Bitshelf

The Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), released their top-line findings from a first-ever survey of in-house SEM and SEO salary/compensation. Where do you fall? Is your compensation up-to-snuff?

From SEMPO, "One of the key findings is that roughly one third of in-house search engine marketers are managing monthly budgets in excess of $200,000.  “We anticipated a lower ceiling of monthly spend closer to the $100,000 range so we were pleasantly surprised,” says Duane Forrester, co-chair of SEMPO’s In-House SEM Committee and Lead SEO Program Manager with Microsoft. “The $200K monthly spend is a healthy barometer of the search marketing industry and it syncs up with SEMPO’s current trend projections that SEM spending will double by 2011, to more than $18 billion.”

This hits a key take away for me, agencies will need to shift business models to put a bit more skin in the game as in-house SEMs and SEOs continue to get sophisticated. However, there are a few key take aways for my fellow SEO'ers and SEM'ers:

1. The Search Marketing industry is officially open for business and is here to stay.

2. SEO is a reality, is an integral part of any marketing and communications strategy in-house or service offering on the agency side.

3. Ensure that you're well paid for the hard work you put in whether you're inhouse or on the Search Markering agency side.

Source: Reality Check: In-House Search Marketing Pays Well But Not Dot Com Hype Levels