Are SEO Services Worth it For Small Businesses?
By: Danika Olsen
Any business owner who has done their research knows that SEO is important in making your web presence stand out to potential customers, clients, and users. But in today’s competitive market, small businesses compete in the same SERPs (Search Engine Results Page) with the likes of Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and other big brands. Small business owners might wonder how they can make SEO work in their favor. Is it worth it to invest in SEO at all?
Despite the competitive nature of the SERPs overall, SEO is still worth it and necessary for small businesses to thrive online. Your online presence in the SERPs is an essential way to reach new customers, retain returning customers, gain traffic, and in many cases, can help you outrank even the most influential and prominent brands in your industry.
Benefits and ROI of SEO Services for Small Businesses
Whether you work for an agency, a marketing manager, or a small business owner, implementing an SEO strategy can be difficult. After all, investing in SEO requires playing the long game, and it can take quite some time to see results, depending on how big your brand or business is.
It’s a risk that many are hesitant to take. SEO’s return on investment (ROI) is often front of mind for business owners, especially if they have a small marketing budget, and it’s not hard to see why. Why would you justify spending money on tactics that don’t produce results?
According to a 2019 report from Brightedge Research, over 53% of site traffic is driven through organic search. This effectively means your investment in SEO can yield measurable returns and help you achieve your business goals.
Become an Authority in Your Area of Expertise
Your online presence is an essential part of the success of your business online, no matter the size, and SEO is the recommended way to build that success. Consistent SEO implementation helps your potential user base access an authoritative resource and find answers to questions within your industry that only you and other thought industry leaders in your field can answer.
Suppose you’re optimizing your content for your visitors and customer base, focusing on their questions about your products, your industry, and general topics related to your field. In that case, search engines are sure to follow. This means that even the smallest businesses can capture and capitalize on the traffic their customers are most curious, concerned, and confused about (and, therefore, most likely to click on).
Boost Your Website Traffic Through Increased Visibility
SEO is necessary for all business operations in today’s digital age. Investing in your online footprint helps you reach audiences who now, more than ever, are focused on the convenience of online shopping, gathering information, researching, and purchasing.
Investing in your SEO and online presence ensures that your business and website can more easily drive traffic to your website when customers are doing even the most casual of Google searches.
Reach Your Target Audience At All Points of the Buyer’s Journey
Marketing is a complex process that involves attracting and retaining customers. Any successful marketing strategy must consider the customer journey.
To understand the customer journey, marketers must analyze every touchpoint between a customer and a brand, and part of that can be done by being intentional about SEO and content creation on your website.
Knowing and understanding the customer journey is essential for businesses of all sizes, as it allows you and your clients to optimize their marketing strategy to create a meaningful and engaging experience for your customers at every stage of the journey.
Optimizing Your SEO For Small Businesses
In today’s crowded online marketplace, more is needed to appear in search engine results. If you’re not consistently working on your site’s SEO, you’re opening the door for your competitors, further putting you behind the curve.
You must outrank your competition to gain valuable visibility and attract potential customers. But how do you ensure your website appears at the top of local search engine results pages?
On-Page SEO for Small Businesses
On-page SEO involves efforts to improve and increase your search engine rankings. This can include formatting blog posts appropriately to prioritize user experience, navigation, load speed, and your internal blog content. You’ll also want to ensure that your pages internally link and that your site is functional.
Target Local and Longtail Keywords
If you’re trying to optimize your local SEO, targeting long-tail keywords is an excellent strategy to improve your search rankings.
Long-tail keywords are specific and exact phrases should describe your products, services and include location-based information. By focusing on these more niche keywords, you’ll have less competition and a greater chance of ranking higher in search engine results pages, especially if your national market for keywords is competitive.
Using long-tail keywords can also attract higher-quality leads to your website and help you target customers already searching for the specific services you offer in your local area.
Investing in long-tail keywords can pay dividends for your local SEO and make all the difference in finding and reaching your target audience.
Manage Your Citations
One aspect of local SEO that is often overlooked but incredibly effective is the importance of local citations.
Citations are online references that include your business’s name, address, and phone number. They can be found on various platforms, such as directories, social media profiles, and review sites.
For local SEO, citations verify that your business exists and is reputable. Your business may appear in local search results with sound sources, which can considerably impact your potential customer base and revenue.
Utilize Google My Business
Google My Business is a business listing tool that allows businesses to manage their online presence across various Google platforms, and it’s a crucial tool for optimizing a business’s SEO.
Google My Business is essential for local businesses because it enables businesses to provide accurate and up-to-date information about their business, including their address, phone number, and hours of operation.
This information is then displayed in Google search results and on Google Maps, making it easier for potential customers to find and connect with the business. By having this information easily accessible, Google can better understand the relevance and importance of the company to search queries, ultimately boosting the business’s visibility online when relevant.
Conclusion
As the old saying goes, you must spend money to make money. When used strategically, investing in SEO services for local businesses is wise. With some additional time, resources, and expert help on the backend, SEO for small businesses is a no-brainer.