Courier services across the UK could see higher demand from online retailers boosting trade through search engine optimisation (SEO) campaigns this year, according to Hit Search.

The company, which has offices in London and Liverpool, said the effective use of SEO to boost the visibility of firms' websites in search engine rankings could result in a 50 per cent increase in sales in 2012.

It highlighted a number of trends and factors that could contribute to the trend over the coming months, such as the emergence of platforms like Google+, the availability of local search listings on Facebook and the ongoing success of sites such as Twitter and YouTube.

Offering some advice for firms selling products online and using delivery services, Andy Donaldson, one of the founders and directors of Hit Search, said bespoke optimisation aimed at particular sectors is "the only way forward with SEO".

"When looking at increasing profits for an online retailer specifically from the SEO channel, it is key to ensure strategies are targeted at the clients' specific audience demographic," he added.

"By focusing on revenue generation from a specific target demographic, keyword ranking increases become only part of the task."

Mr Donaldson went on to state that 2012 will be the year when "content reigns supreme", with search engines such as Google set to give preference to websites with content of a greater quality, rather than those that simply have the highest number of words or phrases matching a particular search.

Highlighting the potential value of SEO, Hit Search gave examples of companies it has worked with recently, such as Sweaty Betty, which sells fitness clothing, accessories and active wear for women.

Since July 2011, the retailer has increased traffic and revenue by 63 per cent and 47 per cent respectively through a combination of SEO and pay-per-click campaigns.

Author:  Adrian Medland