Large enterprise companies have always had an advantage over small to midsized companies when it comes to "reach." Big companies have correspondingly big staffs and big budgets to build more effective Web sites, to run more advertising, and to sponsor more marketing campaigns. This reach helps them attract more customers.

In recent years, the World Wide Web has become the great equalizer for smaller companies that don’t have those huge marketing and communications budgets. A well designed Web site can help a small company reach more potential customers through the effective use of "search marketing."

Search marketing is the practice of designing a Web site so that it attracts highly qualified visitors who find the site through a search engine such as Google or Yahoo! Search. And not only does the site attract qualified visitors, but it entices them to follow some call to action, like registering with the site, making contact with the company, or best of all, purchasing a product or service.

One company that provides a complete search marketing service almost exclusively to SMBs is Webxites (pronounced “websites”), of Houston. Webxites has obviously found a niche and a huge demand for its services, because last June the company was named by Entrepreneur magazine as one of the fastest growing companies in America. Despite posting an impressive 1500% revenue growth in 2005, co-founder and president Gene McCubbin expects 2006 to be "the breakout year" for Webxites.

What this tells us is that small companies are beginning to recognize the importance of new Web tools and techniques for attracting and capturing new customers. A savvy approach to search marketing can put even the smallest company on par with a far larger competitor.

What makes search marketing so special? "There is a shift taking place in advertising," says Kelsey Ruger, Technology and Web Operations Director at Webxites. "Traditional means like running television ads are like dragging a big net to see who you can catch. With search marketing, you understand your audience better and take narrower aim for a more qualified customer. You can target this audience and get more predictable results."

Ruger points out that there are few ways to measure the effectiveness of a print or television ad. With Web-based search marketing, you can use analytics to tell you a lot about who is visiting your Web site and for how long, what they look at, and what actions they take. If you see that you are losing people after they visit a specific page, you can change that page to improve results.

Linda Musthaler is a principal analyst with Essential Solutions Corporation.