Atlanta Why Is Search Engine Optimization SEO So Very Important To Your Small To Mid-Size Business Survival?
- January 29th, 2012
- By Mark Taylor
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Atlanta Why Is Search Engine Optimization(SEO) And Marketing So Very Important To Budget For And So Critical To Your Small To Mid-Size Business?
Simply put, it is the only realistic manner in which you and your small to mid-size business can even began to compete with the big corporations in today's digital high tech marketplace.
With our economy still in a very volatile state people are accessing the Internet in hopes of saving money like never before. Atlanta GA merchants will attest to this. Beginning in 2007 – 2008 there has been an ever increasing amount of Internet transactions. Not just purchases, but also vast increases in Internet users simply in search of information.
The two main reasons for this have been:
1. Economy
- As stated before, individuals trying to save whatever money they can on purchases. With many families budgets being very tight, and in many cases one or both adults being unemployed, people are looking for any and every way possible to stretch there money. Online purchases have sharply increased not just for non-essential items, but for everyday essentials. Atlanta has suffered as much as any State in this recession. One in which if the correct numbers are used we have not recovered from yet. Google did a study I believe in 2006 or 2007 which revealed that only 46-47 percent of households actually had Internet service. I found this surprising as I thought it would have been much higher. Many just have no desire to have Internet while for others, it was just out of reach due to their tight budgets. I know many in Atlanta who in times past had no use for the Internet. That has and is changing rapidly. Internet services have continued to become more affordable, and with our economy as it is, many have taken advantage of this availability and are definitely using it to discount shop. Atlanta has stiff competition as for Internet Service Providers (ISP) so you can obtain service very cheap. Large corporations have long enjoyed customer loyalty. At one time Large Corporations pretty much had certain markets locked down. Today, in our economy, they no longer have that advantage. People are more than happy to do business with small companies and many or rather most times companies they have never heard of in order to save money. For the most part it is no longer customer loyalty, but rather who can give me the best deal. Many people are desperate.
2. More Gadgets
- This past year has seen a massive change in the way people are gaining access to the Internet and the way they are using, and the way in which they use the Internet. Smart-Phones, Iphone, Android Phones, ipads, xbox, wii, play-station and other tablets all allow access to the Internet. This allows people to take the web with them wherever they go and gives them the ability to access it whenever they want.
- Our society is rapidly changing to accommodate these changes too. Is your business or website?
Hop on Marta Transit System In Atlanta Georgia. Bus or Train and you will see that most every person has in use some sort of mobile device, texting or browsing the Internet or reading their favorite website. There is no telling how many purchases are being made. It is very hard if not impossible to tell due to the ability to store your credit card and or bank data on your favorite shopping or service site.
All they have to do is add things to a shopping cart and check out and in a few days they have their goods or immediately download it to their device, and will have saved money in most cases. All from the comfort of their seats not having to deal with lines or sales staff.
We have all changed and we have excepted this as the norm.
A leading international research firm who is also a leading authority on retailing has predicted that on-line purchases will increase by more than 55 percent by 2014.
Just last year mobile devices increased growth tremendously, already, with retailers reporting increases in website traffic of between 5 – 14 percent. All from mobile devices. This is not counting the huge increase in traffic from desktop PC's, just mobile devices account for the 5 – 14 percent mentioned. This is easily tracked by metrics used in website analysis.
Morgan Stanley has predicted that by 2014, purchases made from mobile or alternative devices will overtake sales from desktop PC's.
Companies focusing on mobile channels, and these new alternative means of accessing the Internet spend a lot of money on SEO - Search Engine Optimization because it works!
Ask yourself a few questions:
- Do you know how people access your site? Be it an information site, Personal or Business blog or business sales site.
- How can you serve your visitor (customers) if you do not know how they are accessing your website?
- How can you know if they can even access your site via these new alternative devices?
- How much business, money have you lost not knowing the answers to the last two questions?
Very soon, if not already, your businesses success will depend on it. The days of being old school and shunning the Internet are gone if you are in business and want to survive, let alone succeed.
Any new start-up or expanding business must get their services and products in front of their customers fast! Today that is via the Internet. The Internet is the most expedient and cost effective means to achieve this bar-none. Digital Marketing is KING!
(SEO)Search Engine Optimization and (SEM) Search Engine Marketing is “the key
component” and I will explain why.
Let's begin. When all is said and done there are only really 3 key ways to promote your business website, business blog or personal site or blog:
- Word of mouth, person to person. I can give you my business card or I could send you a letter and ask you to take a look at my website.
- Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising using services like Google Adwords. This gives you Instant access to Google's, and other major search engines Like Bing, and Alta Vista's powerful search directories.
- Search Engine Optimization. Produces not the immediate results as the aforementioned, but is the absolute best of the three, and has without any doubt the longest lasting affects which in the long term will save you huge amounts of money that can go to the bottom line. It also allows for a plan or long term strategy where the others do not.
The first methods only work when you are willing and able to work them (meeting and talking to people), and for method number two, it only works whenever you are willing to shell out the bucks to promote it through (PPC)Pay Per Click.
SEO works for you 24/7 - 365 days a year and 366 on leap years. That is, once you have put all the optimization elements in place. The fact that it works without costing you anytime, alone, is worth having SEO performed on your website or blog. Your time is your most valuable asset. Method number one and two rely completely on your time and budget.
Had you rather use marketing tactics that you have to continually work on, or methods that work for you? I choose the latter, and most of you would as well.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) massively improves your presence and reputation in your particular niche or market. The physical process of carrying out Search engine optimization on your website or blog will also enhance and polish your sales message and the way content on your website is presented as well as improving your brand. This is one of the natural benefits of optimization, not only will you gain a higher search engine ranking therefore being on the first page or at least the first two pages of search results(most never go beyond 2 pages, many only page one), but when visitors come to your site they will be able to find what they are looking for easier and faster. For you this means more sales or calls for your services.
Once you have decided to have your site optimized by an experienced SEO expert you will in a short time be able to reduce your time significantly spent on word of mouth and, if you use Pay Per Click advertising you will in time be able to cut that way back or cut it out all together. Therefore reducing your overall risk and costs or exposure.
How do I achieve this?
Suppose you are having a cash flow issue one month. If you do not have funds to pay for (PPC) pay per click advertising you more than likely will not get the sales you are accustom to getting, only making the cash problem far worse. And in today's economy this is far more likely than you may think or you probably, if in business, already know that. (SEO) Search Engine Optimization is not effected by bumps in the road like this. A bad month or two will not stop its effectiveness. Its effects tapper off much slower and over a much longer period of time than other methods. That makes SEO a more appealing, and certainly a smarter choice for your website marketing strategy.
You may be asking why everyone does not perform search engine optimization (SEO) or have their site optimized?
Most larger corporations do a great deal of SEO because, they know well the benefits and the impact it has on their business and most importantly, their bottom line.
Unfortunately a lot of smaller businesses, especially new businesses do not understand the value in SEO early enough. This means that when their website is ready to launch, considering all the other start up costs and not having budgeted for SEO, there is no money left for it, no money left to promote the most important asset a business in our digital age has.
Let me try to put this in perspective. Would you spend money on building and stocking a new store that is not located in a busy, main shopping area
and not spend money telling people about it, telling them where you are located?
The bottom line is; businesses must include in their budgets (SEO) search engine optimization costs at the very beginning, especially if planning to redesign an existing website. Most website designers are not skilled in SEO as it is a different area of expertise. Some may, but few are. So do not expect your website designer or I.T. personnel to optimize your website correctly. I know that it is becoming more and more popular to hire SEO experts, but mostly larger corporations are doing this. Smart move. Never the less if you do not perform SEO or have an expert perform the optimization you will have spent a lot of money on design, hosting and other incidentals in vain. Without SEO it will avail little for you unless you are a mega corp with a household name. Most of us are not. Even these mega corps ensure their sites are properly optimized.
Understanding how SEO works is critical for businesses. There are many misconceptions and untruths about SEO floating around. You need to ensure you have someone who is up to date on best practices dictated by the major search engines.
SEO is a methodology, which performed in the correct manner by an expert will lead to more sales and a better reputation for your brand (name) in the Internet environment and beyond. The impact of good SEO is far reaching.
(SEO) search engine optimization is ensuring the structure of a website is as logical and as relevant to the marketplace and clients as possible. The major search engines need clear, well structured websites to deliver to their users who type in terms for search in their respective search engines. Yes, they are the ones to please, the major search engines as it is them who rank you in their search results. If you are not on the first two, preferably first page, most will not know you exist. It requires that headings, content and other related factors are checked to ensure that the search terms or keywords your company wants to be found under, when someone searches the search engines, flow properly throughout the site.
Meta-tags must be properly utilized. The sites coding must be as error free as possible. The colors and layout make a big difference due to the fact that major search engines deliver results to a very eclectic group of devices these days. Picture/images need to be properly optimized. Linking to authority sites and other related sites must be achieved, and the list goes on and on.
The best SEO practitioner will be those who are on top of what the major search engines are dictating to the SEO community as best practices. If not he/she will not avail much for you.
Once (SEO) search engine optimization methods are understood we can then address the value to the business SEO has. If your business sales normally ran around $55,000 per month and after one SEO campaign or after having your site optimized your sales increased to $85,000 it would , I think, be clear as to the value of SEO. If for numbers sake you spend $1000.00 or in this case $5000.00 on SEO I would think the gain to your bottom line would certainly justify it and determine it necessary for the future.
Knowing what SEO is and being familiar with the processes involved and the value that it brings to a business will for certain convince any business owner or manager that SEO is one of the most important tasks that must be accomplished to gain advantage in this digital marketing age.
To Summarize:
. More people are taking the Internet with them wherever they go using tablets and smart phones.
. More people are using it to find and buy products and services
. New and expanding businesses must get found on the Internet or they will lose out
. SEO is the best way to do this and it works!
What Next:
You now have 3 choices, 4 actually:
1. Do absolutely nothing and miss unknown amounts of money to your bottom line. And Let your competitors realize and take advantage of SEO and get there before you. In todays market I must add; they have better chances of survival.
2. You or your staff can perform the SEO, first making sure you understand how each and every task is performed and commit the time and resources to achieve it. Perhaps having to have staff trained.
3. Have our Firm run a full analysis and provide you with precise and easily understandable directions to correct and perform the SEO which is required. Our reports and directions are easily understood by a person with average knowledge of Website design and can work their way around a server. Any I.T. department or individual with average Internet knowledge can follow and perform our well designed and thorough reports and instructions
3. Get our SEO Search Engine Optimization Techs to perform the SEO for you.
Follow this link to see how we work and what we offer. SEO Search Engine Optimization Solutions
Be assured our pricing as we have become accustom to saying is; "Prices you will appreciate, Results you cannot live without."
As I have stated many times. Our pricing is customized per client. We are affordable for individuals who just have a blog all the way up to small to mid-size business reaching a global market.
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