If you’ve worked in the online sphere at all, you’ve probably heard about search engine optimization (SEO). However, unless you’re a more established company with funds for marketing, you might not be using search engine optimization for your business.
The term can sound more complex than it really is, and it’s easy to assume these digital marketing options only benefit larger businesses with a nationwide audience. But, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Local businesses are set up to benefit immensely from SEO services in very specific ways. Find out more about what SEO means, what it does, and how it can help your company thrive.
The Basics Of SEO
As the term suggests, search engine optimization is the process of optimizing web content to help web pages appear on the search engine results page. When you type a question into Google, the list that comes up is the results page, and if you’re likely most people, you only look at the top examples and hardly ever venture to the second page.
SEO marketers know this, so they work to help websites rank higher. They do so by trying to figure out what the Google algorithm wants in order to give a website a high ranking score. With a better score from the algorithm, the website or webpage will be seen by more people when they search for a term relevant to a certain business.
For example, a local business in Austin that sells kayaks would want to show up near the top of the results when people searched phrases like, “kayaks in Austin,” “kayaking near me,” and “where to Kayak in Austin.” The SEO experts would use various techniques, including adding in keywords and creating an optimized website to help the company rank higher on Google.
How Does SEO Help Local Businesses?
While it might seem like smaller, more localized businesses can’t compete online, this isn’t the case. It’s just a matter of reaching the right audience. A company that only operates in Long Island would want to work with Long Island digital marketing team that incorporates SEO relevant to the area.
This approach could easily get more customers in the door each month, and even a slight increase can lead to more success for smaller companies.
Does A Local Business Need SEO To Succeed?
While the answer to this question varies, most operations can find some improvement. While there is a rare place that does well just by word of mouth, it’s rare not to have a website. And, even having a website isn’t enough in many cases.
If a website for Google searches about local pet grooming stores doesn’t show up on the first page of results, new customers will likely never know the place exists.
Should You Invest In Digital Marketing? Seo And More
Search engine optimization is helpful to many companies across many industries, but it’s not the only kind of digital marketing. To succeed as a local business, other approaches such as social media management are also worth considering.
The good news is that most online marketing companies provide a mix of services. They can likely create a website, optimize SEO, manage social media, or create paid ads.
As a smaller business, you may not be able to pay for extensive digital marketing services, but focusing on a few services could improve your sales and spread the word about your company’s existence. It’s also helpful to take some time to learn about the basics of SEO and other marketing approaches, even if you don’t plan to become an expert yourself.
