50 percent of our customers’ traffic to be driven by search engines,” says Craig. “If your website isn’t getting much traffic, you may want to look at that because so much traffic is driven by search engines.”
Sara Hodon is a freelance writer who lives,
works, and plays in Northeast PA. Learn more about her writing trials and
triumphs on her blog. Send feedback here.
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Photos:
Solid Cactus interactive marketing specialist Donna Talarico next to her company’s wall of comments from happy clients.
Solid Cactus software developer Joe Pace works on a program.
Director of employee relations Ed Stanchak in his office at Solid Cactus.
Internet marketing manager Alicia Magda works on a project for a Solid Cactus client.
All photographs by Aimee Dilger