Pay to be on top

Companies today want to figure in the top 10 pages of major search engines like Google, Yahoo or MSN and are spending anywhere between Rs 50,000 per annum to as much as Rs 10 lakh a month, depending on how active they are on the internet.

The equation they seek is known as Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), simple "� Keywords equal maximum number of product or company-related queries.

"SEO helps companies in trying to place a website right on top "� the first 10 pages "� of a search engine," explains Vivek Merani, senior manager, Magnon Solutions.

He adds, "As a user, nine out of 10 times, you will only find information through a search engine and not directly on a company website."

Companies insists keywords are not bought and that it is different from sponsored links. The amount is the fee paid by the companies to internet and multimedia agencies, who work on over 250 parameters like keyword popularity, regular information uploads and so on, to ensure that the company information appears in the first 10 pages of the search.

"SEO is very effective to track how much traffic comes from a search engine to the URL (address) and to generate sales. Here, users are assured that they do not fall prey to sponsored links," says Chaya Brian Carvalho, managing director, BC Web Wise.

In India, the concept of SEO first hit India about four years ago. But, industry analysts claim it is only in 2005-2006 that corporates have started adding SEO to their marketing budgets.

"Companies are also now realising that only having a web presence is not enough. What is important is that when somebody uses the internet to seek information concerning the segment they're operating in "� they need to be right on top...or they would just get lost in the internet maze," says Merani.

Industry analysts also point out that SEO helps companies reach across the world and not restrict their reach to national boundaries. For instance, In India, Hertz "� rent a car, is promoting itself through carz on rent to provide car rental services across India, actively through internet enquiries.

But, even if SEO has its own set of advantages, Carvalho cautions that "Companies must realise that buying keywords, and podcasting will boost a company's search engine ranking and its hit rate. It will definitely help the brand attain visibility on the internet and stop it from falling into that dreaded search engine black hole. But SEO is no branding tool!"