Senior marketers in the US are increasing their investment in search engine optimisation, according to a new survey.

The Client-Agency Economic Outlook Survey by Reardon Smith Whittaker showed that nine per cent of marketers said their Search Engine Optimization spending is significantly higher this year compared with 2008, while 23 per cent said it is "somewhat higher" in comparison.

Other areas of online marketing identified by Reardon Smith Whittaker as seeing growth during the recession included social media, email marketing and banner advertising.

Commenting on the implications of the results, the company said: "If you don't have a good grasp of these newer media, you had better get on it.

"If you don't want to bring the resources in, there are plenty of other firms that can help you out."

According to eMarketer, it is likely that US spending on Search Engine Optimization will overtake expenditure on contextual advertising by 2013.

The firm said that this can be attributed to the fact that web users are more likely to click on organic listings than pay-per-click or other types of ads and also to the viability of Search Engine Optimization as a tool for finding new customers.

[directnews.co.uk]