Search Engine Optimization.
Just three simple words.
However, no three words in modern history have had a greater impact on consumer buying behavior than those. Perhaps the sign outside a retail establishment saying ‘Open for Business’ would have had an impact on main street buyers a century ago – but today it’s all about the Internet and Search Engine Results Pages.
Search engine results pages (or SERP’s as they are known) are what makes online retail happen. For companies that want to feed their sales funnel, build customer loyalty or position their brand there can be no better way to do that than online. The figures alone are staggering. According to leading market research company, Statista around 2.4 billion people are expected to make an online purchase by the time 2021 becomes a reality. Today 1.93 billion people are purchasing online.
So, we return to the power of those three words – Search Engine Optimization – or SEO.
Your business puts food on the table. It enables you to make the money that impacts on your quality of life. But, what would happen if a consumer was not able to get information about the services or products that your business offers. The results of that are fairly obvious. You would not be in business – you would be crushed by competitive pressure.
So how do you make sure that that SEO is working for you?
The first step is to make sure that you know your audience. Do you know where they come from? Are they local buyers or international? The second step is to investigate why those current buyers are actually buying from you. Are your competitors simply fishing in the wrong pond – or are your products better in some way? You can do this very easily by employing some of the measurement options available from social media giants like Facebook or search engine giant Google.
The second step is to find that golden thread. The messaging that a company puts out are those SEO words.
Now you know your words – you know what makes the consumer tick. Now reach out and get them! The problem is that the market is overrun with companies that play in your marketplace. So how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?
The solution is simple – and complex at the same time. You need to seed your online content with SEO words. Words that make the consumer sit up and beg for advice about your service or product. How do you do that?
You could do the research yourself or employ a company to do that for you. Both approaches have their pros and cons. Doing it yourself may save money in the short and medium term. But let’s be honest your business relies on signing up customers – not messing around in the Internet.
So how do you leverage the power of the Internet?
It’s a simple thing.
You engage with customers and clients – you add value to their lives. How do you do that? Content. If you have a company blog pack it full of those keywords that are so important.
If you do not have a company blog your business is at a competitive disadvantage – it simply will suffer in the age of the Internet. If your organization can’t compete with marketing budgets from those who outspend you – you’re not paying attention to the marketing power and reach of the Internet.
Get your words together. Get to know SEO – and any marketing company that has the least knowledge of the Internet will tell you – you have the words that will help you construct a sentence for success.
Thank you for the article, I’m a newbie and have highlighted a few interesting thoughts for myself. Finding my target audience is important for me, since my SEO budgets are very small (in fact, I do it myself)
thanks for your article!