SEO has evolved rapidly over the years, but one thing that has remained constant is its relevancy to the need of the hour. Search engines will continue to reward high-quality content, but SEO helps more people see a business’s content.
First, what is SEO?
In today’s parlance, SEO, or search engine optimization, is the inclusion of relevant keywords in the content of your website so that it ranks on the first page of search engines, i.e., Google.
A more detailed version would be this:
SEO is the linear process of attracting and/or increasing website traffic (visitors) to your website from search engines such as Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo. Website traffic increases the closer it is to the first position organic listing on the first search engine results page and this is accomplished by promoting the most relevant, in-demand keywords that thematically relate to the content of your site.
SEO is both a science and an art. It takes years of research, trial and error, and ultimately an intuitive feel to properly and successfully rank a website on the first page of Google for every keyword relevant to a website.
A quick word about keywords. Keywords are terms that you would type into a search listing to find something on the internet. If you own a website, you want to be on the first page, preferably near the top, when website results are returned to the user. You don’t want to be on the first page for just one keyword; you want to be on the first page for as many keywords as possible. I’m not talking about keyword stuffing or an spammy strategies. I’m talking about developing and building as much content on your site as possible because each webpage has a chance to rank on its own merit in Google. One way to continue adding value to your site and increasing the pool of keywords for which your site can rank is to write articles on a regular basis and add them to your blog.
Here are the top 5 reasons SEO is still relevant and important to your client acquisition strategy:
1. People Still Browse the Internet Using Search Engines
Search engines are still the primary method by which people find information, products, and websites. In fact, Google processes about 40,000 search queries EVERY SECOND. That’s about 3.5 billion searches in a day. It’s well worth your while to SEO your website in order to gain traction on the first page of search engines, particularly Google, whose market share is 93% as of this writing.
2. Local Search
If you are a locally focused business, you’d understand how SEO is still one of the finest tools in acquiring customers. Can you think of smarter ways than SEO to make more customers walk in through your doors and outrank your local competitors?
You have the greatest facility of attracting local and prospective customers and clients. SEO helps you target local users in your area. Google is your best friend here as it tailors results according to your geographical location.
All you need to do is use SEO correctly and be the dominating “local” website. Once you do, your website has the chance to rank not only in organic listings (more on that below) but can also rank above organic listings in “local listings,” which is accompanied by a pin map so users can identify proximate businesses to their residences.
3. More Organic Traffic
Organic traffic is free to website owners. Other than the cost of optimizing the website, the cost of customer acquisition through organic traffic is free.
If you are searching for substantial ways to boost ROI 24/7 and not have to incur costly strategies for it, SEO is your best solution.
4. Preferred Long-Term Traffic Acquisition Strategy
SEO is a more effective long-term marketing strategy than other advertising strategies you’re considering. It takes time, patience, and competence to rank a website on the first page of Google. It takes time because, unless your website has just received a link from a major player website, content additions in the form of articles, images, and video are added over time. While you’re doing this, your competitors are doing the same thing. Over time, however, you can prove that your content is of greater value than your competitors and thus, begin to outrank them.
5. Boosts Brand Awareness
Several sources of research give testimony to the fact that people are of the mindset that top ranking websites in Google search are the most credible. In fact, 90% of Google searchers never reach the 2nd page of search engine results. Boost your brand’s profile by ranking on the first page for each of your relevant keywords.
If you need help optimizing your website, give us a call. It’s free. We’d be happy to advise and guide you.
