Effectively balancing SEO and Lead Generation Initiatives

A balance of efforts needs to exist within an SEO strategy in order for it to be as successful as possible. One example would a website that includes member registration. Would the content be visible to both users and search engines before or after the fact? How would this be incorporated into the SEO strategy?

B2B SEO’s often face the problem of where to place the value-added material for the targeting of SEO keyword strategies. Because there is the need to satisfy various lead generation goals, most B2B SEO strategies would encourage the creation of content behind registration forms. Below are several listed s ways that search engine marketers can effectively balance SEO and lead generation initiatives.

Content Marketing Assets
Organization is key. In the case of the above-mentioned example, a good first step in solving the quandary would lie in the identification of the types of content marketing assets that are available to the organization. Once properly organized, a collective decision can be reached between the client and the SEO company about what content should be available before registration and what is available thereafter.

Some possible examples of what this content might include are articles, tutorials, blogs, videos, product support and FAQ’s. Although the SEO company might want to recommend that all content assets be made visible prior to registration, it is worthwhile for the client to have a definitive say in the decision.
There are obviously various questions that the SEO company needs to consider when deciding on what should be made accessible and when. Does the content make available sensitive information, like trade secrets or premium intellectual property? Will the registration provide any additional value that is lacking with direct competitors? Are there opportunities for the keyword targeting in the content and are they affected by their presence pre- or post-registration?


Suggestions for achieving more visibility
Sometimes it does not make sense to sacrifice conversion opportunities. If that is the case, the onus is on the SEO company to come up with alternative means for leveraging content assets. Some possible options in that situation would be:

1.) The inclusion of Snippets
By summarizing the information gained from white papers, strategic research, or simply that from detailed content, you can develop shorter articles. These can then be used on the website or even as third party article submissions. By developing landing pages via summaries, the value of content assets is maximized and lead generations are potentially increased.

2.) Social Media Friendly Summary Assets
Assets such as infographics are great, but can be expensive if you do not possess the infrastructure to create them. Luckily there are alternatives. The humble PowerPoint presentation can be a great addition if it is done well. Couple the presentation with something like Slideshare, and then make use of social sites such as LinkedIn or Facebook to further embed the presentation and increase its reach.

3.) Blog Posts
Blog posts, when utilised in a summary/preview format, are able to provide great opportunities for highlighting assets and for generating leads. Look at some popular blog sites and see how
they are presenting their content, and then try to apply that to your own.

4.) Prioritise your Keywords
It definitely pays to ensure that keyword research is applied to all your content assets and it pays even more to strive for the most visibility for content best supporting your overall SEO strategy.

Depending on the nature of your company or your website, not all the content can necessarily be made available pre-registration. The ideal situation in this case would obviously be to compromise, and to include a few useful assets pre-registration, while keeping the majority thereof for post. This will benefit both keyword strategies and the stability of the available content. Maintaining a balance between short and long-term SEO goals for any B2B organization will always pose a challenge. SEO companies need to make an effort with regards to maximizing their content marketing, and also need to strive towards finding creative ways to increase keyword visibility with regards to further lead generation.