Most people realize that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the absolute best way to drive traffic and potential new customers to your website, but most don’t realize that SEO really comes in two flavors: Organic & Pay Per Click (PPC).

Organic SEO
According to Wikipedia, Organic SEO is the process of improving the visibiilty of a web site or web page in search engines via the “natural” or unpaid search results. There are numerous techniques that can be employed to increase your web site’s natural ranking. One of the most important methods  is the inclusion  of rich content containing relevant keywords or phrases. Google and other major search engines operate what is termed as a “Spider”, or automated program ,that “crawls” the internet looking for web sites. Once found, the spider indexes the content and ranks the page or web site accordingly. The more relevant your keywords or phrases, including their density,  the better results you will have. Some other techniques that improve Organic SEO include; properly named page headers, alt text for your site’s images, and backlinks to your website from other reputable sites. The upside and obvious benefit of Organic SEO is that it does not require you to pay the search engine for your placement. One of the biggest challenges, however, is that there is often a tremendous amount of competition for keywords and phrases and gaining top page placement is often difficult.

Pay Per Click (PPC)
Pay Per Click is an Internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, where advertisers pay the hosting service when the ad is clicked. With search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo, you will bid on keyword phrases that are relevant to your target market. The price paid per keyword or phrase will depend largely on the popularity of the sought after search term. In addtion to bidding on keywords and phrases, you will also need to create an ad to grab web user’s attention. The more creative your ad, the more likely it will be clicked on. Unlike Organic SEO, which can take sometime months to get substantial results, once you have successfully bid and created your ad, it will start to appear immediately in the “Sponsored Links” areas of the search engine results page. Note that you will not be charged each time the ad appears (which is called an “impression”) but only when the ad is clicked and the user is directed to your web site.
Both of these SEO strategies are important to generating traffic to your web site. Which one you spend most of your energy on really depends on several variables, including audience, demographic, and purpose (ie. e-commerce, informational, etc.) of your site. For more information on SEO and how you can develop a comprehensive plan, give us a call and we'll be glad to introduce you to one of our SEO specialists on staff.

Hello! My name is Darren Burgfeld, and I’m the latest member of the team at Element 74. I jumped on board at the beginning of August, taking on the role of project manager.

What I’ve discovered quickly is that at Element 74, project managers wear a lot of hats. From designer to customer service agent to interpreter and beyond, we must learn a lot of dance steps, and I’m doing my best to shuffle accordingly.

My professional background is as diverse as Element 74’s client list. After receiving my bachelor’s degree from Southeast Missouri State University, I took on a few jobs around Cape. I did sales for a while, and also desktop publishing and marketing. I even took on cable TV installation and maintenance for a bit.

When an opportunity came up for me to completely change pace, I moved from Cape Girardeau to Dallas, TX to take on a career in the music industry. I was the US tour manager for Emergenza US Entertainment, which works with musicians all over the world. My duties included booking the bands and venues, promoting and marketing the concerts through various media, emceeing the concerts and organizing travel and expenses – Basically, running things from start to finish. I got to see a lot of the US, as well as Mexico, Canada and Germany, working with outstanding bands and with some major sponsors in the industry as well.

Of course, the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle does not make a family man, and so I transitioned into a desk and keyboard at SHOEBACCA.com, which is based in Irving, TX. During my time there, I wrote thousands of pieces of copy, from product descriptions to press releases to SEO-rich website content.  I started with the company while living in Dallas, and after my daughter was born, began working at home, eventually moving back to Cape Girardeau in 2008.

Although I was working on a contract basis for SHOEBACCA, I still had the feeling of family that one gets with the right group of co-workers. Not being in the office, I missed that connection with my crew, and as time passed here in Cape, I yearned to find a local position that would offer me a professional career path that would work symbiotically with my creativity; all while remaining sharp and cutting edge. I’ve found that and much more with Element 74.

I couldn’t ask for a better core team than those I work with. We’ve got all the bases covered, from off-the-cuff creatives to disciplined business professionals, all working in harmony. It really is a beautiful machine, though I use the term “machine” to define the efficiency, not the environment. With the level of camaraderie here, it’s about as organic as you can get.

I still get my dose of rock ‘n’ roll, singing and playing trombone with local bands Mid Life Crisis and the Tone Def All-Stars, though these days, much more time is spent with my family. My wife, Carrie, is a Cape Girardeau native, and we have a three year-old daughter, Layla and a 2 month-old son, Lawson.

To my clients, present and future: If you’ve got a question,  hit me with it. I appreciate honesty more than anything else, and I have confidence in my team that we can tackle any project efficiently and effectively. I look forward to meeting and exceeding your needs. Call on me at Element 74 today!

Workforce Employment Solutions was recently recognized by the American Staffing Association for three areas of excellence including their newly launched website: www.visitworkforce.com. 

Our staff at Element 74 worked side by side with Workforce as well as The Wright Group to ensure a seamless web experience for job seekers and employers, and we are so excited that Workforce is being recognized for their hard work on this project.

 “These awards help validate our commitment to providing value added services in our market area. We are very proud of our new website and how it reflects our company culture and commitment," said Joe Rozier, Vice President of Workforce Employment Solutions. " We would like to thank and recognize the Team of Element 74 and The Wright Group who were significant partners in the development of this new site.”

We couldn't be happier for Workforce Employment Solutions, and we are grateful to have been a part of the process.

"It takes great clients to build great websites, and the Workforce team was truly great to work with. I especially liked working with them on the homepage video player. It's the first time we've implemented rotating videos and pop-up light boxes," commented Alex Seyer of Element 74 and front end engineer on the Workforce website.

Workforce was also recognized in the Company Publication category for The Annual Workforce Wage & Benefit Survey and in the Public Service category for the Workforce Food Drive.

Congratulations!!!