Olivia Atkinson
One of the most effective digital marketing strategies out there is SEO. Business owners and marketing managers often have the same questions. What is SEO? Is it essential? How does SEO help with lead generation?
We’ll take a brief look at what SEO is, why it’s important and 5 reasons why SEO online marketing can change your business for the better.
What Is Online SEO?
SEO is the process of improving your website and online presence, both on-page and off-page to improve its ranking in search engines like Google.
SEO is one of those things that until you really think about it, how websites ranked on Google might not have ever occurred to you.
Even I used to think that because you have a website, you’re online and when you search your company or solution, it’ll be there. This is not the case.
There are about 2 billion websites, with just under 400 million of those that are active. It’s extremely rare for any company in 2020 to not have a website.
Businesses across the nation and the globe are competing to be on page one, position one.
Simply having a website or spending how many thousands of pounds on a new website design isn't enough to be recognised by Google.
Of course, visuals and usability is a factor in how your website performs. However, it is one of many algorithms that indicate to Google your website is good.
The algorithms are so vast that it isn’t simply doing 10 things right and hey you’re number one. It’s a combination of some very technical SEO and consistently contributing to your SEO efforts.
1. Thousands of people search on Google every second
Let’s kick things off with the most obvious point, that the internet is a go-to resource for people. Not only in day to day life but also in business.
98% of architects prefer to research building products online according to SpecifiedBy Specifier Insights Report.
This is an astonishing figure that should not be ignored. It indicates how vital your digital marketing presence is to successful lead generation.
The figures show that people are actively looking on the internet for building product solutions yet so many neglect their online SEO.
If your website isn’t ranking at least on page one, then you’re limiting the exposure it could be getting.
Below is a table for the click-through rates based on over 13,000 websites and 12 million keywords.
As you can see the higher you are to position 1, the more traffic your website will receive. That’s why SEO is vital to your building products business.
Especially as 98% of building product research is being done on the web, how often do you click to page 2?
2. A Lot Of People Ignore Paid Ads
Although pay per click can be a powerful tool and contribute to lead generation, it needs to be done correctly.
PPC shouldn’t be your only focus or relied on for website traffic. Although it can generate traffic quickly, it isn’t a sustainable solution and relies on constant funding.
Nearly 80% of users ignore paid ads that appear in search results. Ranking organically means that your website shows up as a result below the paid ads.
You don’t have to pay a single penny to appear in search results organically, but you do need a solid SEO campaign to get there.
Consider that people might also be using ad-blocker plugins. 7.2% of all search clicks go to paid results.
This is lower than the top 3 organic positions on search engine results pages for desktop and lower than the top 4 positions on mobile.
3. Companies Are Implementing SEO More Than Ever
If you want to stay ahead of your competitors, having an effective SEO campaign is vital. Recent events in the year have forced even the most traditional industries to embrace digital. Discover how to bounce back with the right SEO tactics.
It’s revealed just how important your website is, investing in your 24/7 sales-person that never takes time off.
Your website should be a part of your lead generation activities and support your sales team. Having your website set up correctly for Google is imperative to be found for the solution your business offers.
4. SEO Boosts Conversions
In comparison to traditional marketing, the conversion rate of SEO is extremely high. Traditional marketing strategies typically see a conversion rate of 1.7%, while SEO provides a conversion rate of 14.6%.
This highlights why SEO is one of the best marketing strategies out there and the power it can have to lead generation.
5. Local SEO Is Extremely Effective
If location is a key part of your business then a local SEO campaign is vital. After users make a local business search, 88% of them will either call or visit the business that they found and chose within 24 hours.
The only catch is, you have to be showing up high on the search engine results page for local searchers to find you. The only way to do this is by implementing a strong local SEO strategy which would include keyword research.
Conclusion
SEO is commonly perceived as something only experts can do, which is true to an extent. There are some technical sides to SEO that include having your website set up correctly initially.
Then ongoing SEO work is a lot easier to understand, some of the activities include:
- Link Building
- Keyword Research
- How To Create Content
- The Importance Of Analytics
- Header Tags
- Meta Descriptions And Titles
- Optimising Images
SEO should be a part of your marketing plan no matter if it's a lot or a little. Having your website correctly set up can stand you in good stead to continuously optimise any content you upload.
Understanding how Google works and how it recognises your site is essential to it performing well and ranking high.
If you need help with your building products website and ensuring the correct SEO is implemented then book some time in to discuss your options.
Alternatively you can get a free report to find out the health of your website, just click the banner below.
About Insynth
As the only HubSpot certified agency to major on construction marketing, we bring together construction marketing strategy, digital strategy, website design, SEO, content marketing, email marketing, sales automation, marketing automation and HubSpot CRM implementation to produce successful campaigns and great results for our clients.