Being discoverable is what the internet is all about. It means putting yourself about a bit, so that your customers can find you. The more places you can be found, the more your customers will find you.
It's the equivalent of putting a postcard in the post office window advertising your services. The more post offices and shops the postcard is in, the better chance you have of being discovered. This is what being discoverable means. This is a metaphor for search engine marketing.
You don't need to be a computer guru to get your head around this. Even if you don't know how to do this yourself, at the very least you now understand what you are trying to achieve, and that is - you want to be found. You want to be found anywhere and everywhere that your customers hang out. When customers can find you, they can buy from you.
In this article I am going to discuss the initial steps that need to be taken on the journey to discovery which makes a website discoverable by search engines which is known as search engine optimization or SEO, using search keywords.
Search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN play a major role in discovery and are the place that most of your customers go when trying to find services and products like yours. The words your customers enter are called search terms. Search engines match search terms to websites they have listed, or indexed in their database.
When searching, customers type in a string such as 'cheap flights' and press the search button. Search engines return a list of sites that they think are most relevant for the search term 'cheap flights'. For the purpose of this article, it is sufficient to say that search engines will search through their database for websites containing the words 'cheap flights'.
The words 'cheap' and 'flights' are called keywords. All sites returned will contain these words somewhere on the site. Any website that doesn't contain theses keywords will not be returned, even though it may be relevant. If a site owner preferred the term 'low cost airline' over 'cheap flights', their website would not appear in the results of the 'cheap flights' search - what a pity.
Talk the talk. It's the first thing a website must accomplish to become discoverable and is a major goal in search engine marketing - SEM. Talking the talk means using the search keywords and search terms that your customers use, word for word.
In the example above, any site involved in airline travel needs to include the keywords 'cheap flights' if they have this service to offer, and if those are the words that customers use to search for that service.
This is a new phenomenon in the world of marketing, known as search engine marketing. If you want to be discoverable online - you need to mirror the words that your customers use. You are not free to choose these keywords, because if they don't match your customers search terms - you won't be found. This doesn't apply to global brands because everybody knows who they are and will search for them by name.
Small to medium sized enterprises do not have this luxury. Do not be fooled by the results of searching for your own website address. Yes - you are top of the list - problem is - nobody knows your website address - so their not going to search for it.
Your site needs to be found for the services and products you sell, and the first step to discoverability is to describe them using the search terms and search keywords that customers use to discover them.
Related Articles
Search Engine Marketing - Hang Out And Be Found - Walk the Walk
By: Stuart Atkinson | 16/04/2008 | SEM
Cost effective website Search Engine Marketing - SEM, to boost visibility and drive profit. Be discoverable; you talk the talk with SEO, now walk the walk with our online marketing guide. Hang out where your customers hang out and be discoverable.
Search Engine Marketing
By: ajay | 10/10/2007 | SEO
This article is a complete guide to search engine marketing. All the strategies practiced in search engine marketing.
Why SEO Must Be Included in An Internet Marketing Campaign?
By: Cheow Yu Yuan | 17/05/2008 | SEO
If you are planning to run an internet marketing campaign for your website, you must include search engine optimization (SEO) in your plan. SEO is the process of getting your website to appear high on the organic listings of search engines, by fine-tuning your website architecture and getting more back links to your website...
X Files of Online Marketing
By: Erkan Meydanlioglu,Mr | 10/10/2007 | Online Business
A traditional profile of online marketers as:
1)Young people with old appearance and body because of working hard or tracking their competitives.
2)Always busy minded to think new and creative campaign ideas to increase sales and revenues.
3)Always wears black sun glasses, this is not because of spying just to hide the black lines under eyes.
4)They drive luxury cars slowly because their mind is still busy about if his campaign needs some optimization or modification.
4 Effective Search Engine Optimization Practices
By: Cheow Yu Yuan | 17/05/2008 | SEO
Search engine optimization is the most effective way to drive traffic to your website. By maximizing the benefits that search engine optimization bring, you will be able to yield lots of earnings for your business...
The Four Secrets of Successful PPC Campaigns
By: Barbara Fischer | 16/07/2007 | Marketing
Over the past decade, online marketing has become an integral part of most businesses’ marketing strategies. In particular, Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) have become one of the most common channels for any business to sell its products and services. In this article, I will share some insights into successful SEM and SEO campaigns.
How to Use your Sem Campaign as a Long Term Sales Tool
By: Barbara Fischer | 16/07/2007 | Marketing
So, you’ve run your one month trial search engine marketing campaign and received your first sales enquiries. Now you can simply sit back and watch the business roll in… right? Wrong! The trial gets you started in the world of SEM, but the first month is just a taste of what is to come.
How to Improve Your Search Engine Rankings and Get More Traffic?
By: Cheow Yu Yuan | 17/05/2008 | SEO
Obtaining high search engine rankings for keywords that are closely related to your business is essential if you want to get more traffic to visit your website. The traffic from search engines are people who are searching for the service or product that you are selling, making them highly qualified leads for your business...
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
We will boost your sales
By: Helen | 20-07-2008
Does anyone looking for a reliable and yet productive SEO company?
How do I set up my own PHYSICAL DNS??
By: Reloaded | 20-07-2008
How do I set up my own PHYSICAL DNS??
I want a physical one, as in Modem, Firewall and Server, not a virtual one.
Ending of Dr. Horrible
By: triciamcdent | 20-07-2008
What did you think of the ending of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog?
[SPOILER ALERT! Avert your eyes, if you haven't seen Act III.]
Did Penny have to die? Does Dr. Horrible belong in the Evil League of Evil? Is Joss Whedon messing with our minds?
Are there any entirely IM or VoIP -based p2p ...
By: drabsv | 18-07-2008
Are there any entirely IM or VoIP -based p2p support services? That is services like Yedda, only that the communication happens in real time, on chat or via Skype?
I know of IRC software support rooms and http://qunu.com but I am looking for something more advanced, for instance a database where you can tag yor question (without writing it, tags alone), leave your IM details, take advantage of a tag-matching system like here on Yedda and wait to be contacted on your personal IM client.
Multimap search campaign?
By: affilimate | 16-07-2008
Multimap are number 1 in google for "maps"? I'm interested to know what type of search terms they are struggling to get ranked for?
Since you have Internet, you write less or more?
By: qzmaster591 | 09-07-2008
Since you got internet, the number of postcards and letters increased, decreased or stayed the same?
Q&A Powered by:
Latest SEO Articles
Recycle the Traffic to Your Website
By: G.Entp29 | 25/07/2008
Last but not the least, joining various web forums and various online communities at blogs, can be another effective way to increase website traffic. The key here again is to build a strong reputation for you in the online community. Visit as many blogs as you can and leave a genuine comment there. Do not forget to add the link to your website in your comment. Likewise, in order to increase website traffic, you can also join some good online communities that are interested in your niche in vario
How To Get The Most Out Of Your Blog
By: Jonathan Hook | 25/07/2008
Blogging is the day's buzzword and you really need to get on the blogging train if you want to make some cool cash in a small time. Are you interested in finding out how you can make the most out of your blog? Keep reading then.
Why Optimizing Title Tags, it is Important
By: G.Entp29 | 25/07/2008
One other lucrative point that Ad Word Analyzer revealed to me that succeeded in motivating me to research this anomalie further. One thousand four hundred and ten people searched the keyword phrase "optimizing title tags page" last month and I am sure about the same amount of people will do the same this month.
Link Popularity Will Increase Your Page Rank
By: Praveen Kumarii | 25/07/2008
An extremely large number of web masters are in a quandary. They have spent huge amounts on getting beautifully designed pages with the latest software and animation and they also offer the best products and services. Why then isn’t anybody paying their sites a visit? Every day, thousands of websites are launched on the ever growing World Wide Web.
Getting Help From A Successful Internet Marketing Company
By: Phoenix Delray | 24/07/2008
This article discusses about the advantages of having an internet marketing company help you in building traffic to your site and increase your rankings.
Desirable Alternatives to the Big Three
By: Sandi Baker | 24/07/2008
There are alternatives for ranking your niches and getting your site noticed. I will explain how each of these work, the benefits, and who they are. Then you can reap the rewards.
Why Optimizing is Important - Title Tags
By: G.Entp30 | 24/07/2008
One other lucrative point that Ad Word Analyzer revealed to me that succeeded in motivating me to research this anomalie further. One thousand four hundred and ten people searched the keyword phrase "optimizing title tags page" last month and I am sure about the same amount of people will do the same this month. Which means there is a market out there of people that need information to bring them up to speed on search engine optimization. Ad Word Analyzer is warming up for my next Google Adwords
"professional Seo” is Dedicated to Delivering Quality SEO Results
By: Guinanie Almonte | 24/07/2008
The professional SEO (search engine optimization) knows that if you want to be found in the top of the search results for a competitive keyword term, you have to cover all your basics and more
Internet 
