SEO 'relates to marketing not IT'

14:00 14th May 2010

Company owners have been advised that their marketing teams should be responsible for search engine optimisation (SEO), rather than their web development department.

According to digital marketing specialist Stephan Spencer, it is a myth that SEO needs to be managed by IT professionals.

He stated that SEO is far more of a marketing discipline than a web development technique, although its roots are in IT.

Writing for Search Engine Land, he said: "Accountability for effective SEO might be multi-departmental in theory, but the reality is that most organisations budget, staff and manage SEO programs as part of customer acquisition."

He explained that while IT departments need to be involved in managing SEO campaigns, they should be the "wingman" to digital marketing departments.

Mr Spencer also stated that SEO should not be kept apart from other digital marketing techniques such as social media marketing and paid search.

Digital marketing should work as a whole campaign, he explained, with various tactics included to make it work effectively.

This comes after co-author of Search Engine Marketing Inc Bill Hunt said organisations need to learn to understand the benefits SEO can offer them.

He told Search Engine Land that many search teams do not have the freedom to implement the changes that would benefit a company, as their bosses do not believe in the worth of SEO.