Italy Mask SEO Case Study

One of NZ’s Top Retailers Chooses A+ SEO to Storm the US Market

Dream of Italy, a specialist retailer of Italian gifts, particularly Masquerade Masks and Venetian Masks, wanted to grow their business internationally with a focus on the lucrative US market. After methodically testing the US market via Google Adwords, the savvy online retailers (2nd Runner Up in the 2010 Retailers Association Top Shop Awards – Online Category), Alan and Kathy Clist wanted to establish a permanent beachhead in the US market.

The strategy was to move the newly minted ItalyMask.com site into the Top 10 and higher on Google.com while continuing to generate sales via Google Adwords.

Walk Before You Run When Search Engine Optimising Your Website

If you are new to SEO and Google Adwords, then the strategy Alan and Kathy have followed is often the best strategy, particularly for niche markets. If you have a staple product or service, for example, a plumbing service, then there is no real need to test the viability of the online market for plumbing via Google Adwords because the market is already well established (we have several client plumbing websites in the top 10, even #1). But if you are looking to grow your business internationally or to market a new or unproven product or service, then Google Adwords is your best bet before investing in SEO your website.

If We Don’t Think Your Idea is Viable, We’ll Tell You

Each year we get enquiries for hundreds or different business concepts and ideas, with most being viable and about 20-25% being on the borderline to outright unsuitable for SEO. The strangest idea that came across our desk in 2010 was for a website that sold customised miniature dolls with your face replicated on the doll. Even with these left field ideas, some of them could be viable, particularly on an International scale. We can take educated and experienced estimates as to whether the market is viable for Search Engine Optimisation, but you really don’t know until you’ve tested it with real money and real traffic. This means you need to pay to get people to your site on a limited scale, and then look to see if the traffic pays for itself.

Test With Real Money and Real Traffic

The simple rule is: If you get 1000 people to your site, and you can’t make it profitable after all your costs, then something is wrong. Either it’s the market you’ve chosen, the quality of the traffic you’ve purchased or the ability of your site to convert, upsell and resell your customers. To fix this, it requires testing, patience and persistence, just like any bricks and mortar business. Often times we’ll tell you to do this first before investing in SEO because we want you to make a profit from your online marketing, not just have a highly ranking site.

If you’re unsure whether your business is suitable for SEO or online reputation management, then call us on 09 478 7783 to discuss your plans.