Act now to be top of the Christmas searches

Just 96 days till Christmas – and counting.

Now I'm one of those horribly organised people who makes the Christmas Cake in August (yes, already done and stored away!) But even I was shocked to see Christmas crackers already on the supermarket shelves at the beginning of September.

Nevertheless, if you’re selling online, planning for the Christmas season has already started, or at least it should have.

Customers start to look for Christmas gifts earlier than you think – just seeing crackers in Sainsburys can be enough to start them searching – and your website needs to be ready before they think about it!

Here at Propellernet we've been discussing Christmas for a while, with the Natural Search team totally caught up in researching keywords, checking historical data and helping clients maximise their potential.

With Natural (sometimes called Organic) Search, web pages take time to get indexed and ranked - especially if the pages or products are brand new.

This means that if you want to enjoy a very merry non-denominational celebration, you need to act now. Here are five quick tips:

1. Start Early - but start subtly. In September, don't assail visitors with snow, tinsel and .mpg files of Slade.

2. Do your Research - if the hottest present this year is going to be something you don’t sell, for example a bath spa kit, you may still offer something related, like bubble bath. Describe it as spa product to take advantage of search traffic.

3. Think Links - links are important for all sorts of reasons and Christmas is a great time to get them - offer tips, freebies and games and remember that a link isn't just for Christmas.

4. Imagine you're the Searcher - people not only look for 'Gymkhana Barbie' but also for 'Christmas present for girl who likes horses' – so include both phrases in your copy.

5. Conversion, Conversion, Conversion - website visitors are worthless unless they become customers. Make sure your site is usable and navigable and that you can fulfil orders.
 

Search Wars: how will it affect us?

Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, the Microsoft empire was all powerful. Emperor Gates laughed to see how easy it was to keep the former Apple kingdom in check. Old King Jobs of Apple despaired.

Until one day, a new force emerged. The Republic of Google started to worry Microsoft. Google didn’t have much in the way of warships, weaponry or the like. But it owned something very valuable and useful: the search engine.

Suddenly, everybody wanted it. Microsoft was afraid, and decided to retaliate by creating its own search engine.

But before long, Google formed an alliance with the old Apple kingdom, and the stage was set for a showdown: the Microsoft Empire vs the Apple-Google Rebel Alliance… who would win?

Last month we brought you news of Microsoft’s new pay per click search service, MSN AdCenter, due to be launched in August. Sure enough, it’s now undergoing testing and with the mighty resources of Microsoft behind it, MSN AdCenter will almost certainly soon be strong competition for Google Adwords. 

But Google isn’t taking things lying down. Last month saw an interesting development as Google CEO Eric Schmidt was appointed to the board of Apple.

To be honest, we think the interesting thing about all this is not so much what’s happening on a strategic level, but what it’s all going to mean to you and us. Our feeling is that competition in the paid search arena can only be a good thing, in that it can help keep down click prices. And if all the parties come out of it a bit less powerful and monolithic, surely that too will mean a better service and better value for you, the customers. Watch this space.

Star Rewards September: music to your ears (and ours)

Do you know anyone who could benefit from our services? Tell them about Propellernet this month and if they become a client then a spanking new iPod Nano could be yours.

Plus, you and they get to be part of our ever-growing stellar network of clients and partners. No time to lose - jump on the rocket and enjoy the ride.

As a ‘thankyou’ for referrals, choose from these Star Rewards for September:

1. Music to your ears: an iPod Nano  …more

2. Muchas gracias: a Gourmet Madrid Hamper …more

3. Chi chi in the city: a weekend at The Lansdowne Place …more 

PS You don’t have to be a newsletter subscriber or Propellernet Client to qualify for a Star Reward, so please tell a friend or colleague all about it.