Julian Drake 
In the information age, we won’t look far to find what we are looking for
When you opened this blog were you expecting an article solely about SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and SEM (Search Engine Marketing)? Well, I won’t completely disappoint but there is more to the story.
To have a conversation about being “found online” we need to define Found – well, “found” as Hilenium sees it.
Defining Found: When your customer opened their browser in search of a Product, Service or Information (PSI), did they find the PSI they were looking for on your website?
How you’re found – stage one
The first stage of Found typically happens off-page. The user’s search may begin actively in a search engine or passively via a Facebook Ad presented to them in their Newsfeed.
What does stage one of Found cost?
How much does your website cost to be Found? Although costs-per-click average several dollars in certain industries, being Found quickly becomes expensive.
The conversion rate is the first consideration. According to Google, the average Adwords conversion rate is 2.7%, while the conversion rate for display advertising is even less at 0.89%.
To simplify this, you’ll have to fork out $37 to get a conversion on your website. Not every business has this kind of capital to play with to secure conversions. High converting websites and industries can see that conversion rate increase to over 10%. Consequently, this can represent a three-quarter reduction in effective marketing cost per sale.
This is why Found matters and why optimising the on-site experience may save advertising spend.
An important optimisation that can be made is ensuring your website is blazingly fast. If your hosting with Hilenium we’ve got you covered. Conversely, If you’re not, talk to us about getting Fast.
When Found doesn’t cost
Getting your website Found can be low-cost if it’s organic. What do we mean by that? It means you appear in the search engine results page (SERP) naturally without paying for it. This version of Found isn’t always enough. You need in the top three results (or near enough). How so? The first organic links on a SERP gets 32% click-through, the second gets 18% and the third obtains 11%, meaning the first three results are acquiring 60% of the search traffic. As you can see, some “Founds’ are better than others.
If your website is found organically, it’s going to save you vital ad spend.
If you retain these savings in your business, you release capital to explore other marketing opportunities. If you pass the savings on to your customers by making your product or service cheaper, more people are likely to purchase it and spread the word. This is why Found matters.
How you’re found – stage two
The second stage of Found begins once a user has entered your website. There are two major factors that drive stage two of Found. Firstly, does the website’s navigation, filtering and search functionality make it easy for your user to find their PSI? The first stage is mostly the responsibility of your web designer, developer, UX or digital marketing manager.
The second factor of on-page Found is speed, as we like to call it “Fast”. Unless the PSI happens to be the phone number at the top of the page, the UX is going to require the user to visit subsequent pages.
If this experience is plain tardy, they may endure it for a few page clicks. However, if it’s downright slow, it’s easier to simply click the browser back button and return to Google. Our companion blog article Why a Fast Website Matters touches further on the issue.
Why Found matters
Optimising being found for paid advertising will reduce your marketing cost. Optimising being found for free in organic search will reduce your marketing costs even further. Optimisation for your user’s on-page product, service or information Found experience will increase your conversion rates. This is why Found matters.