SEO for Business Growth
By now, most business owners have heard some version of: “You need SEO to grow your business.”
Without understanding what SEO is and how it generates new leads, SEO for business growth might seem like a pile of marketing pixie dust. Even if you are familiar with SEO and its benefits, taking real action can be daunting.
In this blog post we’ll cover:
- What SEO is (without drowning you in jargon)
- How SEO promotes business growth (with a real-world example)
- Your options for getting started (you guessed it – NAVEO is one of them)
TL;DR: You can also reach out to us with your questions about SEO – or any other marketing strategies you’re considering: 262-703-0800.
SEO Basics for Busy Business Owners
Search engine optimization (SEO) refers to many different tactics that help a website rank higher on search engine results pages (SERP).
Example: when someone types “best shoes for standing all day” into Google, it’s no coincidence there are millions of web pages as a result. Shoe sellers and their marketing partners identified that keyword as having the right intent (mostly likely someone looking to buy comfortable shoes) and are using SEO to compete for the top rankings so they can put their products in front of more eyeballs.
Important: SEO focuses on organic (not paid) search results. Pay-per-click advertising also puts your website at the top of SERPs, but it’s a different tactic.
OK, so how can SEO help your business grow?
First, it’s important to take care of technical SEO best practices – the behind-the-scenes work most search engine users don’t think about. This includes everything from page speed (how quickly the content on a page loads) to website architecture (how the pages of your site are organized and interconnected).
Once sound technical elements are in place, the most powerful SEO technique is strategic content development.
Collaborating with clients, SEO specialists develop and publish relevant content optimized for search engine users. Over time, these web pages appear in more and more search results along the customer journey from awareness to evaluation to purchase.
SEO isn’t a “one and done” method. It’s important to continually update your website with fresh content. Search spiders are constantly crawling the web looking for new content to add to the index. The more often you update your site, the more frequently it’s indexed, and the more often your positions in SERP rankings are reevaluated.
Example: How Ongoing SEO Boosted Rankings & Leads
Our client, an industrial manufacturer, came to us in 2015 in need of a new website and SEO services.
We’ll look at data from 2016, the first full year their new website was live. At the outset, they ranked for just 38 keywords on the first results page.
With a modest (but consistent) SEO campaign over 5 years, they’re now ranking on the first SERP for 197 keywords (a 418% increase) AND winning 30 Featured Snippets.
A featured snippet (aka “answerbox”) is the excerpt from a web page you’ll sometimes see at the very top of the results page, above the other unpaid links. It’s even more valuable than ranking #1.
That’s all well and good, but they didn’t hire us just to rank better on SERPs. Here’s the ROI they were promised:
We only have 8 full months of data for 2021 at the time of writing, so we’re comparing January-August year-over-year.
Keep in mind, the number of forms submitted through the website doesn’t include users who found their website through search and then called or emailed. We’re only able to report trackable contact.
Can I get in on this?
SEO can absolutely improve the visibility of your business online and grow your customer base. Top rankings are earned over time – and there’s no time to lose. As shown in the “best shoes” example earlier, SERP ranking position is highly competitive. SEO is an investment that grows in value over time, but only if you start.
How to get started with SEO for your business website:
DIY
Anyone with the time, tools, and know-how can do SEO work themselves. Be aware that it will take a considerable amount of time and effort.
Direct hire
Hiring an SEO specialist (or team) is a significant outlay, but you get maximum control without having to actually carry out the work yourself.
Freelancers
Freelance SEO analysts, copywriters, graphic designers and web developers can be hired for specific projects, to support your in-house staff, or to assist you in your own efforts. This is less of a financial commitment than an in-house team, but “lower cost” doesn’t necessarily mean “cost effective.”
Agency
Professional marketing agencies take the burden of hiring, training and managing off your shoulders. They’ve already got an experienced team and handle project management from end to end. It’s the difference between driving to a store, buying supplies, and building a table yourself, or calling a furniture supplier and having them deliver and assemble for you.
It all depends on how you want to spend your time.
If you’re like most business owners we’ve worked with, your time is at a premium. After all, you’re an expert in your field – you shouldn’t have to be an SEO expert, too. If you’re interested in learning whether working with NAVEO would be a good fit for your business, just get in touch. We’re happy to do a free website audit (in plain language) or just answer your questions. There’s no obligation to learn more.