Get your message where it will meet demand. This is one of the leading ideas behind marketing online today but many people are too focused on that component (SEO). It isn’t everything. It’s only the beginning.

Online marketing for complex products is an end-to-end process and a great deal of follow through is required throughout the site and then off line with lead management. Specialties have been developed for each part of the process and each has to be given it’s proper attention.

SEO is just the start and it must be followed up with attractive design, great content generation, a great lead generation plan, and an excellent lead management system.

I sometimes think of the commercial internet like a house where online marketers hang out waiting and hoping for customers to visit and knock on the door. It’s kind of backwards, I know, but in this scenario both parties are happy to meet.

When salespeople knock on your door, are you glad they are there or do you peek out your window and stand still for a moment thinking, “maybe he didn’t see me walk by the window”?

Knock Knock Knock

So, customers arrive and knock on the door (via Google) and anywhere from 1 to 1,239,827 sellers (usually about 18 including the ones who pay to be near the front of the line) run to the door and swing it open like Kramer flailing their arms and evangelizing their messages - which come across something like:

1. Keyword here a lot and obviously what you want…
2. Answer you want (keyword) kind of…
3. I clearly you answer have maybe keyword…
4. Sorry, #1 got picked (slumps shoulders)

Keep in mind there are thousands of other sellers in that house and some of them might work for excellent companies but most of them are really lazy and prefer to play video games, drink beer, and digg instead of preparing themselves to answer the door. It takes work, fellow online marketers.

#1 - Hollow Information

Now that #1 has been chosen (based largely on how great he told the folks at Google he is), he gets a chance to tell the customer about his products but can’t really show much valuable information. You see, he makes similar products and has information about what the customer wants but he does not really know much about them - and certainly doesn’t supply them. He has excellent literature and even has the label on his shirt and a nice card but he doesn’t know jack.

#2 - No Follow Through

#1 is quickly ushered back inside and #2 is jerked outside by his collar. “Ok, go!” says the customer. Luckily, #2 is very good at displaying information about his products clearly and knows everything you would ever want to know about them and spends a while exploring all the amazing stats and details of the product. The customer is all hyped up and ready to go!

But, alas, the customer’s excitement fades as he watches #2 fumble for a business card (”uhh, it was right here, err, uhh”). He has a piece of paper with an email address on it and a location address but the customer would like to see a nice form and maybe even call the sales office. They don’t seem to want phone calls - or something.

#3 - Best of the Most Important

#2 is sadly pushed back inside. Distraught, but even more knowledgeable about the product, the tired customer asks #3 to come outside and so he does - with a friendly smile and holding a clear and crisp brochure with every possible method of contact on every page. The product the customer wants is right there and nice ol’ #3 even gives him a little contact form (short but clear) which he happily submits.

Sales Lead Generated - Time to Follow Up

#3 generated a sales lead from the customer and should now contact a salesperson to follow up. There is more to be done but there is a very good chance the customer will not keep looking for more suppliers - especially if the sales team follows up on the sales lead exceptionally fast.

Conversion Rate is More Important Than SEO

Those of you who keep up with Lead Optimize have heard this message before. It is even on the sidebar (upper-right). A Lead Optimized site gets more sales per visitor at any level of traffic meaning each additional gain in traffic will be more effective.

Unless you have almost zero traffic, increase your conversion rate first, then improve SEO. Improving search engine optimization and PPC campaign effectiveness is always important but a site that effectively converts traffic into leads will typically do so at any level of targeted traffic. As a starting point, lead optimization is more cost-effective than SEO.

It is nice to have people visit but you have to be a good host for them to buy what you’re selling.

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