I know what your thinking…
“Of course the Maryland SEO Expert is going to say Yes, that’s his business.”
That’s why I put my opinions aside, and went out to find the actual statistics that definitively answer this question.
Let’s face it, marketing has changed greatly in the last ten years.
Traditional marketing has shifted online, and now practically everyone has access to the internet 24/7 with a smart-phone in hand.
You want a consistent source of new leads for your business…
…and you also want to limit your risk, of where you spend your money to try and get those leads.
I have uncovered some interesting statistics on whether SEO is currently worth the investment or not.
Let’s dive in…
Shopping Online For Products & Services
Use of the web as a shopping resource for products and services has changed the face of local advertising.
70% of United States households search online to find information when shopping locally for products and services, according to The Kelsey Group and ConState, Inc.
Local business searches online are 2 times as likely to lead to a purchase. [https://ww.deluxe.com/blog/inside-scoop-people-search-online-local-businesses/].
Keywords & Phrases
Before you can begin to optimize your website for on-page and off-page search engine optimization you have to know which keywords and phrases will provide the most benefit.
When conducting local search marketing you are not just targeting your industry’s specific terms but geographic specific terms as well.
Neil Patel who The Wall St. Journal called a top influencer on the web, and Forbes said is 1 of the top 10 online marketers, uses a plumbing company with multiple locations in Washington (you can insert any state in the US here) as an example on his website, to show how to optimize your business for local search marketing.
So I ran a similar keyword search for a plumbing company in Maryland.
Here is an example of a few industry specific terms:
Below is an example of a few geographic specific terms:
According to Forbes magazine, you want to use keyword tools, proven research strategies, and expert knowledge to gather information about the best keywords for you to target. The top factors to consider are:
- Potential traffic amounts – How many searches per month?
- Keyword competition levels – How competitive is it to rank for?
- Prior keyword performance
- Search intent of the keyword – Does the searcher have “buying” intent?
- Niche trends and forecasts
- Opinions and advice of Maryland SEO experts
SEO vs. Traditional Advertising
With traditional advertising you are doing what is referred to as outbound marketing…
…it’s like setting your garden hose to the “fan” setting and spraying out in a wide pattern to try and entice people to call you that need your products or services.
The radio station, newspaper, or coupon mailer may tell you that their publication reaches a certain number of people, but how many of those people need what you are selling right now?
…and once the advertisement has run, that’s it, it’s over.
According to Mashable.com:
- 44% of direct mail is never gets opened
- 86% of people skip through commercials on TV
- 200 Million people have registered on the Do Not Call list
- The cost per lead in outbound marketing is 62% more than inbound marketing
With SEO, you are doing what is called inbound marketing…
…this is like setting your garden hose on the “jet” setting and focusing exactly on the people that are actively searching for the products and services that you provide.
You are getting in front of these people so that they go to YOUR website instead of your competitors website.
Mashable says “One of the biggest reasons why inbound marketing is growing is its ROI (return on investment)…
…and inbound marketing tactics don’t just generate leads; they generate revenue.
Paid Ads vs. Organic Search Results
…and if you think that most people are clicking on the paid ads and not the organic search results…
Your wrong.
Moz.com did a study that showed 76.92% of people click on the organic ads opposed to the paid advertisements on the search engine listings.
The study also revealed that 71.33% clicked on a result on the 1st page, and only 5.59% clicked on pages 2 and 3 of the search results.
This shows how important it is to get your business listed on the 1st page, for relevant search terms related to the products or services that you offer.
And the only way to get on the organic results is SEO.
So would you rather…
- Cold call and bug people to try and do business with you
- Pay for advertising that may reach your target market
- Keep saying that you are going to do some marketing but never make a decision and put it in place (and another year has gone by)
- Rely on referrals that may never come or dry up at any time (very risky for long term growth and success)
or…
Do What Is Working Now
Inc. magazine says “SEO is an ongoing process, however starting with a sound strategy will translate into online success for many years to come.”
Moz a top online marketing research company says that the orgranic search results are 8.5 times more likely to get clicked on than the paid search results.
Their findings revealed that organic search (SEO) has a 5.66 times greater opportunity than paid search (paid ads at the top and right side of the search results).
They were asked if SEO is a good investment…and there answer was:
“Considering the data above, it’s exceptionally hard to argue otherwise.”
Get done for you SEO services here, so that you can get more new business using effective inbound marketing.