IGN

SEO Inc Case Study

IGN Case Study: IGN Entertainment operates the Internet’s largest network of destinations for video gaming, entertainment, and community geared towards teens and 18-34-year-old males. The company’s properties include IGN.com, GameSpy, AskMen.com, RottenTomatoes, FilePlanet, TeamXbox, 3D Gamers, VE3D, Direct2Drive, more than 70 community sites, and a vast array of online forums. IGN Entertainment is also a leading technology provider for online gameplay in video games.

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The Challenge

When IGN contacted SEO Inc., the most advanced SEO company, the site was an established and well-known site in the gaming community. The site also had good search engine rankings and got approximately 2.5 million unique monthly visitors. At the time, IGN used proprietary in-house content management and a team of content writers. The pages generated when new game reviews and information were added to the site were poorly optimized. In addition, serious architectural issues with the site prevented search engine spiders from thoroughly and consistently crawling the site.

IGN’s goals were to “Dominate the search rankings for keywords related to any video games and gaming systems reviewed on the site.” IGN wanted to rank high in search engines and, most specifically, Google for game titles and variants of those titles’ phrases. IGN’s revenue is generated from advertising sales, so more traffic leads to more inventory for ad sales, more ads being sold, and, therefore, more revenue. To create more traffic, IGN knew it needed to be much more visible when people used the search engines. 

The Strategy

After several conversations with the IGN team, we created a customized optimization package which was designed to achieve their ranking goals and also fit their budget. Because IGN.com had architectural problems and a proprietary CMS (content management system), it was decided that SEO Inc. would work with their I.T. and web development team at their location in order to do the SEO consultation. As IGN.coms’ SEO consultant, this would allow us to send our SEO team to their location for several days to learn how their system worked and partner with IGN’s in-house programmers to improve the system and also complete the optimization. In addition, we created customized SEO best practices and architected these into their proprietary CMS. We also trained their content writers and page developers on SEO content best practices, which are still in place today. When new games and pages are added to the site, they are typically getting ranked within weeks, if not days.

The Results

The SEO Inc. case study for IGN is a compelling example of the transformative power of effective search engine optimization. Before the intervention by SEO Inc., IGN was already a well-known entity in the entertainment and gaming industry. However, their digital strategy faced significant challenges, particularly regarding search engine visibility and indexing.

Here’s an expanded overview of the case study:

Challenge: IGN’s primary challenge was the underperformance of its website in organic search rankings. Despite a wealth of content, thousands of its pages were not indexed effectively by search engines. This limited their online visibility, hindering potential audience growth and revenue.

SEO Inc.’s Strategy:

  • Comprehensive SEO Audit: SEO Inc. began with an exhaustive analysis of IGN’s website to identify SEO shortcomings.
  • On-Page Optimization: This included optimizing existing content, improving meta tags, and ensuring the website’s architecture was conducive to search engine crawling.
  • Technical SEO Improvements: Enhancements were made to the site’s backend, including correcting crawl errors and improving site speed.

Results:

  • Skyrocketed Rankings: Post-optimization, IGN saw a dramatic improvement in organic search engine rankings.
  • Increased Indexing: Thousands of previously unindexed pages became regularly crawled by search engine spiders, significantly expanding IGN’s digital footprint.
  • Doubling of Unique Visitors: Within just two months after the optimization, the number of unique visitors to the site doubled.
  • 1500% Increase in Organic Traffic: A staggering growth in organic search engine traffic was observed, marking a success in increasing online visibility and audience reach.
  • Acquisition of Web Properties: The growth in traffic and revenue post-SEO optimization empowered IGN to expand its portfolio, acquiring significant web properties like Rottentomatoes.com and Askmen.com.

Strategic Acquisition:

As a testament to its digital success and market value, IGN was acquired by News Corp for $650 million. This acquisition underscored the success of their digital strategy and the pivotal role of SEO in driving business growth and valuation.

Key Takeaways:

This case study demonstrates the critical importance of SEO in digital marketing.
It highlights how effective optimization can lead to rapid and substantial improvements in web traffic, user engagement, and overall business growth.

The acquisition of IGN by a major corporation like News Corp further illustrates how strategic digital marketing can significantly enhance a company’s market value.
In conclusion, the SEO Inc. case study for IGN is a textbook example of how targeted SEO strategies can revolutionize a company’s digital presence, drive exponential growth in traffic, and ultimately lead to significant business expansions and acquisitions.

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SEO Inc. is an internet marketing agency whose purpose is to help companies improve their online presence in search and social media in order to acquire new customers and build their brand online.

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