7 reasons why SEO should be a priority now for all businesses

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The world has changed drastically since the Internet came out. Currently, there are 3.5 billion smartphone users worldwide, and information and access to any product or service are available to them in a matter of seconds. As the customers have evolved, the way business is being conducted has evolved as well. What does that mean? It means if a business doesn’t have an online presence now, they are pretty much no competition.

Present Scenario Of The World

Roughly 75% of the 3.5 billion smartphone users expect to get immediate information while using their smartphones. Currently, there are a total number of 1.95 billion websites on the internet. And it’s estimated that by the year 2040, 95% of purchases will be through eCommerce. The trends clearly show that internet usage and digital growth are only going to increase in the future, and any business, whether small or big, local or multinational, needs to be a part of this growth to be successful. 


The industry leaders understand that, and we can see them making an impact online with their amazing social media campaigns and informative websites. But even when something is so obvious, 6 out of every 10 small businesses don’t have a website, and 35% of small business owners feel that their business is too small for a website. This brings forth the opportunity for small and local businesses to get a competitive advantage because sooner or later, reality has to be faced. So how can these businesses make an impact in this online world? SEO is the answer.

What Does SEO Even Mean?

The Internet is made up of millions of web pages. A collection of web pages is a website. A website is specific to a business. So, when a user wants to search for something, tools known as search engines go through these millions of web pages to deliver the most relevant results to the user. Now, there are many search engines out there like Google, Yahoo, and Bing, but considering the fact that 93% of global traffic for all businesses comes from Google search, Google Images, and Google Maps, I think it’s safe to say Google is pretty much a synonym for search engine now.


SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation, which basically is how you create or make changes to your business’ website to make it most relevant so that the search engine ranks your pages at higher positions in the results. Simply put, you want to get to page 1 of the search results of Google for the product or service you provide, and SEO marketing is how you get there. 

Why Should SEO Be A Priority For Small Businesses?

As far as the marketing priority of SEO goes, about 64% of marketers actively invest time in search engine optimisation. So, that shows something, doesn’t it? But let me still give you 7 reasons why I feel SEO should be a priority for your business if you haven’t made it one yet.

1. The Only Cost-effective Method To Get Quality Leads Which Convert

There are many activities we can do under digital marketing to increase lead generation and make those sales happen. Some effective ones are social media marketing (SMM) and paid advertising. But none of them are as cost-effective as SEO marketing. Social media requires consistent creativity and execution of campaigns, and paid advertising can get pretty expensive. On the other hand, in SEO, the only situations where there are expenses involved are the tools that you might need to make the optimisation process much more convenient. 


Although, if done smartly and with proper skills, it can even be free. And considering the fact SEO is powered by organic traffic (which means visitors who already have search intent for your service), the leads are of high quality and are proven to have high conversions. Organic traffic has been shown to capture more than 40 percent of a business’s revenue. All this makes SEO the most cost-effective method to get the best quality leads.

2. Builds Credibility and Trust 

An effective content marketing strategy is a part of SEO and involves creating content that is relevant to your industry and aims to build authority around the product or service you provide. With time and consistent content delivery on that topic, it builds your business’s credibility in a way that when a visitor visits your site and sees all that content of different types, whether it be testimonials, product descriptions, infographics, or blog articles on smaller niche topics related to your broader topic, they know they can trust you. This is how SEO can help you become a leader in your industry.

3. Understand Your Customer As Only Google Can

By now, it is a well-known reality that Google and all the social media sites record data related to their users' searches and know so much about their behaviour patterns, likes, interests, and dislikes that even the user wouldn’t be aware of. This data is really powerful for businesses in creating an amazing user experience and curating products to their customers’ needs. 


One of the essential tools that are used in SEO marketing is Google Analytics, and it is used by 86% of all the websites whose traffic analysis tools we know. This is 56.5% of all websites. Google Analytics helps you to understand and analyse your customers’ behaviour, how they found out about you, what led them to your site, and what you can do to make sure they have a great experience. This is data that only Google can provide, and this is how SEO can help you to really (like really) understand your customer.

4. Create A Brand Around Your Business

One of the key factors in SEO is user experience, which includes how much time users spend on your website and how often they visit your pages for content. And all of that determines if your website ranks on search engines and if your business is building itself into a brand. According to Forbes, it takes about 7 seconds for a user to make the first impression about your brand. And consumers state that they find businesses that offer valuable and relevant information far more appealing. But only 53% of businesses use content marketing as their branding strategy. This means a properly executed SEO-powered content strategy will help you create a brand around your business while giving you that competitive advantage.

5. Even Offline Businesses Aren't Really Offline

Local businesses that were traditionally offline and did not need an online presence, like premium restaurants, retail stores, cafes, etc., now cannot do without it. Google states that mobile queries of "Where to buy" and "near me" have grown by over 200% in the past 2 years alone. And it has been observed that 46% of shoppers confirm product availability online before going to a store. These trends very clearly show the way customers search and try out different services is changing rapidly, and this means that businesses have to mimic these rapid changes as well. How can they do that? Local SEO is the answer.

6. Long-Term Stability Is Not Unrealistic In This Relationship

You know the popular saying, “Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet." Well, this holds very true for SEO. Creating SEO-powered content takes effort and surely requires a lot of time, but when the ROI starts coming in, it becomes all worth it. SEO content strategy requires deliberate keyword research, targeted efforts, and a lot of consistent posting and creation, but the best part of it is that growth becomes inevitable when a business makes it a priority. 

The above graph shows that SEO continues to give ROI even after the initial campaign ends, and that is the power of SEO. Long-term stability is the reason that 70% of marketers see SEO as more effective than paid advertising.

7. The Internet Is Forever And So Is SEO

The growth of Internet users doesn’t look like it’s ever going to stop. It needs to be understood that technology and the internet are a part of our world forever. So when you know something for sure and when you know that growth is inevitable, then investing in that is probably the smartest decision we can make. It is common sense.


The number of global social media users is expected to reach almost 3.43 billion in 2023. And SEO drives 1000%+ more traffic than organic social media. This goes on to show how much of a safe and necessary investment SEO marketing is for a business to grow in the future and be successful. 

Conclusion

To conclude, the world has changed drastically since the Internet came out. Consumers have changed, and so have businesses. The industry leaders embrace that change and strive to be a part of it. Businesses that don't need to get on the train waggon and do what needs to be done to be a part of this growth. Search Engine Optimisation is the way forward and the best solution towards achieving that. 

References


As of 2020, there are 3.5 billion smartphone users worldwide. (Statista, 2020) (Source: Hubspot)


75% of smartphone users expect to get immediate information while using their smartphone. (Think with Google, 2019) (Source: Hubspot)


About 64% of marketers actively invest time in search engine optimisation (SEO). (Source: Hubspot)


92.96% of global traffic comes from Google search, Google Images, and Google Maps. (Source: Ziflow)


Organic traffic can capture more than 40 percent of your company’s revenue.


Google Analytics is used by 85.9% of all the websites whose traffic analysis tool we know. This is 56.5% of all websites. (Source: W3Techs)


On average, it takes about 7 seconds to make the first impression. (Forbes)


Only 53% of businesses use content marketing as their branding strategy. (Small Biz Trends) 


"Where to buy" and "near me" mobile queries have grown by over 200% in the past two years. (Think with Google, 2019) (Source: Hubspot)


46% of shoppers surveyed confirmed inventory online before going to a store. (Think with Google, 2019) (Source: Hubspot)


70% of marketers see SEO as more effective than PPC. (Source: Databox)


The number of global social media users is expected to reach almost 3.43 billion in 2023. (Statista, 2020) (Source: Hubspot)


SEO drives 1000%+ more traffic than organic social media. (BrightEdge, 2019) (Source: Hubspot)


(Originally written on 24 August 2021)

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