At a search engine marketing (SEM) conference not too long ago, someone said, “It’s a land grab out there. The company that gets to the small business owner first and signs them up with any type of search engine marketing program…wins!”

Since that time many other companies that sell SEM packages to small business owners have used the same strategy. The main emphasis for many of these companies has been speed. Call on as many businesses as you can, sign up as many as possible, and the more productive the sales force is the more successful the SEM reseller company will be.

Unfortunately, for many of the SEM reseller companies out there who have taken this approach, it hasn’t worked.  What many sales executives have left out of their formula for success…is customizing the conversation so that it addresses the small business owner’s needs.

Developing and maintaining a successful SEM campaign can be a complicated and time-consuming process; something that many small business owners just don’t have the time to do themselves. Many business owners know that their potential customers are increasingly going online to look for their products and services, and they know that they should be there when that happens, but they need someone who is willing to take the time needed to help them do it the right way.  Not just sell them a quick pre-packaged SEM program that may or may not have the right outcome for their business.

By taking a “land grab” approach, many SEM reseller companies have quickly signed up thousands of small business owners…only to have them cancel their programs immediately after their contract ended, sometimes even sooner. The churn rates for some SEM reseller companies are approaching and even exceeding 60%!

It’s one thing to convince a business owner to try SEM and buy a pre-packaged one-size-fits-all program. It’s another thing to take the time to truly understand what the business owner is trying to accomplish, to sell them a program that helps the business owner get the types of clicks and calls they want (not just any clicks). There is also an issue when it comes to the number of clicks and calls they can handle and want, to help them reach the types of customers they want from the geographic areas they service. By taking a more consultative approach, you will have a much greater chance of satisfying the customer…and keeping them!

So, do you still think it’s a land grab?

Mike Centorani
Vice President of Training and Development
MatchCraft, Inc.
www.matchcraft.com