When meeting recently with a business owner and marketing director, they shared that their goal for inbound digital marketing was to rank No. 1 for a specific keyword in the search engine. While that sounds like a great goal, it lends itself to the fact that sometimes what people think they want is not actually what they need.
For example, let’s say your business did rank at the top of search engines for the specific keyword you wanted, however, you didn’t generate a single lead from all of the work that went into positioning that keyword for high ranking in the search engines. What did your business achieve? Answer: wasted money.
Ultimately, what the client really wanted was more leads and growth in his business. While SEO definitely plays a part in lead generation, the missing link was the strategy that focuses on the right audience and the buyer’s journey.
Outdated SEO Thinking
The reality is search engine optimization (SEO) is drastically different today than it was a few years ago. More importantly, you must understand what a solid SEO strategy is and what you should expect from it.
Let’s use the previous example. Instead of focusing on ranking in the search engines for the keyword you thought was important, you researched your ideal client, developed a persona and then created and executed a strategy around your prospect’s buyer’s journey. You’ve dropped the outdated model of SEO thinking (that’s right, there are no loopholes and you can’t game the search engines anymore) and you’ve embraced the innovative approach by having a customer-centric focus.
What is SEO Today?
The best and easiest definition is shared by Christopher Ratcliff from Search Engine Watch. SEO is the umbrella term for all the methods you can use to ensure the visibility of your website and its content on search engine results pages (SERPs).
The methods vary from technical practices you apply on the backend of your website (referred to as on-page SEO) to the various tactics (referred to as off-page SEO) that generate brand awareness, capture attention and pull people to your website.
Based upon this definition, it is clearly evident there is not a quick one-size-fits-all approach to SEO. And no, PPC (Pay Per Click/Google AdWords) is not organic positioning. That is paid advertising, which is an important tool to use appropriately, yet, has minimal value with organic search engines.
11 Reasons Why You Should Care About SEO
- 93% of all online searches begin with a search engine (imFORZA.com)
- Google owns 65-70% of the search engine market share (imFORZA.com)
- Of all organic traffic, it was found that Google accounted for more than 90% of global organic search traffic in 2015. (definemg.com)
- 70% of the links search-users click on are organic (imFORZA.com)
- Local searches lead 50% of mobile visitors to visit stores within one day (Google)
- 70-80% of users ignore the paid ads, focusing on the organic results (imFORZA.com)
- 18% of local mobile searches lead to a sale within one day (think with Google)
- 75% of users never scroll past the first page of search results (imFORZA.com)
- 76% of marketers use social media to support and boost SEO (Regalix)
- SEO leads have a 14.6% close rate, while outbound leads (such as direct mail or print advertising) have a 1.7% close rate (imFORZA.com)
- For Google, 18% of organic clicks go to the #1 position, 10% of organic clicks go to the #2 position and 7% of organic clicks go to the #3 position (imFORZA.com)
The Bottom Line
Developing and actively managing an effective SEO strategy for your business is critical if you seek business and in turn revenue growth.
There are no quick fixes or one single tactical execution that will result in positive SEO ranking. It takes hard work, continual testing and technical application of various strategies to maintain high ranking. I would also caution on having a fragmented inbound digital program where you have various different vendors working on different aspects of your strategy. This can often result in more harm than good when an integrated strategy is not in place.
By now, it should be pretty obvious that SEO is a critical component of your inbound digital program. Remember, my client ultimately wanted leads. According to NewsCred, 57% of marketers say SEO has the biggest impact on lead generation. Does SEO really affect lead generation? You bet! Just make sure you have the right strategy behind it.
Need help building your SEO strategy? Contact the experts at Marketing Essentials today!
