Most people use search engines every day to find everything from movie times to the latest news on particle physics. Despite this frequent usage, professionals looking for research reports in a database of market research sometimes fall victim to their own in-depth knowledge of their particular field. This can make the discovery process a challenging one. So, here is a quick guide on what to do and what not to do when looking for research in a market research database.

Although marketing through social networks has grown tremendously over the last several years, classic SEO (search engine optimization) is still important. It's also fairly straightforward if you do the proper market research. Follow these SEO best practices and you'll see a nice boost in your organic (non-paid) traffic.

Imagine being a Redskin and getting your hands on the Dallas Cowboy playbook before the season begins; or being Target and getting the inside scoop on the marketing strategy of Walmart. In this day and age, understanding your competition, and particularly the marketing strategy your competition is pursuing, is far more critical than many companies realize.

Small businesses that operate in local markets often shy away from competing online, preferring to focus on the traditional methods of conducting business. In the United States, an astounding 15 million businesses do not have a website, that’s 58% of all US businesses (Weebly, 2013). This may seem counterintuitive considering how much of commerce is carried out online. However, it is actually a testament to how technically behind many of America’s small businesses truly are.

Moreover, Weebly reported that 56% of consumers do not trust a business without a website. Ironically, by sticking to traditional methods of commerce, businesses are actually losing credibility. Small businesses must get online immediately if they want to be able to compete. But simply having a website isn’t enough. Once a small business has a website, they have to make sure it is search engine optimized.

We've all heard that the best way to improve search engine ranking is to create great content. Google and other search providers have been working hard to tailor thier algorithms to highlight fresh and original work, so what does this mean for SEO and how do you get your website seen?

The answer to that question is that SEO is still very important but past best practises once designed to 'game' the system through high density keywords and such, are now designed to help craft your great content in a way that your customers will find it.

If you are unsure of how to increase SEO ranking for your website, investing in quality and timely market research could help focus your online marketing strategy to your customers needs. Getting to the top of search engine results pages (SERPS) has become much more than keyword stuffing and black hat SEO.