The world of business and marketing is starting to take notice of the hyper growth in the search engine optimization industry. The online consulting space is estimated to be a $15 billion dollar industry and some experts predict that it will grow to $40 billion by the year 2015.
What seems to be driving this demand and growth? Many business owners in the $5M to $40M range have yet to adapt to the “New World Of Marketing.” There are many business operators that have failed to realize that the marketing paradigm has shifted from traditional marketing to web based marketing. When times were good, many business owners invested in print, radio, TV, direct mail, tradeshows, telemarketing and traveling for face to face meetings. When the economy turned south in 2007 their immediate impulse was to cut back or find more efficient ways of advertising. Now business owners are in a speed race to take their positions for web and social media real estate!
SEO/SEM/SMM The New World Of Marketing!
There are two types of people in the world of business:
People that adapt and win!
People that fail and lose!
The adaptable business owners didn’t cut back on their marketing but rather increased it. In the last few years the Internet has changed dramatically with the emergence of blogs, Social Media and the big three; Google, Facebook and YouTube. What is driving the hyper growth in the SEO world is that there are millions of businesses that are just now waking up to the fact that the entire marketing paradigm has shifted. The online consulting industry is booming and it includes Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing and Social Media Marketing.
Internet Solutions That Are In Demand!
- Market Research
- Keyword Research
- Competitor Analysis
- Search Engine Optimization
- Conversion Optimization
- Paid Search
- iPhone Apps
- Social Media Marketing
- FB Pages
- Websites
- Blogs
- Mobile Marketing
- QR Codes
- Reputation Management
- Content Production
- Press Releases
- Strategic Link Building
- Local Optimization i.e. Google Places
- Tracking and Reporting
- Press Releases
- Video Marketing
- Content Syndication
- Website Audits
- Split Testing
- Email Marketing
- Logos
- Copywriting
- Bookmarking
- Social Media Profiles
- Sales Funnel Design
- Direct Response Marketing
What Is The Future Of SEO?
The Internet is changing so fast it is hard to predict the future of SEO. However, given the need for some type of optimization around web marketing and that consumers love to search, it should be here to stay. 
There is talk that social media sites like Facebook might incorporate some type of search functionality into it. If this is true, then you better believe that there will be a group of marketers trying to figure out how to optimize their brands in the pursuit of new customers. People love to be in control of their options and being able to search for solutions when and where you want is in big demand. Recommendations from trusted friends on Facebook is powerful but being able to search for solutions on your own terms is huge. I don’t believe that humans will stop searching. Hence, people have always been on a quest for trusted information so search engines will be around for a very long time!
SEO/Internet Marketing and Social!
It is hard not to to like the Internet marketing model. Did you know that virtually everything on the web is transparent. The power of SEO is that you can reverse engineer your competitors and create a gap strategy to outrank them.
The power of Social Media is that you can build a following of people or tribe around your brand. The strategies of Internet marketing, Social Media Marketing and Search Engine Optimization tend to overlap each other and this is what is creating the demand for online consulting.
Follow The Money SEO vs. Paid Search!
There is a disparity in the online marketing world that exist between paid search and SEO. It is widely reported that over 80% of the capital budgets of big brands are spent towards paid search. This is compared to only 20% of the web marketing budgets being spent on SEO. The amazing thing about this disparity is that the organic search results are perceived as more credible than paid advertising and the traffic can be 5 to 7 times higher!
SEO Services Demand and Supply!
There is a huge demand from business owners that need help navigating the web. In part, the solution is SEO but it also includes SEM (Search Engine Marketing) or paid search. Paid search and SEO can also be expanded into 
Social Media and all of these things feed into and off each other. This can be very overwhelming for business owners who are already overworked running their businesses. This is why we are seeing a tremendous demand in the market place for these services and good solution providers are in low supply! The total number of people going to the web is expected to continue to grow especially as fuel prices increase. What is going on now in the world is the information age revolution.
What’s More Important Social or SEO?
This question is not the proverbial chicken or the egg thing. The answer is that market research is the #1 go to web strategy and all business owners should invest in that first. As a business owner you need to focus on the right things and identify where your target market lives on the web. This is the core activity of an SEO practitioner which is market research and competitor analysis. The hyper growth that is occurring in the SEO world is a function of the demand for market research. The flawless execution of a well rounded marketing plan that encompasses SEO, SEM and SMM should be based on comprehensive market research.
We are seeing unprecedented opportunities in the field of Search Engine Optimization and the massive growth in this industry is a function of true demand. The mainstream media has beat the drum of Social Media loud and hard. It is apparent that the search signals are now starting to favor social media signals. However, there is no escaping that in a local market websites need more customers and this takes a comprehensive strategy based on market research.
SEO and online consulting is booming because business owners need help. If you want to learn more about market research and how to navigate the web, contact us at (214) 884-5919
The wave is here and both SEO professionals, business owners and SMM experts can benefit from this New World of Marketing!