The SEO landscape has evolved considerably in the past decade, yet confusion still shrouds its essence and effective management.
Starting an SEO strategy from the ground up for a new company website can be a daunting task. When can you expect to see results? What budget is realistic? Let’s address these burning questions for SEO beginners.
Where to Kickstart?
Your SEO journey commences with setting up your website. The platform you choose and your specific needs play a crucial role.
If your business ventures into e-commerce, where people buy directly from your site, consider seeking assistance from an agency that can handle both the setup and SEO essentials.
On the other hand, if your website aims to inform potential customers about your expertise or services, consider launching a blog. Numerous user-friendly blog management platforms are available, allowing you to manage content and SEO from the comfort of your home. You might even be able to set up the site yourself.
Once your foundation is laid, start crafting content for your initial landing pages. These pages should educate potential customers about your offerings and how they can solve their problems. Think services pages, product pages, and content about your business terms, team, and brand story. These elements send positive signals to both humans and search engines.
The SEO Breakdown and In-House Feasibility
SEO essentially boils down to three core areas:
- Technical Fixes: This involves rectifying and monitoring technical issues such as broken links and unnecessary redirects.
- Content Creation: Crafting content that aligns with relevant search queries, which also encompasses keyword research.
- Link Building: Building a robust link profile, a task that is ever-evolving and multifaceted. This includes content creation, graphic design, PR and outreach, influencer marketing, and more.
Depending on your business’s size and requirements, you may be able to handle much of this in-house. Content management is a common in-house task. However, you might need external assistance for technical SEO and link acquisition.
In summary, SEO:
- Requires meticulous planning.
- Constantly evolves.
- Encompasses diverse tasks.
- Doesn’t have a clear endpoint – once halted, recovery can be time-consuming.
Hence, it’s prudent to form an in-house management team while outsourcing specific tasks to trusted providers.
The Waiting Game: When Will SEO Deliver?
Here’s the golden rule: Patience is your best ally.
Most long-term SEO challenges arise from businesses being too hasty in their pursuit of organic search rankings. Start your site with the mindset that you’re not chasing rankings. Begin slowly and steadily. If you’re eager for immediate leads, consider platforms like Facebook and Google Ads for quick traffic growth.
Realistically, it takes anywhere from 3 to 6 months for a brand new site to start garnering substantial traffic. However, kick off with long-tail search queries with lower competition to gain traction. Tools like the keyword exercise can help you identify these.
The Indisputable Need for SEO
In today’s digital realm, SEO is non-negotiable.
In a nutshell, if you’re not discoverable on Google, you might as well not exist. Google reigns supreme as the primary traffic driver to websites. A study by SparkToro revealed that Google accounts for a staggering 57.8% of total clicks across various industries.
Google is not just an option; it’s a necessity for businesses. In the SEO vs. PPC battle, SEO triumphs, driving 83% of organic search traffic, while paid search contributes just 17%.
Google kickstarts and sustains most buying journeys. Unlike disruptive social media marketing, Google search connects potential customers with what they seek, thanks to results tailored to search intent. People turn to Google when they actively want to find your brand or a competitor with strong SEO.
Measuring SEO’s Effectiveness
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here.
The best approach is to monitor a combination of factors:
- Rankings for relevant search queries.
- Organic search traffic.
- Leads generated from organic search traffic.
If these metrics are on a steady or upward trajectory, you’re on the right path. You can track rankings using rank monitoring tools and scrutinize organic traffic and conversions through tools like Finteza, simplifying the process.
In Conclusion
SEO isn’t rocket science, but it demands consistency and a strategic approach.