Search engine optimization (SEO) is a big term that really means creating your website and content in ways that search engines will understand and respond well to. If you can optimize your site for search engines, they will drive traffic to your website. This is how you show up on the search result pages for the name of your company and related keyword phrases that customers may use when searching for a business like yours.
1. Your Customers Expect It
If you aren’t using at least some search engine optimization techniques, you likely don’t rank for your own company name. Your customers will want to know about you and so they’ll look you up online. Instead of you, they’ll likely find your competition, who will take advantage of your lapse and rank for your company name.
Potential customers will also expect that if they search for the best window washers in their local area, the best companies will come up. If they don’t see you, they may dismiss you entirely, even if they hear of you elsewhere.
2. Learning SEO is a Long Term Investment
Search engines have been around for a long time now, so it’s a good bet that will continue to be the case. Search is only growing. Now there are desktop searches, mobile searches, and local searches all driving traffic to websites.
You can hire SEO experts to take care of this for you. But even if you do, understanding the basics of SEO gives you an edge. It helps you ask the right questions so you understand if the person you’re hiring is good at what they do. The basics, at the very least, are definitely something everyone can learn. It isn’t as complicated as it sounds.
3. Search Engine Traffic is Valuable
This is the biggest point you need to understand. There is a lot of value to be found in this kind of traffic. Search engine traffic is:
- Targeted
- Affordable
- Sustainable over the long term
- Essential for a healthy brand
- Provides a positive customer experience
4. You Can Control Your Online Presence
When you understand SEO, you can make sure your website is delivered to the right customers. By developing your brand and using the right keywords, you are controlling the kinds of things your website shows up for in the search results. Without this targeting, your website may show up for completely irrelevant topics. You need to make sure search engines like Google understand what your website is really about and who your target audience is.
5. Learn SEO Now So You Can Stay Ahead
Search engine optimization grows and changes all the time. By learning how to optimize your website now, you can stay ahead of the changes and better understand technology as it develops.
