Many times, we have seen businesses who see SEO and sometimes marketing in general as an expense, rather than an investment. Traditional investments are judged on their ability to provide returns over time, as a positive ROI. SEO should be seen no different. If you’re current SEO budget and results are not delivering more revenue than you spend – it’s obvious to see why that might appear to be an expense rather than an investment.
SEO is so widely talked about that many unchecked misconceptions have sprung up. These misconceptions have deterred business owners from investing in SEO, as the promised results often sound like exaggerations.
The truth is, SEO is one of the best long-term investments you can make as a business owner. Think of it as a ISA for your business that will keep generating results long after the wheels have been put in motion.
When you invest properly in the online presence of your business, the value will continue to accrue and provide more than expected returns.
If you’re not investing in SEO yet, here are 3 reasons why you should start now.
3 Reasons Why SEO is an Important Investment
1. SEO Works
Many business owners were promised hard-and-fast results in the beginning, so they put all their resources into following the latest SEO hacks. That of course, didn’t work.
SEO builds your relevance over time. It generates value, which will eventually convert to leads and sales. But it needs to be nurtured. If SEO didn’t work, then Google would simply have no relevant answers to provide the 3.5 billion searches that happen every day.
2. Mobile search hasn’t wavered
More people are running searches on their mobile devices every day. When businesses owners were told to start optimising for mobile and local search, many thought it was another SEO trend. In fact, many website owners only started optimising for mobile after Google announced that it would be penalising those who didn’t. Today, the businesses that rank for on-the-go searches such as “coffee shop near me”, or “landscaping service near me”, are those who optimised for it early on. The SEO needed to rank for these types of searches are quite different, and won’t happen accidentally. You have to make the needed effort, or work with an experienced agency who know what they’re doing.
3. Rankings are not permanent
Google is always releasing unexpected algorithm changes. Users are constantly changing the way they search (see digital personal assistants). Your SEO efforts made last year won’t hold over the next couple of years, regardless of how well you’re doing now. And if you wait for 2020 before you start optimising for that year, your hurried efforts will not make a difference.
To rank highly, you have to stay relevant and consistent. Your business will not be considered relevant if you only add content once in a while.
SEO is important to protect your space in a competitive environment and drive more traffic to your website.
SEO is not going anywhere…
The way we search is changing, just like everything else does. Brands used to spend all their advertising budgets on radio, TV, print ads and other traditional media. Now many funnel a substantial portion of that money into social media ads, influencer marketing and organic SEO.
These changes are happening all over the internet, but they will not influence how Google identifies relevant content.Tricks don’t work anymore, long-term, content based strategies do.
If you want to stay visible and ahead of the competition at all times, then you must be proactive in your online marketing efforts and invest in SEO for your business.
