Why is SEO Important for Your Business?
By Emma Grant | July 29th 2021
By Emma Grant You probably already know why SEO is important, because it gets you search engine visibility. But there is so much more to it than that. Here are our top reasons why you need SEO as a business, and why it has never been so important to invest in a strong, ongoing search engine optimisation strategy.
Whatever industry you operate in, however large or small your business, SEO is vital if you’re going to stand out above your competitors and enjoy business growth. Let’s take a closer look at some specific reasons why SEO is important.
Most search engine users are more likely to click on one of the top 5 non-ad listings in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
More than 70 per cent of search engine users are more likely to choose one of the top five results, and 60 per cent will click on one of the top three. Getting into those positions does not happen by accident, miracle, magic, luck or some other random fluke. It happens because there’s an SEO strategy in place.
The vast majority of internet users visit Google at least once a day for information. SEO, and a well-designed and optimised website, has the power to show Google, through signals like Expertise, Authority and Trust (E-A-T), that your website is a trusted resource in its field, and through the likes of Core Web Vitals, that your site is a great place to visit. And when Google knows your site is a trusted resource that’s a great place to visit, it’s going to reward it with top rankings.
A positive user experience is part and parcel of a winning SEO strategy. Which means when you invest in SEO, you invest in pleasing your website users. And happy website users are great brand ambassadors.
Optimal user experience is fundamental to search engine success. Google has cleverly learnt how to recognise a good or bad user experience, and as already mentioned, rewards the good ones with decent rankings.
Over the years, Google has honed its user offering to become more of an answer engine than a search engine. You can see this by the way it delivers information on the search results pages without you having to even click. And this is what it looks for in other websites. People want information, and they want it fast. If they can’t find what they’re looking for, off they go. Which is why a core part of any SEO campaign is focused around improving user experience in this way.
A positive user experience is part and parcel of a winning SEO strategy.
SEO can get you found for your specific areas of expertise, or particular products or product categories if you’re selling online, in the locations that you operate, or want to attract new business.
One of the great things about SEO is the way it can be targeted. An experienced SEO agency will undertake focused research around your particular set of services or products. And if you’re operating locally, they’ll factor in your specific locations too.
So instead of blanket coverage for your marketing campaign, you’re getting closely targeted leads. Which is beneficial when you are seeking to grow selected areas of the business, or want to promote particular product lines.
Google issues thousands of algorithm changes every year. If you’re doing regular SEO, you’ll know about them and update your site accordingly. If you aren’t, then your site could get left behind in terms of best practice. And your visitors probably won’t like that.
If you look at SEO as a one-and-done thing, maybe invest in it just to launch your site, or pause your campaign due to budget constraints, and your site isn’t constantly re-evaluated, then there’s going to come a time when it lags far behind your competitors’ sites. It might be that it can’t even be brought back without a total overhaul. Which is likely to be expensive. More expensive than an ongoing SEO campaign.
Because Google is ever-updating, a website needs continuous monitoring for changes in order to stay ahead of the competition, and retain good rankings. This monitoring is part and parcel of SEO. So there you have another reason why SEO is important.
Google issues thousands of algorithm changes every year. If you’re doing regular SEO, you’ll know about them and update your site accordingly.
SEO works towards long term success. The investment you make in the early days will go on paying you back over several years. As long as you keep your campaign ticking over.
Most SEO campaigns have a clear impact within the first 12 months, but the work that goes into a campaign will keep paying back over time. Providing your SEO involves keeping up with best practice, even the smallest intervention will have a positive effect.
And the more you invest in SEO, the greater the rewards. So it really is one of those digital marketing agency strategies that gives you a continuous return.
SEO plays a vital role in the research and buying cycle.
Another reason why you need SEO for your business is that it can boost sales without increasing your marketing costs. And who can deny that’s an advantage not to be overlooked?
SEO has the potential to support your business goals at a greater return on investment than most other comparable online marketing strategies, purely due to the effect of better conversions and increased sales, all at little incremental cost.
If you assume that your brand is THE go-to source, or your ecommerce website is THE best place to buy, this can be a very costly error. Even your regular customers could potentially be lured elsewhere through a special offer or some other tempting proposition. Price conscious shopping behaviour is common in times of economic downturn, so it’s vital to not become complacent.
SEO plays a central role in the whole consumer research and buying cycle. It has the power to attract potential customers to your website, courtesy of well-researched, relevant keywords and phrases that rank highly in the search engines, where people are already actively searching for what you sell.
It’s all about being right there in the right place at the right time, so you can capture your prospective customers and signpost them to the products and services that will service their needs.
SEO is all about being right there in the right place at the right time
SEO is important: fact
So there you have plenty of reasons why SEO is important. How SEO works and how long it takes are another matter. But suffice to ask, can your business afford to do without SEO?
At Figment, we have been achieving exceptional SEO results for businesses since 2006. Our strategies are based on specific business goals, and fully customised to the individual way your business works, and the specific audiences you are looking to target.
For SEO results beyond expectations, the type designed to support your business growth goals, talk to Figment.