How often do you search for products and services online? If you’re anything like most consumers, the answer is “frequently.” Estimates are that the average person uses Google search between three and four times a day!
Our collective dependence on search engines represents a lucrative opportunity for organizations like yours. If you can ensure that your website ranks highly on the results page, you can attract severe traffic.
And it’s not just any traffic, either. The people who discover your site through search engines are already actively looking for what you offer. Just imagine the conversion potential and all the sales you’re missing out on when you fail to take advantage.
What Makes SEO So Important?
In the modern business context, search engine optimization (SEO) must ensure that future customers can find you. Realistically, your audience won’t sift through pages and pages of search results to do so.
(If their search even makes it past the first page, of course. According to Moz, a staggering 71.3% of searchers don’t.)
Don’t worry if you’re below other results! Instead, use proven SEO strategies to boost your visibility, beating the competition.
Remember, if SEO isn’t your area of expertise, you can always outsource this work to professionals like Papaya Search.
Is SEO Important for Every Business?
SEO should be a top priority whether you are a new or established business owner. After all, in the modern business landscape, a solid online presence is crucial!
It’s in your best interest as a business owner to harness the power of SEO because this will drive organic traffic to your website, resulting in more customers and higher sales.
If you have a local business and you’re targeting clients in your community, ranking highly on search engines will mean you’re the first port of call when someone looks for your service nearby.
Are you looking for clients on a national or international basis? A high ranking on search engines makes it easy for people to find you in the busy online marketplace.
5 Reasons to Increase Your Reach Using SEO
Now you understand the lead-generating powers of search engine optimization. That alone should be enough to make you think twice about your SEO strategy!
However, there are more reasons to push SEO to the top of your priority list. Here are five of them.
SEO improves the user experience of your website.
SEO is all about showing the algorithm that your website is a reputable resource, and the way to do that is to provide the best possible experience for search engine users.
You may have heard that SEO involves stuffing your web pages with relevant keywords. Popular misconception! These days, that’s more likely to harm your ranking on the results page than help push you to the top.
The algorithm continues to improve. It can scan your page and assess how effectively your website answers queries. It can also tell how long people spend on your page, which helps it gauge its usefulness.
As explained by WebFX,
“You want leads to remain on your site longer because it sends a positive signal to Google. Google will rank your website higher in the search results because it will believe that your site is relevant to the user’s search intent.”
This means your site has to have more than just relevant content; it also has to provide a user-friendly experience. In the process of implementing SEO, then, you’ll undoubtedly improve your website.
Talk about a bonus. Not only will your optimized website enjoy higher traffic levels, but it will meet your new visitors’ needs, driving more business!
SEO helps your business build credibility.
An essential part of the SEO process is creating a reputable online presence for your company. That might involve ensuring your basic information is coherent across different platforms, for example.
It could also involve sourcing backlinks from other sites, which act as an endorsement. Alternative strategies include accumulating positive reviews and publishing high-quality original content that demonstrates your authority in your industry.
Search engine results aside, wouldn’t this be great for your business anyway? And the benefits don’t stop there.
We’re so prone to clicking the first Google search result isn’t just plain laziness. It’s also because we (consciously or otherwise) trust reputable search engines. We believe in their power to provide us with the best websites to meet our needs.
Once you’ve optimized your website for search engines and you start appearing higher in the rankings, you may find that customer trust in your brand simultaneously increases.
Think of it as a two-way relationship: increasing your website’s credibility boosts your position in search results, and a higher rank will boost your website’s credibility!
SEO is an effective long-term marketing strategy.
Would you rather pay for advertising campaign after advertising campaign to see spikes in your traffic or invest in SEO and observe continuous concrete results?
Nobody’s saying you have to abandon your pay-per-click ads. SEO and PPC complement one another perfectly—but giving attention to developing an effective SEO strategy is also intelligent for any business owner or organization leader thinking long term.
Although it may not generate immediate results as paid advertising, SEO helps you build authority in your space.
One of the reasons that SEO is considered a long-term investment rather than a quick fix is that it has to evolve to constantly meet the needs of an advancing market.
Search engines change all the time—experts estimate that Google changes its search algorithm around 500 to 600 times each year—and so make the habits of those that use them. Your website has to adapt in accordance.
As new competitors establish themselves, you’ll have to up your SEO game to stay ahead. Producing premium content optimized for search engines is one way to keep them in their place.
The bottom line is that SEO certainly isn’t a matter of “set it and forget it.” However, suppose you incorporate it into your ongoing digital marketing strategy. In that case, SEO can be essential to ensuring your company thrives and survives—regardless of algorithm changes or industry changes.
SEO done right offers amazing ROI.
Best practice in marketing may undergo a million changes a minute. Still, one thing will always stay the same: organizations seek the greatest possible return on investment in any strategy they implement.
Thankfully, SEO satisfies these criteria. Taking the fundamental steps to optimize your website for search engines will continue to reap results long after.
It is the case no matter what algorithm updates take place. Let’s be realistic: Google isn’t going to suddenly decide that easy-to-navigate, well-written, regularly-updated websites full of relevant content are no longer what it needs!
Initially, you may be reluctant to budget for the support of an SEO team. However, once you realize the work required to keep ahead of SEO best practices (and the incredible benefits enjoyed when you do), you’ll soon see that these services offer excellent value for money.
Rather than attempt shoddy SEO on your own, realize the worth of your attention and direct it towards the parts of the organization that needs you. Professionals like Papaya Search can handle the rest, and their advanced expertise ensures they’ll reap the best possible results.
SEO provides you with valuable data.
There’s a reason that data is considered one of the most valuable assets a company can possess. Data drive more intelligent business decisions, leading to tremendous success. Without it, there’s a high risk of expensive errors.
SEO metrics can be beneficial when it comes to better understanding your audience. For example, you’ll learn which search keywords lead them to you, showing you what potential customers want and expect.
You’ll also learn how much time visitors roughly spend on your page. This information can be very instructive in improving your website to generate higher conversions.
As specialists implement SEO and evaluate its impact, they’ll uncover instances where others have linked to your website. You’ll see what other people say about your business, which is often very enlightening!
Thanks to SEO, you won’t just enjoy more visitors to your website. You’ll also know more about those visitors, meaning you’ll be as prepared as possible to meet their needs successfully. Sounds good to us!
The Need to Get SEO Right
As mentioned before, search algorithms are constantly evolving. Given that search engines want to match their users to the best possible results for their search, there are excellent opportunities available to get your website in front of the right audience.
That’s why it’s crucial to get it right when it comes to optimizing your website. The safest, most efficient, and most effective way to achieve this is by hiring the services of an SEO specialist.
Here at Papaya Search, SEO is our full-time focus. We know search engines inside out, and we have a toolbox of techniques ready to rocket you up the results page.
Need our help? It costs nothing to find out more! Schedule your free 15 minute consultation, and we’ll be happy to explain what Papaya Search can do to increase your reach, promote your growth, and get you closer to your business goals.