What Is SEO?
SEO is a term that you hear a lot in the business world. If you’re a business owner, you’ve probably already been told countless times that getting your SEO strategy right is key to your success. But what exactly is SEO and why is it important in 2021? SEO stands for search engine optimisation and it has to do with search engines, like Google, and where your website appears in the search results. When you do a Google search, it’s unlikely that you look past the first page of results and most people click one of the top search results. You put trust in Google and assume that the top results are the most relevant to your search. Most people don’t think about how Google decides which websites should be at the top of the search results but if you run a business, it’s important that you do. There are a series of algorithms that Google uses to scan through websites and determine which ones are likely to be the most relevant to you based on the words and phrases that you put into the search bar. The point of SEO is to make sure that your website is optimised in such a way that it ranks highly in the results, which leads to more people clicking on your site and eventually, an increase in sales. The algorithms that govern the search results are very complex and Google looks at a number of different things when deciding how to rank the websites, which is why you need a good SEO strategy in place. There are also certain things that can negatively affect your rankings, which will lead to a drop in traffic. That’s why it’s often beneficial to hire a professional agency to handle your SEO for you.
Why Is SEO Important In 2021?
So, now that you know what SEO is, you may be wondering whether it’s really as important as people make it out to be. The short answer is, yes, it is really that important. These are some of the reasons why.
People Use Search To Find Businesses
Studies show that 81% of people will search online when they want to purchase a product or service of any kind. For most of us, search engines are the first port of call, which means that it’s your best opportunity to find new customers. If your website doesn’t appear in the results for relevant search terms, you are missing out on a lot of potential traffic.
Nobody Clicks Past The First Page
While it isn’t strictly true that nobody clicks past the first page of Google results, the number of people that do is tiny. In fact, 91.5% of Google traffic stays on the first page, which means that any sites on the second page or beyond are not likely to get much organic traffic through search at all. The only way to get on that first page and make sure that people actually see your website is to have a winning SEO strategy in place.
Voice Search Is Changing Everything
The number of searches that we do is increasing because voice search is becoming more important. Smart devices like the Google Home and the Amazon Alexa have really taken off in the last couple of years and most smartphones have a voice search function as well. This means that it’s easier than ever to use search engines, which means SEO is still so important in 2021. It’s especially important that you have a good SEO strategy in place because voice search will change the way that sites are ranked. The keywords that we use when typing are very different from the ones that we use when speaking. When using voice search, people tend to use full sentences more than they would when they are typing, which means a lot of the short keywords that you currently rank well for are not effective for voice search and you are missing a lot of potential traffic. Voice search is one of the biggest SEO trends of 2021 and it’s important that you have a strategy in place to deal with these changes to the way that people use search engines.
SEO Improves Content Visibility
Content marketing is another effective way to drive traffic to your website. It also helps to build trust with consumers, which is so important. However, without a good SEO strategy in place, it’s difficult to get people to read your content in the first place. Although sharing it on social media can be effective, SEO is the best way to improve content visibility. Content marketing is also one of the most important ways to boost your search rankings, so it goes hand in hand with SEO.
Ranking Well On Search Engines Builds Trust
The way that people perceive your business is so important, particularly if you are selling products online. People won’t put their credit card details into a site that they don’t trust, so you need to find ways to present yourself as a reliable, trustworthy business. Ranking well on search engines is one of the best ways to do that. Consumers have an assumption that Google will only put trustworthy businesses at the top of search results, so ranking highly immediately lends legitimacy to your business.
SEO Improves Your Website Usability
The way that your website is organised has a big impact on your search engine rankings. Improving your site infrastructure and making it easier for Google to scan the site is an important part of SEO, but it also has some beneficial side effects. By optimising your website for search, you will also make it a lot more user friendly. It’s a mistake to think that SEO is no longer relevant in 2021 because it’s more important than ever. If you don’t already have a strategy in place, we are here to help with all of your SEO needs. Get in touch today and we can discuss the different ways to improve your search engine rankings and drive more organic traffic to your site.
