Besides its impact on public health, the COVID 19 pandemic has caused an economic shock worldwide. With businesses closing and governments closing their borders, many businesses have found themselves in an unprecedented situation. That is why more than 43% of all businesses closed down due to COVID 19. Most businesses had to shut down due to restrictions, reduced demand, and health concerns. Moreover, most businesses have had to reduce active employment by 39% since the pandemic began.
With the pandemic taking a toll on the public health system and the economy, businesses must find effective and affordable solutions to survive and maximize profits. That is why search engine marketing comes in. With more than 68% of all online experiences starting with an online search, companies must take full advantage of SEO to dominate local and international search results.
SEO presents an affordable and efficient way for businesses to dominate their market and reach more prospects during these trying times. Here is how SEO can be helpful during these trying times.
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First Things First, What is SEO?
Also known as search engine optimization, SEO refers to the process of increasing the quality and quantity of website traffic using various techniques and methods, including organic search engine results. Understanding SEO basics will go a long way towards allowing your business to take full advantage and stand out from the competition.
Effective SEO practices should contain three basic elements. Let’s discuss these elements below to understand better what SEO is all about:
- Increased Web Traffic. SEO allows your business to dominate searches for the services you are offering. This makes it easier for prospects to find your business. As a result, you will have more web traffic from search engine result pages, also known as SERPs. Case in point, you will dominate local searches for the best plumbing services if that is what you do. That way, prospects can visit your website to learn more.
- Better Web Traffic. Increased web traffic to your site won’t amount to anything if visiting clients are not interested in the services you are offering. Let’s go back to the example above to help you understand. Visitors will not ask for a free quote and hire your plumbing services if they look for laptops. Taking advantage of SEO will allow you to connect with prospects interested in the services and products you are offering.
- Organic Results. With effective SEO, you will not have to spend an arm and a leg for prospects to find your business. In fact, search engines will not charge you for displaying your business on search engine results. However, you can pay to occupy one of the paid spots. These spots are sold to the highest bidder.
Understanding SEO Basics
Although more than 70,000 Google searches occur every day, most people don’t stop to think about how search engines work. Understanding how search engines provide their magical results will allow your business to leverage the power of SEO. Continue reading to discover how SEO works.
To begin with, Google and other search engines like Bing and Yahoo use crawler bots to crawl web pages and collect information, which is then put in an index. Search engines will then use algorithms to analyze the indexed pages. These algorithms rely on various signals and factors to rank the web pages for a specific query.
Some of the vital SEO ranking factors include user experience, mobile-friendliness, domain authority, website security, and loading speed. Search engines also look at your site’s user engagement and content quality.
Search engine algorithms are designed to identify and display relevant and authoritative results for users. Having said that, businesses should optimize their sites for SEO with these essential factors in mind. It is also vital to note that you can’t pay search engines for better results.
How SEO can Help Businesses during These Trying Times
Businesses have to strike a balance between health and profitability during these hard times. That is why most companies have turned to digital marketing. Many businesses rely on their online sites to attract more clients while keeping the existing ones happy. However, a website will not help if you fail to take advantage of SEO. Keep reading to discover the important role played by SEO during these hard times:
· Your Business Will Remain Relevant
The aim is to remain relevant during the pandemic and even after the pandemic. SEO helps your business to maintain a digital presence. Since most people have started shopping online during the Covid-19 pandemic, you are assured that sales will increase.
· You Will Reach Your Target Market
If you own a local business, SEO can help you to reach more people during this pandemic. You can reach both the local market and the global market using SEO. Effective SEO strategies will improve your site’s ratings and increase your reach. That way, prospects can find your business easily.
· Get Targeted Traffic
You will know what most customers are searching for and what they need during this pandemic through SEO. What is more, search engine analytic tools can help you discover the intention of your visitors. For instance, you can tell if they are looking for more information or making a purchase. This allows you to create engaging and authoritative content.
script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js">· Become More Competitive
When your content matches what clients need and uses relevant keywords, you will be better placed to dominate the search results. Hence, you will attract more clients to your website to stand out from the competition.
· SEO is Affordable
The last thing you would like is to spend an arm and a leg on marketing during the current pandemic. Taking advantage of SEO will make it easy for you to improve your sales without spending so much on advertisements. SEO will improve the quality and quantity of web traffic to your page and consequently your sales. The good news is that you will not have to pay expensive overhead and marketing fees, as is the case with traditional marketing.
Final Thoughts
At a time when things seem to get worse every day, turning to SEO could be the best way of coping with the current situation while making sure you maximize profits.
