SEO. Three small letters open an entire world of opportunity for everyone, from the self-employed to huge global-spanning businesses. Asking if you need SEO is like asking if you need a car. Sure, some people get by on public transport, but they must thumb a ride every now. and then Let’s turn the spotlight on reasons why you would need to use SEO:
Anyone with a website
Consider this: your website is your shopfront. Except it never closes. The wonderful thing about the modern internet is that anyone can use it and potentially find your website, which means you need to guide them to where you are. SEO points people towards your web presence, emphasising you. Remember: content is king, and that is what search engines are looking for more than anything else.
Marketers
SEO is, of course, important for businesses, and marketers constantly need to address their rankings and quality score if they are going to drive sales, grab leads and gain conversions. It sits very snugly in a company’s overall marketing strategy, alongside social media, brand awareness, and advertising. SEO’s real use is the real-time analytics, ROI measures and scores that inform you of how well a particular strategy or marketing campaign is working.
Brand Builders
SEO works in such a way that it can make your brand more relevant, stronger, and well recognised. The end goal for SEO is that when people search for a particular question, word, or phrase, they get your website listed at the very top of the search results. Look like the best, and people will believe you are, as search engines are today’s credibility check. It can turn a first impression into visitors remembering your brand, your name, your business. By presenting the most valuable and relevant information – usually an answer to a question – you can secure awareness and a memorable brand to visitors, who are now likely to visit your site again (and recommend it!).
Accountants (or anyone looking at their bottom line)
SEO is cost-effective. Compared to other forms of marketing, like print advertising, SEO screams ahead, delivering a higher return on every dollar invested over time. The costs of running an SEO campaign are essentially the same whether you reach ten people or ten thousand – you still must have a web presence and create content for it. You pay the same for each visitor, whether they join your mailing list or buy a product from you. The lasting impact of good SEO is seriously important as momentum can keep up for potentially years after your campaign ends. What other form of advertising does that? Plus, SEO is nuanced – are you going to run ad campaigns yourself with Google AdWords, or are you going to outsource it to an SEO company? If so, the lowest bidder is usually not just as good as the highest – we recommend choosing carefully and looking at what a company is offering vs. time spent and cost involved.
It’s impossible to nail down who exactly needs SEO because the answer is everyone. You can’t afford not to have it unless your business plan is to remain invisible online! Everyone from Coca-Cola to your local car garage is using SEO to help them reach their customer base. If you have a business, you need SEO.