Ah, search engine optimization…if you work in the digital sphere, you’re likely familiar with it. Defined by Webopedia as a methodology of strategies, techniques and tactics used to increase the amount of visitors to a website by obtaining a high-ranking placement in the search results page of a search engine, it’s a key part of online marketing in 2013. With such a technical definition, many of today’s small business owners are left wondering why SEO is necessary. If you’re one of them, here are the top 4 benefits for your company.
1. It Gets You Found
Simply put, SEO is a great way to get your business found on the world wide Web. Your website is often your first point of contact with users but, if no one knows you exist, it’s difficult for them to find you in the first place. Why wouldn’t you want to rank high in the search results? Simply being visible on Google, Bing, Yahoo and other search engines gets your name out there, contributes positively to traffic and lead generation, and attracts potential business of all kinds.
2. It Offers a Measurable Return on Investment
Proper SEO is an investment. It may seem costly and complicated right off the bat, and it doesn’t happen overnight, but the ROI is more than worth it. The higher your company appears in the search results, the more likely users are to click on the link that takes them to your website. The higher the number of visitors, the higher the number of conversions – which means more business for you. Good things come to those who wait.
3. On-Page is Great Advertising
Title tags and meta descriptions are the blurbs that accompany your website link in search engine results. Can’t picture it in your head? Type Yabsta Digital, or another company name, into Google and hit enter. The title tag is situated directly above the link itself and reads “Yabsta Digital: Digital Solutions, Web Marketing & Design.” The meta description below reads “Yabsta is a full digital marketing agency offering needs-based web presence solutions for individuals, businesses and organizations of any size.” SEO allows you to strategically craft this information to not only advertise what your business offers but also include relevant, important keywords. This lets users know what you’re all about before they click and, even if they don’t, they might remember you next time.
4. It Builds Trust and Authority
Take a second to think about the links that appear in the pages of search results. While it stands to reason that there are thousands of great companies online for any given industry, the ones that appear in the first few pages of results are viewed as more authoritative, credible and trustworthy. Not only that but, done right, the title tags and meta descriptions mentioned in number 3 communicate your brand and marketing concept directly to users searching for products, services and information related to your industry niche. Not convinced? According to Search Engine Watch, when it comes to the average search, the top position in Google gets 33% of all search traffic, with the first page of results getting 92% of all traffic. That right there is reason enough to embark on the SEO journey.
So if you’ve been wondering why SEO is beneficial, the proof’s in the pudding. A crucial component of online marketing, it allows Google to understand and work with your business. Search engine optimization offers an incredible ROI, which includes driving traffic, advertising your goods to potential customers and boosting your brand via measures of trust and authority. With Google seeing over 100 billion searches per month, 12 billion of which are local, you simply can’t afford to ignore it.
Image Credits: Hi 5 Web Designs & Website Garage
Fantastic post. Very informative yet not overly
jargonistic.