Benefits of SEO: 15 Ways it can boost your brand online
With more than five billion internet users nowadays, there is no doubt that an online presence is crucial in a business.
Those that stay competitive nowadays strategize and make the most out of the channels available online. It is common for a company to have a social media page or website so their customers can reach out to them easier.
However, if you want to maximize on boosting your brand or increasing your revenue and engagement, SEO is the best way to go. Before starting on your SEO journey or working with your first team, learn the benefits of SEO and how you can handle it through this guide.
SEO in a nutshell
Search engine optimization (SEO) is about increasing your brand’s visibility through search queries. Companies use specific tools and strategies to improve their ranking on search engines, most commonly on Google.
SEO is at its most value today, where customers mostly rely on an internet search to look for businesses and products to buy. Having your website on the first page of search engines such as Google can gradually increase your chances of getting seen by your target market.
This process can be done in three ways:
- On-page SEO, which involves optimizing website content
- Off-page SEO, which deals with backlinking and link-building efforts
- Technical SEO, which takes care of the “behind-the-scenes” of a website, including its quality
Benefits of SEO in your brand
Statistics say that search engine makes up to at least 30% of worldwide internet traffic in 2019 and spiked during the pandemic. Google, meanwhile, remains the leading search engine online with an 87% market share.
Here are some of the ways SEO can help you achieve this.
Increased organic traffic
The best way to get leads and customers is through your organic traffic. Per current studies, top sites on a results page receive at least 39.6% click-through rates (CTR), more than double the second position (18.4%) and almost four times the third position (10.1%).
Inbound marketing from organic traffic is more effective in getting customers since they get to your website for solutions to their problems. This even helps you find the right customers that can potentially be retained over time.
Build authority and credibility
According to Hubspot, 75% of users never get past the first page of search engines.
Meanwhile, only 25% go to the second page.
Getting to the first page indicates that search engines trust your page and deem you knowledgeable in a particular topic or keyword. By doing SEO right, you have the chance to build your authority and credibility in your industry.
Improve user experience
Google included user experience as a ranking factor for websites in 2021 as a result of their studies. This pushes businesses to improve their website quality to make their customers more comfortable navigating.
Optimizing technical SEO and content are some ways to improve user experience. At the same time, focusing on this only shows that you care about what your customers need and how your brand could solve their challenges.
Target the entire sales funnel
There is an SEO strategy for each stage of the sales funnel. One good thing about utilizing SEO for your brand is that you can use it for your entire sales funnel.
For instance, you can create blog posts for both top and bottom of the funnel to either increase brand awareness or develop loyalty, if not for immediate lead conversion.
Get high-quality conversion
More than half (53%) of marketers say that most of their quality leads come from inbound marketing strategies. With this, many companies invest in their SEO strategies to increase their presence.
By using SEO, you get to attract and convert quality leads for your products and services. Staying on top of search rankings for a long time can even help you attract more diverse markets and have the opportunity to convert more customers.
Save on costs
SEO is way cheaper, unlike paid ads. You only have to improve your website and content to get crawled by search engines and rank.
Utilizing SEO helps you save on costs from purely using pay-per-click (PPC) advertisements. It can even enhance your PPC efforts since it increases your chance of boosting traffic and increasing your credibility.
Ensure mobile-friendliness
Mobile-friendliness is now in. Per a Semrush study, search traffic worldwide spiked by 22% in 2020. 66% of this traffic, meanwhile, came from mobile devices. The increase in mobile search pushed Google to move mobile-first indexing to all websites, whether old or new, in March 2021.
Mobile search even affected the rankings of at least 37% of websites, while only 17% of sites worldwide retained their rankings with both desktop and mobile sites.
Nowadays, having a mobile-friendly page is crucial to improving your overall user experience and credibility online. Implementing SEO strategies is the best way to optimize your website for a more mobile-friendly experience.
Get measurable results
With SEO, you don’t have to always be in the dark about your progress. You can easily measure your success through several metrics and tools that can help you determine them.
For instance, Google uses Core Web Vitals to measure the overall experience on a website, which you can access through your search console account. SEO platforms, meanwhile, can help you determine your organic traffic and keywords where you rank.
Establish relationships with other sites
Your SEO efforts do not come from your website alone. Link building maximizes your presence by connecting to more established websites and media outlets locally and internationally.
What’s more, link building also helps you establish your network and relationship with these sites, making public relations smoother on your part.
Rank locally
With local searches becoming more popular, you should learn to leverage your efforts on how local customers can find your business efficiently. You can include “near me” searches in your SEO strategy to increase local visibility and gain traction within your area or country.
Integrate other digital marketing strategies
One of the good benefits of SEO is that it does not limit you to a single channel or marketing strategy. You can maximize other digital marketing efforts to make it work. This includes social media marketing, email marketing, and web management.
Generate better marketing ROI
Indeed, SEO takes time. It could take up to six months to see a website’s improvement and maintain optimal ranking. However, it pays off with the right strategies and tools in place.
Good SEO practices can strengthen your digital marketing strategies. As a result, you can expect a more impressive ROI over time as you update your website and tactics.
Gain better market insights
Through SEO, you can get a better picture of your target market and what you are currently attracting. You get to know your leads and customers through their demographics, buying patterns, and even their purpose in going to your website.
This gives you a better idea of what to offer for a particular audience and what improvements you should make in your products and services.
Keep up with constant algorithm changes
Google constantly changes its algorithm for ranking websites. Investing in your long-term SEO strategies can help you keep up with these changes and maintain – even improve – your rankings periodically.
Move ahead of the competition
SEO is here to stay. Most companies even put this as their primary marketing strategy. As long as you can rank on search engines and improve your position, you can stay relevant and get yourself ahead of your competition.
The best way to handle SEO
The best way to get the benefits of SEO easily is by following its best practices. Even when search engine algorithms change constantly, most of these practices still apply and can increase your chances of ranking through search pages.
Alternatively, you can delegate this function to an outsourced team with extensive expertise in SEO. Firms like MVP Asia Pacific will make sure you have a strong SEO foundation to rank better.
This process takes time, effort, and focus on mastering. Even when entrepreneurs like you have been doing this for a certain period, you cannot always devote your time doing this task instead to your core business duties.
Outsourcing this to an SEO team can help you improve your processes and have first-hand insights into your progress. It can even help you maximize the benefits you get from your SEO efforts.