Search engine optimisation (SEO) has been a hot topic in marketing for years and for small businesses with an online presence, it’s the best investment you could make. Search engine use is at an all-time high, with over 2 trillion searches taking place every single year on Google alone. As a result, businesses have to do a lot more to put themselves at the top, which is exactly where SEO comes into play.
Whether you opt to invest in help from SEO firms like Essex SEO services or you’re looking to learn the ropes yourself, we’ve put together a quick list of five benefits your small business could see when utilising SEO best practices.
Increased Reach
Though it might seem a bit of a given, sitting high up in search engine results will give you better access to a wider audience. Nowadays, everyone takes to the internet to search for businesses to fit their needs whether they’re looking for a local restaurant or a specific product and for the most part, they’ll usually opt for one of the first five results.
By implementing SEO techniques, you could rise higher in the rankings and reach one of these top five spots, ultimately reaching a much wider audience who are more likely to click through and become a conversion for your business.
Brand Credibility And Awareness
While search results often come up with paid ads above the genuine search results, studied suggest that most will skip the paid ads and go down to the main rankings. With this in mind, while paying for that top spot will put you there, investing in SEO will create credibility around your business that paid ads are unlikely to build.
Customers will visit your site with a pre-established trust in your brand – all you have to do is make sure that that trust stays by designing your site and its content with user experience in mind.
Better Conversion Potential
When it comes to SEO, the practices you could implement have the potential to increase your conversion rate. In other words, keyword analysis and then careful implementation of those keywords around your site can help to not only put you further up in the rankings, but improve that rate at which the traffic to your site will become a sale, call or other form of contact.
Through the use of keywords and close monitoring of your site’s resulting activity, you can form a better understanding of how to adjust your SEO campaign to target local search.
SEO Can Provide Amazing Returns
For small businesses, investing in marketing techniques can be a tough decision to make but SEO remains the perfect return on investment (ROI) strategy. It’s affordable in and of itself, but it’s also cost efficient.
With the increased conversions bringing more profit into your business and the simple fact that rankings are a much more lasting marketing technique. Once your site is at the top of the rankings, it’s likely to stay there for a substantial period of time.
Your Competitors Are Doing It
If there’s any reason to start implementing SEO into your business, then it’s the simple fact that it’s what your competitors are doing. There is a huge audience out there looking for products and services, and with all of the above points in mind, you’ll want to rank higher than your competitors in SERPs. By ranking lower, or not ranking at all, you risk losing potential customers to your competitors. However, with a well-designed SEO campaign and a user-friendly website, you can continue the battle for customers on fair ground.
Conclusion
SEO is a cost-effective and necessary process from which small businesses can draw plenty of benefits. From increased conversions to better brand credibility, when it comes to SEO, the possibilities truly are endless.