Search Engine Marketing, SEO and Email Marketing - What Is The Synergy?

Search marketing (as well as search engine optimization SEO) and email marketing are to an Internet marketer what the "one-two punch" combination is to a boxer. Left jab, then right cross. That's a classic knockout combination. It's your bread and butter if you're a fighter. And it always produces greater results than the individual punches themselves. Now, let's put this in context with today's web users, prospects and buyers...

Nearly everyone turns to a search engine first to find what they are looking for Online. So, being found in search results, organically or by paid placement is arguably the most important element of Internet marketing. Search marketing is the left jab that sets up your right cross: email marketing. Search marketing is also like a headline in a sales letter. If you don't stop people dead in their tracks and get them to read more, the rest of the sales letter is meaningless, no matter how good it is. Without search, you would not be able to capture names and email addresses for marketing purposes (except if you advertise offline and drive traffic to your site). Search marketing is typically the starting point of a potential relationship between web marketer and prospect. Enter Opt in Email Marketing... The majority of times, your prospect has found your website and offer but is NOT ready to buy from you yet. She is not sure she can trust you, she just met you so to speak. Plus there are other offers and vendors to investigate. The web is big place with lots of choices. This is where email marketing comes in to create synergy with search... People have more information and choices than ever. Unfortunately the more choices and information, the tougher it is to make a decision. More vendors, more information and more choices translate into more work for prospects. As a result many people get bogged down in "analysis paralysis", procrastination or both. They are ruled by fear, uncertainty and distrust. Because of all the information and choices available to Internet consumers, it is difficult to create lasting marketing relationships. There are so many vendors competing for mind and wallet share. Search marketing does the heavy lifting of attracting qualified prospects to your sites and offers and creates potential relationships. Since a majority of people do not buy on the first exposure to an offer, it's email marketing's job to capture the name and email address and to break down barriers and inhibitions to buying over a time sequence. Through email marketing you build solid relationships on trust, reciprocity (because you give something of value to them) and develop credibility as an expert in your field by providing good content on your website and in your email newsletter. The success of the individual parts -- search marketing and email marketing -- can be attributed to the combination of these two forms of marketing. One without the other would produce poor results (an exception is offline advertising i.e. sending prospects to your home page or opt-in page directly from space or classified ads). Also, synergy occurs when a web user is exposed to multiple instances of your brand, products, offers & websites. For example, if a prospect keeps running into you online when they search on keywords related to your products/services and hears from you regularly through email marketing, credibility with that prospect is sure to increase because of the combined exposure. Search marketing and email marketing are strongly dependent on one another for overall marketing success. Together they help you create relationships and online sales. Of course your sales message has to be strong. But generally speaking any exposure in search results combined with email marketing is going to help your cause. It will help build trust and decrease buying resistance. This plus a good offer will produce solid online sales.