An investor’s guide to search engine optimization (SEO)

Search engine optimization is about getting a website to rank higher in search engines.  The goal is to increase web traffic without having to pay for ads.

This primer on search engine optimization is relevant to these stocks:

  • RetailMeNot (SALE)
  • Demand Media (DMD)
  • Search engines (GOOG, Yahoo Japan, IACI/Ask.com, MSFT/Bing)
  • Phone book companies (YLO.TO, DXM)
  • Somewhat relevant to online e-commerce companies (AMZN)

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Online advertising (GOOG, FB, etc.)

I believe that online advertising offers significant value compared to traditional advertising because online advertising can be tracked very easily.  Internet advertisers can track the click-through rate on their ads and how many of those clicks convert into a sale.  This gives instant feedback on the ad’s return on investment.  Advertisers can optimize their advertising budget to maximize their profits and split-test different ads and landing pages (the webpage that the ad points to).

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