SEO Can Help Your Site Rank Higher So You Get More Customers

As a business, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Nowadays few companies need to be convinced of the importance of search – heck, you probably use search engines like Google and Bing every day yourself to look up everything from which hotel to stay at during your business trips based on who has the best online reviews to what new smartphone to buy to where to order food from for your next business meeting. But many companies don’t know how to get their own business’s website to rank higher on Google.

More importantly, most business owners or managers simply don’t have the time (or desire) to keep up with the constant search algorithm changes that Google makes. Plus, there are literally hundreds of factors that go into how Google ranks a website, and Google makes small (and big) changes to their algorithm all the time. With so many moving parts that go into optimizing your on-site — and off-site — SEO factors, it’s a full-time job to manage your website’s search engine optimization. But Search Engine Optimization is a necessary part of every business — SEO matters!

Simply put: No other kind of marketing offers the power of search – so it’s important that you understand at least the basics of SEO and how you can start using those strategies on your site ASAP.

So what is SEO and how can you use Search Engine Optimization strategies to help your business’ site rank higher?

Why You Need SEO For Your Website

With most marketing you are interrupting people while they’re doing something else. But people who are searching for your business, products or services online are literally raising their hands and screaming “I want you to show me what you got!” Bottom line: If your customers can’t find you when they search online, they can’t buy from you. Sounds simple; right? Whether you’re selling low-priced consumer goods or high-end, high-priced, high-tech products or services, your customers use the Internet to search, research and compare product reviews, services and ultimately businesses themselves to determine who they will trust their money – and business – with. Will it be with your company — or one of your competitors?

Here’s a stat that might shock you: Seventy-five percent of people don’t scroll past the first page of search results. If your site isn’t on the first page, you’re missing out on business.

Think about it: when you look for information about products or services you’re thinking about buying, you probably go on the Internet first and do a Google search; right? Well, your customers are doing the exact same thing. Seventy-four percent of shoppers start their product research on search engines.

Wait a minute, though, SEO is not just for shoppers who want to make a purchase online. For those of you who sell high-ticket items or services with (perhaps) longer sales cycles, the numbers don’t change too much: 77 percent of Americans begin their search for health-related topics with search engines and 78 percent of B2B buyers begin with searches.

You simply can’t fight or argue against SEO anymore. No matter what kind of business you have, your customers are online and they’re searching. And searches lead to sales. That’s what you’re after; right? It’s why you’re in business. The only big question is: Are people finding you or one of your competitors when they do a search online?

But I Advertise on TV and Advertise Online – Do I Really Need to Worry About Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Too?

Hey, I’ve managed all sorts of marketing plans – everything from trade shows, print ads, TV commercials, banner ads, pay-per-click – you name it. I’m all in favor of a diversified marketing strategy. I would never recommend that you put all of your marketing eggs in one basket. That would be silly. But even if you put some of your marketing dollars in traditional marketing, you STILL need search. Why? Because people use search to check you out. That TV spot, newspaper ad or billboard you paid big money for may make consumers aware of your business, but chances are they’re still going to look for you on the Internet to find out more about your company and what you have to offer.

Think about what you do. When you read an article about a new company that gets your interest, what do you do? Do you call that company directly? Do you ask one of your coworkers to see if they’ve ever heard of them? Nope. If you’re like most people you fire up your computer, tablet or smartphone, launch Google and search for that company’s name. You might even go one step further and search for reviews on the business so you can check out their credibility and see what others are saying about them.

As a test, go to Google (or Bing, if you prefer) and search for your company’s products and reviews and see what your potential customers are seeing about YOUR business.

Search is the #1 driver of traffic to content sites, beating social media by 300%. Search Engine Optimization uses a variety of techniques, including keyword-rich content, HTML tags, backlinks, local online business directories — like Google My Business, etc., to increase a website’s ranking for targeted search terms relevant to your business or industry. According to Forrester Research Media Field Study,

“Attracting a loyal audience to your website is best achieved through top search engine listings.”

If you want your website to get found, you need to have quality content and a powerful SEO strategy so search engine spiders find and index your site. If you haven’t paid attention to optimizing your site, now is the time to get started.

Want to see how your site stacks up? Run a FREE SEO Report to see various issues with regards to your site’s optimization, your online reviews, online directories and more.

Have no fear, though, because we can help. Just contact us today and we will provide you with a FREE analysis of your current digital marketing presence and will show you ways in which you can improve your online strategies. We look forward to hearing from you!