Is This The Most Important Mindset In The Web 2.0 World?

The fuss/buzz around Google’s 10th anniversary last week has caused many people, not just the usual ‘Search Geek’ suspects, to review and discuss Google and what it’s all about. If you take the time to read through the Google corporate information and mission statement there’s one keyword that you should index and cache in your head, without the need for one of Google’s server or complicated algorithms:- ‘Relevancy’, in fact you’ll find the word ‘relevant’ 10,100 times on Google.com.

Despite this, it’s staggering how many people haven’t grasped the impact of this word ‘relevancy’ on their business or ambitions.

Traditionally marketing people liked to think of cross selling possibilities, up-selling and impulse purchases opportunities. If you went to someone looking for a hammer, you might also buy some nails and a screwdriver (That’s why Supermarkets are laid out the way they are).

Don’t get me wrong, the same can happen in today’s online world, but when someone is searching for a hammer on a search engine, the statistical probability that they will abandon this search and buy some nails instead is, at best, remote.

A simple search for hammer on Google throws up the possibilities of Horror films, Data Storage, a legendary 1980’s US Rapper, a heavy metal rock band, Communism, Computer Parts and many other variances, aside from our intended target, the eponymous impact tool.

Refining the Hammer Tool search then throws up: – hand operated hammers, machine hammers, framing hammers, demolition hammers, air hammers, metal hammers, wooden hammers, claw hammers, dead blow hammers, sledge hammers, lump hammers, cross-peen hammers, hammer drills, and so on.

Refining our search to hand operated hammers throws up another raft of options and the search process continues.

Users refine their search to become more and more relevant to what they are precisely looking for at the time. Anything else is lost in the periphery.

Relevance is fundamental in natural search but it’s crucial in Paid Search

You can see this effect in Pay Per Click Search Advertising so clearly. If you don’t target your keywords and advertising message with precision, laser-like accuracy, your Click Through Rates will be poor, your quality score will be poor, your minimum bid costs rise and/or your Ads won’t be shown.

The other side to this, is that if you inaccurately target your keywords but your ad copy leads people to believe that your site offers what they want, you will get visitors to your site (and have to pay for the privilege in PPC) but they will leave almost immediately once they realise your site isn’t relevant to their requirements. The resulting high ‘bounce rate’ will adversely affect your quality score, your minimum bid costs will rise, your Ads won’t be shown and your partner will probably leave you and take with them all your possessions.

As an online marketing company, we see this all the time (Though not the last bit too much, thankfully). Sensible, experienced, successful business people who obviously understand their markets and customers, but don’t fully understand the keywords that drive their users and customers to visit their website. ‘Yes’, they say, ‘I know that’s really not exactly what we do, but if someone was looking for that they might be interested in this’. NO! Sorry it just doesn’t work like that.

So you’re talking about relevancy in search, surely web 2.0 is different?

The huge amount of information that is now out there in this web 2.0 world makes relevancy (and search) even more important. Many sites are so huge you almost have no option but to use Google to help you find what you want.

If you think back to the early days of Google, its results weren’t anywhere near as relevant, but then again there weren’t so many web pages out there as there is today. The sheer volume of information now on the web; the way Google has positioned itself as an organiser of information based on the criteria of relevance and the growth of both are inextricably linked.

Which leads us to the information overload question. With so much stuff coming at you, what do you do? Errm, focus on what you want at that particular time, back to Relevance, again.

So what does this mean to me?

It means you have to understand relevance. Which means you need to fully understand your business, your customers and your target customers. Try to articulate exactly what it is you do and what your customers/users value. The start to develop an understanding of the sort of words that your target users/customers will use when looking for you and what you do, and which words will attract them to visit your website not one of your competitors. And then test, analyse and ruthlessly refine your target keywords. And DON’T go thinking that if lots of people are looking for info on Theo Walcott there’s a good chance they may be interested in your site that sells mobile phone cards!

Peter Van Zelst is the founder of Specialist Online Marketing, which runs integrated online marketing campaigns for small to medium sized UK organisations, using PPC, SEO, Email, Affiliate, Social Media and a number of other activities.