Search Engine Promises, What To Ask A Vendor

I do not provide prospective clients recommendations on how we'll help raise their search engine presence; rather I show them the results of our work. Any web development company can learn the lingo or even learn the process of search engine optimization; however, achieving good position in search engines is based on experience.

Benchmarks, See For Yourself

Using Google as a benchmark (Google being the most difficult to achieve good position in) behind Yahoo, MSN, AOL and Ask.com, ask your potential SEO or web development vendor to show you live examples of their search engine optimization work.

Better yet, why not see how the vendor has optimized their own web site for starters. Even though we have clients from as far away as California and Detroit, we have set out to capture a large portion of Virginia-based businesses knowing full-well that people like doing business with a regional or local firm.

For this reason I optimized our site for search phrases like; Virginia web design/ Web Design Virginia/ Virginia Web Designers/ Virginia Web Design Company/ Web design in Hampton Roads/ Web design in Virginia Beach/ Web Design VA and so. You are most likely to find VISIONEFX on the first page.

Search Engine Marketing Versus Email Marketing

Search engine optimization places your service or product in search engines where people are actively seeking them. This is a more effective technique than email marketing because many of the recipients did not request your information and may not open it. Most likely these emails end up in the delete file and your time and money has been wasted.

Here are a few examples of our search engine optimization work.
All search results below are 1st page results in Google. All results may vary based on daily variations in Googles' datacenters.

LIST UPDATED MAY 6. 2008

Google Search Results: National Results across the United States
These are nation wide search results achieved for our clients:
1) www.rourkpr.com:
    also regional and local results...
"public relations company va" #1 (regional)
"political Public relations" #6
"Political PR firms" #5
"government relations firms in Virginia" #4 (MSN)
"political consulting firms" #9
"political consulting companies" (#3 first page in Yahoo)

"public relations Virginia" #1
"public relations company virginia beach" #1

2) www.magellan-ps.com:
"military placement company" #1
"military transition jobs for vets" #6
"opportunities for military officers" #8
"military officer transition assistance" #2 (Yahoo)

3) www.shericolberg.com:
"diabetic athlete" #1 and #10
"diabetic+athlete" #1 and #10
"diabetes exercise books" #3
"diabetic pro athletes" #6
"publications on diabetes and exercise" #10
"diabetic fitness" #10

4) www.wildcatprops.com:
"propellers tuning" #1
"propeller refurbishment" #1
"propeller repair company" #2
"blade pitch" #2 - (MSN)
"prop balancer boats" #4
"propeller tuning" #6
"used propellers for sale" #8

5) www.californiasnackco.com:
"chocolate coated nuts" #1
"gourmet chocolates, nuts and fruit snacks" #1
"gourmet chocolates, nuts: #2

6) www.americantest.com:
" test equipment for sale" #2
"test equipment" #10
"american lightwave systems vm700a" #1
"used huntron test instruments" #1 (Yahoo)
"hf-300 power amplifier" #9

7) www.hofferflow.com:
"turbine flow meter companies in the us" #1 and #2
"turbine flow meter companies" #2 and #2
"turbine flow meter" #3

8) www.astronwireless.com:
"military wireless antennas" #1 (Google, Yahoo)
"commercial wireless antennas" #1 (Yahoo)
"commercial wireless antennas" #3
"LOS antenna polarization" #4
"how horizontal polarization works" #4
"impedance matching for yagi" #8

9) www.allergydocs.net:
"hives, antithyroid" #1
"allergy asthma doctors" #2
"National society of allergy doctors" #4
"allergy specialist+hives" #10
    also regional and local results...
"Allergy Asthma Doctors Virginia" #1
allergy and asthma specialist virginia beach" #1
"Virginia allergy" #3
"allergist in norfolk va" #2 (#1 in local listing)

10) www.topiaries.biz:
"animal topiaries" #1

11) www.cbhelos.com:
"international students helicopter" #2
"J1 visa helicopter school" #2 and #3
"schweizer helicopter schools" #2
"Aerial gas leak detection system" #4
"schweizer 333" #5
    also regional and local results...
"va approved helicopter flight school" #1
"helicopter lessons in virginia" #1
"helicopter flight school virginia" #1 and #2
"helicopter flight school in va" #1 and #2
"helicopter training program in virginia" #2

12) www.cashin30minutes.net:
"same day cash advance" #1 - "same day cash advance no faxing" #1
"cash advance same day" #1
"quick cash" #2 "same day cash" #2 "cash advance in puerto rico" #2
"quick cash advance" #3
"30 day cash advances" #4 - "no credit check cash advance" #4
"cash advances with no credit checks" #10

13) www.iceartva.com:
"ice art" #1
"animal ice sculpture" #1
"monogram ice sculpture" #1
"ice block shooter" #1
"animal ice carving" #2
"food display ideas" #2
"mardi gras ice sculptures" #2

14) www.vicom-corp.com:
"cabling companies" #1
"structured cabling companies" #2
    also regional and local results...
"virginia video conferencing companies" #1
"multimedia companies in virginia" #3
"audio visual companies in va" #1
"structured cabling companies in virginia" #2
"IT infrastructure companies VA" #1
"Security Companies in VA" #3
"video conferencing centers virginia" #4

15) www.allstarbears.com: http://208.112.5.165
"mascot cheerleading bear" #1
"cheerleading bears" #1
"custom teddy bear cheerleader" #4
"Customize Hoodies(cheerleading)" and "cheerleading spirit gifts" #5
"cheer bears" #6
"custom cheerleading gifts" #7

16) www.alaskan-seafoods.com:
"recipe for smoked salmon patties" #1
"smoked salmon patties recipe" #1
"kodiak island silver salmon" #5
"what seafoods are healthy?" #3 (Yahoo)
"kodiak smoked salmon" #4 (Yahoo)
"smoked alaskan salmon dip" #5 (Yahoo)
"alaskan smoked salmon" #6 (Yahoo)
"wild alaskan smoked salmon" #7 (Yahoo)

17) www.easymoneynow.com:
"Money Now Loans" #3
"payday check cashing" (MSN)
    also regional and local results...
"payday loans louisiana" - "payday loans mississippi" #1
"payday loans utah" #4
""payday loans Hawaii" #10

18) www.levinsofvirginia.com:
"brownstone furniture-the bancroft collection" #1
"tempur-pedic beds in virginia" #5
"tempurpedic beds in virginia" #5
"iron brass beds" #6
"Brown Stone, Inc. Furniture" #9

19) www.coolwavecarwash.com:
"how can I clean the road film on my vehicle" #4
"car washes use special soaps, foams, and waxes that can help prevent rust" (AOL Search)
"why should you wash your car before it rains?" #7
"do touch car washes scratch" #7

20) www.valentineobgyn.com:
"may I take shower after leep procedure" #1
"obstetrics in va beach" #2

Google Search Results: by Region, State and/or by US Cities
* Real Estate is an extrememly competitive search term in Virginia. Take a look at these results for one of our real estate clients:

1) * www.perfecthouse.com:
"houses for sale virginia beach" #1
"homes for sale Virginia beach va" #2
"land for sale in virginia beach" #2
"new construction virginia beach va" #2
"land for sale chesapeake, norfolk virginia" #2
"homes for sale virginia beach" #3
"homes for sale hampton roads Virginia" #3
"new home construction virginia beach #5
"real estate for sale in virginia beach" #5
"homes for sale in virginia beach" #7
"homes for sale in hampton roads VA" #10

2) www.dabill.com:
"EMS billing services virginia" #1
"EMS billing company in virginia" #9

3) www.assurance-ltd.com:
"home remodeling companies virginia" #1
"home remodeling companies virginia beach" #1
"vinyl replacement windows virginia beach" #1
"vinyl replacement windows hampton roads" #1
"remodeling company virginia beach" #3 #4
"Roofing Companies Virginia Beach, VA" #6
"Roofing Contractors Virginia Beach" #6

4) www.conklingutters.com
"Hampton Roads Metal Roofing" #1
"Metal Roofing installers in Hampton Roads" #1
"Hampton Roads Metal Roofing installers" #1
"Seamless Gutter Installation VA" #1
"Residential Seamless Gutters virginia beach" #1

5 ) www.virginiacancer.com:
"cancer support groups in hampton roads virginia" #1
"gynecological oncology associates va" #1
"virginia cancer centers" #2
"medical oncology virginia" and "virginia oncology center va" #2
"oncologist doctor in virginia" #7

6) www.janikconstruction.com:
"sunroom installations virginia" #1
"sunroom installations virginia beach" #1 and #2
"custom bathrooms installations virginia beach" #1
"custom sunrooms virginia beach" #1 ahead of "Burgess"
"custom bathrooms virginia beach" #1
"custom bathrooms virginia" #2
"custom bathrooms installations virginia" #2

7) www.tonylondon.com:
"hampton roads/norfolk/virginia beach real estate" #2
"apartment complex for sale norfolk va." #1
"apartment buildings for sale norfolk va" #2
"condos for sale in ghent, norfolk, virginia" #2
"land for sale chesapeake, norfolk virginia" #3
"homes for sale in norfolk va" #7
"apartment complex sale norfolk va beach chesapeake" #10
"new construction homes for sale hampton roads" #10

8) www.classicagent.com:
"land for sale chesapeake, norfolk virginia" #1
"apartment complex sale norfolk va beach chesapeake" #7

9) www.cityhallforall.com:
"virginia beach mayor election" #1
"virginia beach mayor election 2008" #1
"2008 virginia beach housing assessments" #2 (Yahoo)
"virginia beach mayor" #4
"oceana encroachment" #6 (Yahoo)
"2008 mayoral candidates, virginia" #10
"virginia beach real estate tax assesments" #10 (MSN)

10) www.jrwills.com:
"Church Contractors in Hampton Roads Virginia" #1
"Medical Building Contractors Hampton Roads Virginia" #1
"Commercial builders suffolk va" #2
"Commercial Contractors in Hampton Roads, VA" #5
"Commercial Contractors in Suffolk Virginia" #5
"Commercial Builders in Hampton Roads Virginia" #7
"Commercial Contractors in Hampton Roads Virginia" #8
"School Building Contractors Hampton Roads Virginia" #8
"General Contractors Tidewater Virginia" #9


Targeting And Niche Marketing

Are you looking for international search engine position, national search engine position, regional search engine position or local search engine position? It has to be one or the other in order to achieve great results.

Related Articles;

Understanding Search and Design
How Google Determines the Importance of a Web Site
Understanding Search Engines Generates Higher Web Rankings

About the Author
Rick Vidallon is President of Visionefx, a Web design company based in Virginia Beach, Va. They provide services to national companies as well as small to medium businesses throughout the United States.
Rick can be reached at (757) 619-6456 or rick@visionefx.net.