Search marketing beyond the search engines | Search Optimization Marketing (SOM)
Search Optimization Marketing (SOM)
Many online searches do not use a search engine. A person many times just follows links from one article to the other. The links in the blog are a good example. Search Optimization Marketing (SOM), a term that came into use in the mid 1990s, is a comprehensive holistic online marketing approach to making websites, forums, podcasts and other online content easy to search for and find. These marketing efforts are not restricted to just the search engines and even include more traditional marketing efforts that are designed to make locating the desired relevant content easier to find.
Search Optimization Marketing efforts does include, but are not limited to, search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM). Search optimization marketing includes traditional directories, local directories, press releases, social bookmarking, links from other sites, using targeted URLs in traditional advertising, online video, podcasts, banner ads, targeted landing pages and much more. This is based on the reality that a users search encompasses many other methods beyond the search engines. Search optimization marketing also includes usability design standards, and understandable navigation features. SOM also takes advantage of folksonomy and enables social influencers that recommend targeted relevant content such as sites like Digg, Reddit and Technorati.
Search optimization marketing best practices requires that special provisions be made not only at the site level but in all aspects of a company’s marketing efforts to enable and enhance all aspects of the search experience. This means making content locatable with or with out the search engines and incorporates a wide range of tactics and practices.
To read some of our past blogs visit our previous blog at Search Engine Marketing - Search Engine Optimization BLOG.
