Southampton SEO Company Triumphs at Best Business Awards

Impact Media are celebrating their second award in as many months. Their latest success came at the Best Business Awards where they scooped the award for Best Customer Focus.

In an industry as competitive as Search Engine Marketing, independent recognition such as this is incredibly important to professional service providers and Hampshire SEO agency, Impact Media, are certainly no exception. These sentiments were echoed in the comments by the company’s Managing Director, Ben Norman, following this latest accomplishment:

“This is a fantastic achievement for us. We’ve got a small team here at Impact Media, but we’re dedicated to providing the highest levels of service for our clients; our success at the Best Business Awards shows that our hard work is paying off.”

Mr Norman continued by saying “With our award for Outstanding Online Marketing at the Global Business Excellence Awards last month and this latest recognition for Best Customer Focus, we have achieved impressive industry acknowledgement of the work that we do. There’s no room for complacency though. Our success at the Best Business Awards will spur us on to bigger and better things in the future.”

The Best Business Awards are chaired by a panel of over 20 industry experts, each of whom have previously triumphed in their category. Winners are selected across a full range of disciplines in both the public and private sectors, with Impact Media joining an illustrious list of past winners .

From their offices on the outskirts of Southampton, Impact Media have created a reputation for getting visible results for their clients. The sole focus of the company is to improve websites rankings within the major search engines, helping them to gain more online visibility and improve traffic levels. Their specialist expertise and ethical SEO practises have seen significant improvements for numerous Internet businesses.

Search Engine Marketing itself is a very broad service, incorporating a number of facets that will ultimately strengthen a site and improve its ranking performance. In order to provide the best results, you need the knowledge and experience of optimising websites; something that Impact Media have in abundance. Their Best Business Awards success shows that they are not only achieving results for clients, but are also providing an equally high level of customer service to match.

The Southampton based company are also a specialist Pay per Click management services provider using qualified staff and are a Google AdWords Qualified Company.

Whilst most companies don’t work solely to gain awards, the recognition that they afford provides welcome reassurance that they’re doing something right. SEO is all about improving a website’s strength position gradually by fine tuning the component parts; Impact Media as a company are much the same, gaining skills, knowledge and expertise right across the team to help provide a higher standard of service for clients. The Best Customer Focus award is testament to these continuing efforts.

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Retailers Predicted To Have A Merrier Christmas Online Than On The High Street

Almost everyone will be shopping online for Christmas presents this year, according to a new survey by eDigitalResearch and IMRG. The results of the latest e-Customer Service Index (eCSI) reveal that consumer confidence in online shopping has grown as 93% of people plan to click online for their Christmas gifts this year, with more than a quarter planning to do more shopping online than last year.

As the key retail benchmark indicator, the survey of 2,804 people asked questions about their shopping habits in the run up to Christmas. Results show that increasing numbers of people are flocking online with 71% even prepared to do half or more of their shopping online this Christmas.

However, the findings also support current assumptions that price will continue to dominate the online marketplace, as people are prepared to shop around to get the best deals. Competition for business will be fierce as 88% of people are expected to research and price-compare before they buy, with almost a quarter of them researching while in-store or at home via their mobile phones.

The research indicates that despite price being the main influencing factor, customer’s still expect to get a good service. In light of the threat of Royal Mail strike action, 60% of consumers are confident that they will receive their gifts on time. Price competitiveness can also be offset through improvements in customer service queries, given that customer satisfaction has dropped to 74% this year.

Chris Russell, Director of eDigitalResearch comments: “Given the online price-war, retailers need to up their game and prove that they can respond effectively to all customer queries through their preferred method of contact. Having good communication with consumers is vital as it encourages trust in the brand and engenders consumer loyalty. Retailers that will succeed are those that anticipate online growth and ensure that they are well-resourced to effectively communicate with their customers.”

James Roper, CEO of IMRG comments: “People are set to deck the halls with online shopping this Christmas, the internet clearly being the first place most of us go to find, buy and organise everything these days. Younger shoppers are already buying pretty much everything online, so retailers may do well to focus on older shoppers – a growing sector, with more money to spend – increasing the type size is generally a good start. And with increasing numbers of people using the internet for ‘window shopping’, it is clear that retailers can do more to convert lookers into bookers.”

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National Express Appoint SEO Specialists iThinkMedia

National Express, the transport group has selected SEO specialist iThinkMedia to take charge of all Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) for both their Coach and Portal websites, which offer online bookings and information on the transport group’s coach, bus, train and airport transfer services.

Michelle Gledhill, Ecommerce Acquisition Manager for National Express said “iThinkMedia were the obvious choice as our SEO supplier. They showed great knowledge and provided a clear and concise strategy on how National Express can increase their natural search presence and encourage natural growth online.”

Chris Ailey, Managing Director of iThinkMedia added “National Express is a great example of how our approach to SEO appeals to large organisations that already have a strong brand presence online but are looking to attract new customers through targeted optimisation of areas where visibility could be strengthened in the Natural Search listings.”

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Bigmouthmedia Wins Travolution Award for Best Use of SEO

Bigmouthmedia's innovative collaboration with luxury travel operator Kuoni has seen the agency win the prestigious Travolution Award for the best search marketing campaign of the year.

Walking away with the coveted prize for Best Use of search engine optimisation, Europe's largest independent digital marketing agency was recognised for an international campaign that saw Kuoni enjoy a 100% increase in number one search rankings while achieving outstanding ROI. Praising the strategy for delivering a 104% increase in total unique search visitors within a year, a panel of experts singled out the project as an example of industry best practice.

"This was a fantastic demonstration of when SEO and user experience work hand-in-hand to create a powerful new proposition, especially with Kuoni's new i-Travel proposition. The agency met all the client's objectives and produced premium results with a clear return-of-investment," said a panel spokesman.

Beating stiff competition from ambergreen, iCrossing, Latitude and Greenlight, bigmouthmedia's campaign was selected for its implementation of constantly evolving SEO strategies including the use of social media releases and the exploitation of synergies between Kuoni's PPC strategy and its search marketing activities.

"Our campaign was aimed at increasing search engine visibility, traffic and revenues, and I'm delighted that its success on all fronts has been rewarded with such a prestigious honour. Our internal staff have worked closely with bigmouthmedia throughout to deliver a particularly complex strategy, and this award is a richly deserved accolade for all involved," said Joanna Edmunds, Kuoni's Commercial Director.

Matt Rooke, eBusiness Director at Kuoni, added: "The statistics speak for themselves. Results like the 69% increase in organic search engine traffic we delivered over a single year have helped us achieve outstanding ROI on this campaign, while our use of innovative link building activities to increase rankings for targeted keyphrases and video listings has seen us earn first page rankings in Google for over 90% of our targeted keywords"

The Travolution prize rounds off a successful week for bigmouthmedia on the awards circuit. On Tuesday September 29th, the agency learned that it has also been nominated for Agency of the Year at the 2009 Marketing Industry Network Awards.

"I'm delighted to see our campaign recognised in this way. It's a tribute to the very talented team that worked side-by-side with Kuoni on a constantly evolving campaign that used the very latest search technologies to great effect," said Anneli Ritari, Senior Travel Strategist at bigmouthmedia.
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'The SEO Song' - Showing the Importance of Professional Web Design & Online Marketing

The Creare Group, a company consistently dedicated to practising White Hat SEO techniques, have released a brand new music video to accompany 'The SEO Song'. It is designed to help educate businesses about the dangers of companies who promise immediate and organic results in the search engines that they just can't achieve. There are so many SEO firms who practise 'black hat' techniques, it can be hard to know exactly where to start when you need to find a company who can help you.

With their vast technical know-how and fully developed teams dedicated to search engine optimisation, website design and e-commerce web design, The Creare Group are in a great position to help educate others. In such an unregulated industry, with no official external standards, it is easy for companies to get away with manipulating and deceiving innocent potential customers.

The Creare Group are launching this campaign to raise awareness about these issues, and to ensure SEO comes to the forefront of public attention.

Just some of the falsehoods spread by those companies that thrive on using illegitimate techniques include: being affiliated with Google, guaranteeing front page or top position results in a limited time span and failing to properly explain the difference between pay-per-click and organic SEO campaigns. The Creare Group feel so strongly about the widespread black-hat SEO underworld, that they are making it their mission to educate small to medium businesses about these dangers.

A music video is an innovative and exciting way to publicise this message by reaching out to the masses without the technical jargon. Starring home-grown talent in the form of their very own expert web designer Michael Angrave, and the rest of his band 'Charlie And The Martyrs', this could be the best possible way to ensure all businesses understand the need to use honest SEO firms. The video was filmed in house, as The Creare Group pride themselves on their versatility, in addition to their skills with regard to SEO and Web Design.

Lead vocalist Michael Angrave comments; "It's not every day you get the opportunity to make and record a pop song and music video, so naturally, when we came up with the idea, I was more than happy to offer my input. I think the song itself is a fun take on what we do as a company, which is to make a difference to people's businesses and lives."

As a company whose search engine results are all natural and fully above board, The Creare Group feel so passionately that through the medium of music they want to amuse, educate and, above all, spread the word, so that no other businesses are exploited by the practices of black hat SEO firms.

"At Creare, we find nothing more soul destroying than when we go to see potential customers only to discover they have been mis-sold websites and deceived by SEO companies who promise to provide genuine organic results and simply rely on pay-per-click. We feel so strongly about this that we created the SEO music video to educate small to medium sized businesses about the risks of such practices." Mike McKinlay, MD.

The Creare Group feel so strongly about the quality of the techniques used in the SEO community that they will be promoting this video across a variety of online and offline channels. For more information about their honest web design and search engine optimisation services, you can see the video both on the Creare Group YouTube Channel, and on their websites.

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Guava to Appear at Chinwag Live

Leading search engine marketing agency, Guava, will be on the panel of the Chinwag Live event "Search is Dead, Long Live Search" on the evening of Tuesday 29th of September at the Slug and Lettuce pub in SoHo, London.

With the rapid growth of Twitter, as well as the launch of newer services such as Bing, Guava's SEO Director, Teddie Cowell, will be on the panel to discuss how marketers and SEO specialists can optimise for new search technologies.

Teddie Cowell, SEO Director of Guava commented:
"The search landscape is certainly changing. 'Search is Dead, Long Live Search' will be a great opportunity to explore how we can really optimise effectively for the ever-increasing range of search platforms available to web users - in the age of 'social media search'."

Guava are also sponsoring the event, which also sees speakers from Mindshare, Betfair and MediaVest. Chinwag Live is the first of many events Guava are due to appear at.

For further information on Guava's juicy event line up visit: http://www.guava.co.uk/events/


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Mobile Broadband Providers Deliver a Quarter of Advertised Speeds

The leading comparison site tested 3,342 mobile broadband connections during the period 1st March 2009 - 31st August, 2009, and found that the average actual download speed was 1.1Mbs compared to the average advertised maximum speed of 4.5Mbs.

The research also revealed that, whilst Vodafone recorded the fastest actual speed with an average of 1.3Mbs, it also delivered the lowest percentage of its advertised speeds at just 18% of the stated 7.2Mbs. The findings are particularly surprising as the operator has recently announced that its maximum speeds are set to increase to 14.4Mbs.

Although there was not a great difference in actual speeds delivered between providers, T-Mobile was the slowest at 0.9Mbs or 20% of the advertised speed. 3 achieved the highest percentage of advertised speeds clocking in at 1.2Mbs or 33.3% of the advertised 3.6Mbs maximum speed.

Rob Webber, Broadband Expert's Commercial Director, is calling for providers to add average speeds to advertising so consumers can make a more informed choice. He said: "It is completely unreasonable for a provider to advertise unrealistically high speeds that the vast majority of customers will never receive. Advertising unrealistic speeds will not help the long term growth of mobile broadband or the reputation of the providers if customers feel they are being misled."

By comparison, over the same period, Broadband Expert tested 94,546 home broadband connections where the average speed was 3.6Mbs or 44% of advertised maximum speed.

Webber concluded: "Consumers who see mobile broadband advertised at such high speeds may see it as a realistic alternative to home broadband, whereas in truth it should be seen as a complementary technology. Continued developments in the mobile broadband industry will undoubtedly allow it to become a true competitor in the future, but at the moment - as our research shows - there is still a way to go."
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