Digital marketing is the process of utilizing digital channels to market and advertise products and services. These efforts are used to generate interest from the target audience and convert it into sales opportunities.
Search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), content marketing, influencer marketing, content automation, campaign marketing, e-commerce marketing, social media marketing, e-mail direct marketing, e-books, optical disks and games, etc., are some examples of digital marketing.
However, this article will specifically discuss the importance of SEO.
Search engine optimization or SEO is the practice of using accepted techniques to increase the ranking of a website in search engine results. This practice best ensures a website will receive more traffic from the natural search results.
Note: Methods such as using paid ads to get traffic from search engines are not part of SEO because ads are not a “natural” part of search results. Such methods fall under SEM.
Below I’ll give you three reasons that explain why SEO is important for your website.
1) SEO focuses attention on the most effective sales tool a business has
What is the most effective sales tool a business has? Your website!
It’s always open – 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and never asks for sick leave or arrives late to work. It pulls in sales, leads and opt-ins without any hassle. Your website is your “perfect employee” because it multi-tasks effectively and tackles thousands of prospects at once.
Search engine optimization grabs the attention of your target audience and directs it towards your “perfect employee.”
2) SEO lets people find your website
Your first point of contact with your audience online is your website. However, unless people can find it, your website is as good as non-existent.
Another reason SEO is necessary for your website is because of the role it plays in digital marketing.
Google is notorious for being secretive, so we don’t know the latest stats. However, in 2012 this empire announced that it receives 3 billion queries per day! That’s 90 billion per month or 1.1 trillion searches per year!
So ignore SEO at your own peril.
SEO gets your business found, noticed, and loved.
3) SEO builds credibility
SEO can make your brand stronger, more recognized, and can increase its virality. Your goal should be for your website to show up at the top of the results when people search on Google for a keyword relevant to your business.
If you can achieve this goal then your prospects will automatically believe that your website advertises the best product or service they are seeking.
Nowadays, everyone just “Googles it.” If your website is displaying at the top of the list of results, then your credibility will increase substantially.
Of course there is much more about the importance of SEO than the reasons discussed above. Just as there is much more to digital marketing than SEO. However, this article serves as a helpful introduction to the topic.