Despite most businesses knowing that Search Engine Optimisation is important, only 55% of small businesses have invested in SEO marketing. Many businesses think they don’t need SEO services, or they aren’t sure if the rewards will justify the investment.
Search engines aren’t going anywhere
Before, we had dictionaries and encyclopaedias to help us gather information. Now, we use search engines. Google makes about 4 million searches a minute. With that in mind, any business with an online presence needs to optimize its website so it’s visible to search engines.
Competition
You can’t just build a website and expect prospective customers to find it. With nearly 2 billion sites, your business is facing enormous competition. SEO applied effectively can help you rise above your competitors and differentiate you.
Your competitors already use SEO
Every day you put off using SEO services you are losing website traffic, customers and sales.
If you’re not mobile-friendly, you’re out of the game
Since 2015 mobile searches have exceeded desktop searches. Google is aware of the mobile search growth and now penalises sites that are not mobile-friendly.
Google looks for quality content, and top content needs SEO
We never know for sure what criteria Google uses to rank websites, as it is never published, but we do know that high-quality content and links are right at the top. Google aims to provide its users with the best, most relevant and most accurate content. You need SEO to persuade Google that your content is the best.
Key benefits of SEO marketing
SEO attracts high-quality traffic to your website
Good SEO marketing attracts quality traffic to your site. By optimising your site to appeal to target audiences and targeted search phrases you are engaging in looking for your product or services.
SEO is cheaper than paid advertising
Organic leads, from potential customers searching for words and phrases that are linked to your business, do not cost you anything directly. Although you will need to continue to invest in SEO, it is an extremely cost-effective method compared to Pay Per Click advertising.
Local SEO increases sales
If you are a bricks and mortar business local SEO is imperative. Recent studies showed over 70% of consumers who searched locally, visited and purchased locally because of those searches.
Trustworthiness
People would rather do business with someone they have heard of. SEO allows you to get your content out there to people searching for answers. The more useful your content, the more likely that users will think of you when it comes to the time to purchase.
Familiarity brings trust.
The more a prospective customer sees your brand, the likelihood of purchasing increases. This idea is well known in psychology. The more opportunities to get your brand name in front of a prospect the better for building a positive impression.
Long-lasting SEO benefits
The benefits of your SEO marketing will be felt long term. High ranking pages will continue to get organic traffic without further investment. Where a Pay Per Click campaign is over once the budget is spent your SEO marketing will continue to drive traffic.
