Leverage Blog: How to Exploit the Web.

Search Engine Optimization - Get Started Early

I read this morning that large businesses are spending more money advertising on Google, MSN and Yahoo! than last year.  (Called "pay-per-click" advertising.  Learn More.)

What can we learn from this move?  The market research teams at the biggest companies around believe that search engines lead to sales.  And they are making the investment.

For many clients, I like search engine optimization (SEO) more than pay-per-click.  Once our site appears on the first couple pages of search results we don't pay every time someone clicks-- a much more affordable tactic over the long term.  Article is below.

See some SEO results  GO>>

Original Article:

Retailers increased their search spending on Google, Yahoo! and MSN by about one-third in the first half of Q4, compared to the same period in 2007, SearchIgnite is reporting. Retailers increased their search marketing buys by 58% from October to mid-November...Read More (Free registration may be required.)

New website for Sun Marble

We've recently launched a new website for Sun Marble, a natural stone company in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Our experience with consumers searching for granite or marble online was clear:  Make it easy for the visitor to fall in love with the stone.

How did we do it?  First we created a smart search tool.  Search for all granite, or only varities with blue or green colors...from Brazil and China.  We appeal to the visitor who knows just what they are looking for as well as the customer just browsing.

Next, each product features a big, beautiful image of the stone, and (here's the key) a prominent link to "Check Availability."  Our goal is to inspire visitors to become leads by making contact, and how better to do it than a clear link next to the product they have fallen for?

A database manages all the products, and the staff at Sun can easily modify their online catalog.  Pretty cool stuff.

Take a look at www.sunmarble.com.

New Work for Cricket

Wheel Media recently launched a new website for Cricket, the global leader in salon shears and products.  I'll spare you the puns when describing our cutting-edge work (oops, that one slipped...) and keep it simple.

The new site contains hundreds of products and detailed information on each.  We used a programming structure that is especially friendly to search engines, because the broad range of product brands in the Cricket family are well known in the salon industry.

We opted for very large detail views of products because we want the visitor to see and appreciate the quality and precision in the product design.

Next, we created an easily searchable database of suppliers, moving our visitors seamlessly from browsing to purchase.  To stay top-of-mind with our clients and coordinate efforts at tradeshows and events we envisioned an email marketing campaign.  We'll use rich HTML emails for promotions, product launches and more, and the back-end will manage the mailing and tracking of each campaign.

You'll also find a pretty engaging animated product tour on the homepage.  Thanks to all the sharp folks at Cricket for their work on the project.

Take a look at www.cricketco.com.