In the age of the Internet, it’s more important than ever that small businesses make themselves more visible in search engines. An SEO strategy can help!
You need an SEO strategy. Yes, you do!
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of preparing your website to appear on popular search engines like Google and Bing. SEO used to be the domain of big businesses with even bigger budgets. But in the age of the Internet, it's more important than ever that small businesses make themselves more visible online.
We can start to define SEO by understanding that it’s NOT pay-per-click (PPC). PPC, most commonly known as Google AdWords, offers instant visibility by buying visibility for your business by bidding on search terms that relate to your business.
SEO is actually the opposite of PPC, meaning that quality SEO scores can only come from the proper preparation of the organic content on your website. When search engines visit your site and find high quality and fresh content, they rank your site based on relevance. That relevance, among other ever-changing factors, is what makes your website appear in Google searches.
Here are four reasons why you need an SEO program:
Being First Matters: The first organic result in Google Search has an average click-through rate (CTR) of 28.5%, according to a study by Sistrix. Average CTR drops like a stone in the second and third positions having a 15% and 11% click-through rate respectively. As the wise man once said, "If you're not first, you're last!"
SEO Can Make Other Efforts Better: The metrics that come from a solid SEO program will give you the data needed to improve PPC and re-targeting efforts for even more success. Building awareness across multiple streams increases the number of opportunities to engage your target.
Local is Key: As a small business, one thing you can probably do better than a big business is be local. That's good because 46% of all Google searches are looking for local information according to GoGulf. Being in front of a local customer looking for your business is an excellent formula for success and a strong SEO program is designed to specifically improve your search engine placements.
Customers Want You Now: The customer chooses when they are ready for us and SEO can put you in position to serve them. 88% of searches for local businesses on a mobile device either call or visit the business within 24 hours. (Source: Nectafy) In addition, “Near me” or "close by" type searches grew by more than 900% over two years. (Source: Chat Meter)
The right SEO strategy can supercharge the online and offline marketing strategy for your small business. To learn how Performance Marketing can help build your SEO program, visit www.callpm.com, or call 609-646-0414.
