Don’t Believe Everything Just Because It’s On Google’s Page One

I have asked several people this simple question: How many of you go to Page Two on Google after a search enquiry? Their answers were unanimous. They don’t go further than Page One. Moreover, they don’t even scroll to the bottom of the first page!

Why am I raising this as an issue?

For those who are unaware of how marketing works or what your advertising representatives do in order to gain better traction for your product or service, the same people I interviewed also said that they do not even bother with the “sponsored” adverts that appear first – and I am using the word “appear” very deliberately here. It appears as if these “results” are what Google deems as a trusted site on which to click.

More on this:

Paid-for advertising – let’s talk about this for a minute.

The only way forward an advertising agency or PR company can lift your brand name is by using money to buy advertising space. This is not rocket science. With the more money you have to use to market your product, the more your product will have a chance to reach a wider audience. It’s a numbers game.

Organic advertising, if it works, is the authentic deal. Users should trust more in the organic discoveries on search engines; but alas! none of us do.

However, organic discoveries can also be manipulated through SEO-enhanced writing. The blogs written for companies can reach an organic standing, eventually; but it takes a lot of time.

Money, in the end, is what gains the most traction and the most customers. I could take your brand, provided you had a budget worthy of my skills, and I could put your brand in the forefront of everyone in your industry, making your brand name the number one brand everyone ought to be using. Think of a two-page spread in a glossy magazine speaking about how wonderful you or your product is? That would make people think, act and purchase.

Let’s pretend for a moment

Let’s pretend for a moment that you googled “boxing trainer to lose weight”. Now, in reality, there may very well be the best trainer around the corner from where you live, but has no advertising savvy or social media presence – perhaps he posted a blog or was published for an award ten years ago, and is now on Page 3. You would never know he exists. You would go for one of the first three after the “sponsored adverts”.

Can the truly organically-earned traders ever be justly rewarded?

This leads to a troubling question

Can you, the user, really trust what you read on the first page of Google? Think about it for a second … could the excellently-presented, top-of-the-page website just have been written by a brilliant marketer?

I have posted this, but I feel troubled because I do not have a solution to provide. I merely have posed questions. Perhaps the system is not perfect. Perhaps those who do not have the budgets others have need to try even harder.

As always if you need help with writing, editing or proofreading, contact [email protected] or call +27712307888.

I am an independent content consultant with over sixteen years’ experience.

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