IT contractors with a knowledge of search-engine optimisation (SEO) could be in high demand following claims that this method of marketing is very effective.

Sam Tilston, online marketing director and SEO expert at Zoombits.co.uk, claimed that the high level of trust people invest in Google mean that its organic search results are held in high regard.

He suggested that firms that roll out a strong strategy to identify long-tail keywords to pursue will be most successful.

"A keyword density of between one per cent and three per cent is also required to enable the Google robot to accurately define the topic of the content," he stated.

Mr Tilston added that correctly-performed optimisation will have a strong effect in Google's universal search.

Recent research by Marketing Sherpa found that one in four SEO leads are high quantity and low quality, with 13 per cent being strong performers in both of these areas.