Search engine optimization (SEO), also known as search engine positioning (SEP) and search engine marketing (SEM), is the art and science of increasing your Web site's visibility in the major search properties across a strategically defined set of keywords and phrases that apply to products or services offered on your site.

Traditional search engine optimization services include the following: keyword research and selection, meta tag development and implementation, linking strategy development and implementation, directory listing development and submission, Web page submission and campaign results reporting.

Why You Need It
The potential for companies marketing their products, services or information online is enormous. The Web is growing at an exponential rate. There are currently in excess of 5 billion Web documents, increasing at a rate of roughly 7 million per day. Every day, Web users utilize the major search properties to launch over 400 million queries for products, services and information solutions. So unless you’re doing something to make your Web appear more visible than the millions of others competing for attention, that site is no more prominent than a single star lost among a vast universe of content.

A recent survey conducted by Vertical Leverage found that search engines beat all other media in driving visitors to Web sites, with 77 percent of Internet users employing search engines to find Web sites. Furthermore, 78 percent of users will abandon their query if the first three (3) pages of results do not yield an answer to their question. Even more amazing, fully 33 percent of users believe companies found in top search results are a major brand in their specific product/service category -- indicating that top rankings transmit brand equity. So your Web site must be found prominently within the search results of all the major search properties in order to capitalize on the behaviors of people searching for product or service solutions online.

The Vertical Leverage Difference
Vertical Leverage’s customized approach to search engine optimization includes each of the standard elements mentioned above, but we go far beyond those fundamentals to include additional highly-customized services: visibility gap analysis, traffic risk mitigation, paid inclusion management, web site review and analysis, competitive analysis and strategy, web site strategy, and benchmarking & measurement.

As professional marketers ourselves, we approach each highly customized campaign by asking a series of questions, including:

• What are your goals for your search engine marketing campaign?
• What part will search engine positioning play in the marketing of your Web site?
• Are there different sections of your Web site that will appeal to different audiences?
• Who are your competitors?

We ask questions like these because Vertical Leverage is uniquely qualified, among all the companies who offer search engine optimization services, to adjust and gear our approach to whatever your unique needs and specific goals. Our key differentiators include: research dedicated to providing leading-edge keyword science to the selection of the keywords on which you optimize your site; technology tools developed over the lifetime of our company that provide our staff with superior means to plan, implement, manage and measure the industry-leading results of your search engine optimization campaign; and the skills of our staff of highly-trained, highly-experienced marketing and technology professionals whose sole purpose is to help you succeed.