Non-Profit Issues in the Search Engine Marketing World

By Georgina Tweedie

Church of Scientology

For businesses, the challenge of getting a site seen above the "noise" of over 4 billion web pages in Google alone manifests itself in many forms. Non-profits have more obstacles to overcome: limited budgets, ignorance of search engine optimization techniques, and competition with commercial companies for pertinent keywords.

Unfortunately, in today's fast-paced cyber-marketplace, non-profits don't get many breaks; like everyone else they have to fund pay-per-click, paid inclusion and other pay-for-performance programs. It has become "pay up or don't be seen" regardless of any other factors, including who the organization is and the worthiness of the cause.

Non-profit organizations are faced with many different search engine companies and a plethora of different pricing structures. They attempt to separate fact from fiction when deciding which service to take and how much to pay (among many other decisions)-- all in an effort to get their cut of the search engine marketing game.

It is a well known fact that non-profit organizations, whether charity-related, religious, or bona fide public services, are typically run by volunteers, and their finances are dependent upon the support of their cause.

The Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization (SEMPO) is one such non-profit organization promoting and providing search marketing services. Run by professional leaders in the industry, they invest their personal time into something they believe in.

Recently representatives from well-known and respected non-profit organizations such as the Salvation Army, United Way, and World Vision were interviewed. Despite mixed levels of experience with SEO, most stated that they do care about exposure on the Net. Some confessed to spending money with an SEO company to help them.

Few SEO companies seem to provide discounts for worthwhile causes. An unwary novice stepping into the shark infested waters of SEO can be in for surprises and unexpected costs, as many will attest.

When this occurs for non-profits, charities in particular, it defeats the purpose. A specific example cited is the Salvation Army which only has a budget of 4 cents per dollar allocated to marketing. Their funds are reinvested into disaster relief and help for the underprivileged. The general consensus is that this is where most of their funds should be expended, and should not be spent on a marketing budget. This is a point that could be argued; however, another school of thought has surfaced.

Members of a newly formed group, Non-Profits in Search, note that search engine marketing issues for non-profits have employed time, money and energy competing with the business world. Further they agree that the non-profits' "competition" should be limited to other organizations within this sector.

With this in mind, Non-Profits in Search has been launched; its mission is to help non-profits improve their search engine visibility, while also improving relevancy and the quality of informational search results.

This new group will help non-profits gain exposure for the causes they serve.

Focusing on correct representation in search engine results, Non-Profits in Search utilizes the pooled resources and experience of industry professionals to effect positive change for those who help others.

For more information or suggestions contact: nonprofit_info@yahoo.com