If you’re looking to create long-term brand awareness, expand your target audiences and earn more revenue, search engine optimization is crucial. Let’s look at 10 significant benefits of SEO for any business, and how you can achieve them.
1. Builds your credibility
A site that ranks well in search engine results pages is generally considered high quality and trustworthy by search engines, which in return builds credibility for your business. Spend time improving and adding content to your site, increasing the speed of your site, and researching keywords to help your site rank even higher.
2. It doesn’t have to cost you anything
Other than time if you do it yourself, SEO doesn’t cost anything like other marketing strategies such as pay per click. Search engines crawl your site 24/7, which promotes useful content and helps you find new customers organically. To get the most out of your SEO efforts, spend some of your time reviewing the content of the top-ranked sites in your niche, and strive to write better content than they do. Then, share your content on your social platforms.
3. Support content marketing
Original content and SEO go hand in hand; by creating useful content for visitors, including text, images and videos, your site will rank higher in search results. But SEO can also support your content marketing efforts. Make sure your content is high quality and optimized for the keywords you want to rank for, and since search engines like freshness, update your content regularly.
4. It maximizes PPC campaigns
Non-paid (SEO) and paid (PPC) marketing strategies work great together. PPC helps your site appear at the top of paid search results, while SEO does the same thing organically. Having both results appear at the top of the search engine results page builds credibility for your brand and shows that you’re not just throwing money at advertising to be on top. You can use SEO to maximize your PPC campaigns – for example, a well-ranked page can perform even better if you use it as part of a PPC ad, especially if the keyword has a low cost per click.
5. It gives you a competitive advantage
Your competitors are likely to invest in SEO, which means you should too. Those who invest heavily in SEO often outrank their competitors in search engine results and gain market share. If you consider that the first page results of a Google search receive over 90% of the traffic, you can’t afford not to be there, especially if your competitors are. Start by identifying your competitors, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses, and building and managing your online reputation. Next, make sure your site loads quickly and is mobile-friendly, produce the best content possible, and strive to provide the best user experience possible.
6. It can help you reach more people
While many marketing campaigns tend to focus on a defined target audience, SEO can help you attract anyone with intent at any given time, no matter what stage of the buying funnel they are in. If you target keywords rather than demographics, as is the case with PPC or social advertising, you can attract more prospects who might be interested in a business relationship with you.
Create a list of keywords you want to rank for. Then, use keyword research tools to expand it. Finally, use competitive research to refine your list by identifying your competitors, the keywords they are ranking for and the backlinks they have, and use this information to create a better SEO strategy.
7. It helps you rank higher in local searches
Local SEO strategies can help you attract those searchers who are often ready to buy. The first step to getting started with local SEO strategies is to create a Google My Business account. Then, start asking for reviews from your customers. Optimize your listings by making sure your name, address and phone number are correct. Also, make sure you optimize your listing for voice search, which means writing rich, compelling content with a conversational tone that answers common questions and provides solutions to users’ problems. Other steps to take include taking a close look at your local keywords and building listings in local business directories.
8. It improves website usability
SEO is about making your site search engine friendly, but it can also improve the experience of a customer visiting your website. If you work to generate useful, quality content, make your site faster and more responsive, add backlinks, and improve each page, you will usually have a great website in addition to being optimized for search engines. Factors that improve usability include a solid site structure and navigation, both of which affect a site’s search engine ranking.
9. You get quantifiable results
With SEO, you can track rankings, conversions and site traffic. Some platforms provide a comprehensive set of information, allowing you to drill down to an incredibly granular level. For example, you can see the buying journey of each website user, including the pages they viewed, the keywords they used to search, and whether they took specific actions. You can use this information to adjust and improve your SEO strategy.
10. It improves user engagement
An optimized site attracts quality traffic. If you have a site with useful content that matches the searcher’s intent, they will likely spend more time browsing, which ultimately can lead to more conversions and a better ROI. Customers who engage longer on a website tend to become more attached to the brand, which can lead to long-term customer advocacy and revenue. To improve your user engagement rate, use one of the many online tools to audit your site, then optimize elements like your title and meta tags. Also make sure your site is secure and mobile-friendly.
SEO has major benefits for websites and can lead to exponential growth in the long run. Brands that invest in SEO can build credibility and trust with their audience, making it an essential part of their digital marketing strategy. Learn more about our digital marketing agency, GYM/MARKET and boost your business!