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“is SEO worth it in 2020?”
One simple answer is “Yes”. SEO is worthy of all your time, energy and money.
Let me just put some stats straight that will tell you the impact of SEO
- 57% of marketers revealed that SEO generates leads more compared to any other marketing methods.
- The leads from organic results have a close rate of around 14.6%. This is a far greater percentage when compared to leads from other areas (cold calling, direct mail etc) around 1.7 %.
- 70- 80% of users choose to click on organic search results over paid search results.
- The latest SEO stats revealed that 61% of marketers are now investing to improve your SEO. Plus boosting their organic presence is on their top of the priority list.
So what do these stats indicate? Let’s explore this further
Does SEO Matter In 2020?
SEO is definitely worth it.
It’s worth all the resources and investment you put to reach your website on the top.
But, hey, why is that everyone is not getting a good ROI from SEO?
Well, because SEO is changed now.
The working of the algorithm has changed, Google ranking parameters have changed and so SEO is not what people use to claim it a few years back.
In fact, Google is penalizing websites for using old strategies. So it’s important to know what google penguin checks before punishing a website.
However, the bottom line is SEO is still powerful.
It requires a human mind that can notice changing patterns, trends and potential dangers.
Once you do this, the benefits come with SEO are huge. So let’s see How does SEO work & what benefits come along.
How Does SEO Work?
If you are new to online business, it’s important to know how does SEO exactly work.
But let’s begin by understanding search engines.
So what’s the main purpose of a search engine?
Search engines are answer machines.
Their main purpose is to offer the most relevant results to the user’s query.
For this, Google uses crawlers that scan over a million copies and show the top 10 search results to the users.
The battle is all about the top position.
But how do you convince Google to put your copy on the first page?
Well, that’s where you need SEO.
Search engine optimization ensures your content needs to first be visible to the search engines.
SEO makes changes to your website design and content.
This helps to appear on the top of the search engines.
Optimization helps you to increase your website visibility in the organic results.
Does SEO Really Work?
Yes, it clearly works.
By improving SEO, your website is easily understood by the search engines to index your content.
Remember, the better your website appears to the search engine crawler, the more likely crawler will recommend your website or post when users search for a particular query.
The goal for any business is to rank on the first page of search engines like Google, Bing for relevant keywords and phrases.
The only way is to improve the SEO and boost your search engine result pages ranking.
Not just ranking, SEO comes with many other benefits: Let’s take a quick look.
High-Quality Traffic To Website
The stats have over and over revealed that people prefer organic results.
Do you know over 70% of people happily scroll past the paid advertisement running on the website?
They are clearly more interested in organic results. Why?
Because users trust organic results over ads.
No wonder why the list of ad blockers are continuously increasing.
People don’t trust ads.
That’s why you must opt for SEO to get top organic results.
Organic results have more trust than paid ads.
The user knows that your website has earned its place to be on the top.
So if you are targeting your website for the right keywords and offer value to your visitors, the conversion rate will be higher.
When compared to paid results, the conversion rate is found higher with organic results.
So if getting high-value traffic is important and you want to display a better sense of trusts, then SEO is the key.
Lower Cost Per Acquisition
How much you pay to see your website on the top of the search results?
If you are running PPC, you pay for each and every click.
The cost per click is not fixed. It’s a variable rate. You could spend $1 per click or $ 70 per click.
You have to pay for deriving every lead to your website.
That’s where SEO get rise over everything else as it’s not based on a per-click basis.
With SEO you don’t have to pay for every click.
Once your website starts ranking on the top of the search engine, the page will get organic clicks.
The best part, you don’t have to pay for these clicks.
So for instance, if currently, you are spending $1500 per month on your PPC campaign, an SEO strategy can help you lower this lower.
The goal of an SEO campaign is to start getting “FREE” clicks through organic search results.
Now, think again, is seo worth the time? Indeed it is if you want to lower the cost per acquisition of your leads.
Long Term Credibility
If you want to dominate in the online market, you need to have three factors.
Traffic, trust and Credibility! Everyone wants and needs these factors but only a few of them know that SEO is involved in this process.
SEO is all about ranking your website on the top page of search engines.
Once your website is placed on the top, users start recognizing your brand. Also, users tend to trust organic results more.
This is the kind of web shoppers who rely on organic search rather than being dazzled with a flashy PPC ad.
SEO will give your business the much-needed dose of long term credibility.
Long term credibility is very important if you have a small business.
That’s the reason SEO for small businesses is so relevant.
It also means your website will build a positive public reputation online.
The more credibility and trust your website will gain more authority your website will earn.
But gaining a higher website authority is not an easy task.
This requires adding valuable information to your website and also a clean and engaging website to use.
It demands time, patience and effort to make your audience trust your website and the content.
Long term Results
SEO is a long term strategy and it comes with long term benefits.
If you start a new website for your business the key strategy is to start implementing SEO on the website this add relevancy to your website.
Result? Initially higher visibility in SERP and later monetary results.
But you have to invest the time and money.
Once you invest in SEO, it is going to serve you for years.
You may not come to the top of the search engine pages overnight.
But with a strategic approach, your SEO results will last longer and costs less.
Also, it will bring a loyal audience on your site.
Better User Experience
The user experience of your site matters a lot.
That’s the reason why search engines like Google help you access Google Analytics data.
The data from this tool help you understand how your site’s user respond to your site.
It’s clear why Google wants you to use this free tool. The motto is to use data and improve your user experience.
That’s where SEO can help to streamline everything behind and on the pages.
It’s a win-win situation for Google, your website and its targeted audience.
From programming to visual design and content, everything can be used to enhance the user experience.
Any idea what real benefits does an enhanced user experience bring to your website.
When users have a better user experience they:
- Buy more
- Explore new products/services
- Visit site frequently
- Recommend their friends
- Post good reviews and build a positive reputation
These things are essential for any company to generate real revenues for the company.
User experience boost your business revenue. Well, that’s what the data suggests.
A recent study from Forrester group research firm revealed that website who focused on optimized user experience (a huge part of SEO) boost their revenues by 400%.
How Does SEO Work To Boost User Experience?
The major goal of SEO is to enhance the user experience of the website. This is done in many ways.
By introducing intuitive design elements that serve the purpose and function of each page smooth and easy to understand.
Ensure seamless navigation so that users don’t feel frustrated when they can’t find something.
Updating the website with helpful, actionable and valuable information that will end the user’s query.
Better website design that shows you value the customer’s time and money.
User Stays Long On The Page
Imagine you created a stellar page for your online campaign.
You are super sure that visitors will click the page and take some action (goal).
But to your dismay, the visitor leaves the website within seconds of stepping in.
Result? You will lose the golden chance of converting the users into the lead.
This is a nightmare for any business owner who wants to dominate in the online world.
Fortunately, SEO exists.
The goal of SEO is to optimize your site in a way that users like to stay for longer. How does it achieve?
Well, by conducting the overall audit of your site.
That’s the first step of SEO. The idea is to list down what you are missing on your site and then make it more appealing.
By investing in SEO, you can make users stay on your website for a longer duration.
In the online world, you have less than 3 seconds to relate with the users.
Remember, there is no dearth of options for your users.
So if your website lacks on the following fronts the user will leave the site quickly:
- Site architecture
- Website speed
- User experience
- Quality content matches the search intent
- Mobile-friendliness
If anything seems too off, they will quickly leave the site.
There is a direct correlation between the user’s time duration to the site conversion rate.
SEO ensures that your website targets the right audience and works to increase the user’s length time.
Reduce Bounce Rate
The latest Forrester group revealed that the conversion rate of an optimized page is 200% higher.
To deliver the best ROI, an effective SEO strategy needs to put forward. This includes:
- Micro conversions: Your website has less than 5 seconds to attract the targeted audience. So it’s important to have only little actions on the website that can hook the user on the page. Result?
The user gets invested in your brand. Plus, it reduces the bounce rate and lengthens a session.
- Clear CTA: The goal of every campaign is to conversion. You want the user to take some desired actions.
The action could be based on your goals. Like filling a form, download ebook, etc.
A clear SEO web design ensure the website has a clear call to action that entices users to take desired actions.
Optimized Navigation
Seamless navigation eliminates frustration when people can’t find something or feel overwhelmed with choices.
Have you ever landed on a website that has poor navigation?
You either don’t find what you are looking for or feel overwhelmed with the choices.
Result? You leave the website confused and frustrated.
That’s exactly what your users will feel if your website has poor navigation.
The ground rule is your website should have optimized navigation.
This helps the user to know exactly what they would find on the website.
If the website navigation is not optimized user will leave the site.
Remember, poor user experience disrupts the selling experience.
One of the examples is a popup that comes when the user visits the site. It usually disrupts the user experience.
The other reason is having no CTA or too many CTA’s on the landing page. This can hurt your conversion.
That’s the task of SEO. Smart design is prepared based on scientifically proven strategies that ensure to maximize your SEO ROI.
The site uses analytical tools to maximize ROI.
How Much Should You Pay For SEO?
The price of SEO is nowhere fixed. I know, if you are looking for “how much should you pay SEO” you won’t want to hear “it depends”.
This is the most frustrating response. But the fact is SEO prices vary from place to place.
Let’s look at the price range:
Moz researched the data of around 600 SEO companies and revealed some interesting price range.
On average, the SEO company will charge you somewhere between $750 and $1500 per month.
Different firms offer different packages.
Depending on your goals the price will vary. If you are hiring a result-oriented SEO company, the fees would begin around $500+ per month.
Many companies, like us, offer different packages depending on the goals and services.
For instance due you want content development, keyword analysis, complete technical SEO, link building strategies or just want to improve your website user experience to boost the organic traffic.
SEO is not a one-step process.
Even when all your strategies are implemented with perfection, Google takes time to reward your efforts.
No wonder the reward earned from these efforts is most consistent and best converting.
If SEO is worth, why SEO is dying in 2019 then?
“SEO is dead or alive?” This is debate comes up every year.
If you Googled the phrase you will find multiple sites vehemently speaking from both sides.
The critics argue that the practice is dead or become ineffective, while the advocates continue to argue in favour of SEO.
So what’s the truth? Is SEO a dying industry?
To get the right answer, you need to see the numbers.
- SEO can drive a 14.6% conversion rate when done correctly,
- 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine.
- 75% of users don’t even scroll past the first page of SERPs
These figures reveal the relevancy of SEO.
Now what you think “Is SEO a dying industry?”
Clearly, as long as search engines exist, SEO will be needed.
SEO is worth it.
It is definitely worth all your time, energy and effort.
So why do people think that SEO is dying in 2019?
Well, SEO is not but the old ways of SEO is definitely dying.
Who killed the old ways of SEO? Google!
Google is continuously updating the algorithms.
The goal is to rank only high-quality sites on the top of the search engine.
Search engines are getting smarter day by day and new algorithms are introduced.
This is the reason SEO is changing. For those stick to old ways, SEO is definitely dead.
But the reality is that SEO has changed a lot.
This doesn’t mean the practice of SEO is dead.
Today Google is focusing more on providing value in everything you LIVE.
It’s not much more than link building and keyword stuffing.
SEO is working for those who are working to produce valuable content to the users.
Snippets
To deliver a better search experience, Google usually ranks featured snippets on above the first organic result.
This is usually referred to as “position 0”
This SEO trend is very effective.
See, we have applied this on our own blog and it worked. We are ranking on top position for “SEO tools 2019”
As 54.68% clicks from Google originates from featured snippets.
This means blogs with featured snippets drive more than half of the search engine clicks.
To take advantage of this feature, you need to use Frequently asked questions.
Provide clear answers to this commonly answered questions on your website.
These form featured snippets. Google determine featured snippets and boosted to the top ranking depending on their quality.
So if not getting a top rank on Google is making you think “is SEO worth it 2020” you know the answer.
It is definitely worth it. All you need to do is switch on new tactics to optimize your content.
The featured snippet is a good way to start.
Voice search
Gone are the days when voice search was a thing of luxury.
Today, searches are not only done on smartphones but also on home voice assistants.
Such as Amazon Echo, Samsung Smart TV, Voice Pod, etc. We are surrounded by these devices.
The trend of voice searches is very common today.
So is your website optimize well for this trend?
If not, it’s a high time to optimize your website for voice search to help you generate more organic traffic.
It is expected that in the year 2020 more than 50% of all internet searches will be done through voice.
Thus, your content should be in sync with this new trend if you want to stand out in the crowd.
So is SEO worth it anymore?
Yes, if you understand and implement conversational searches into your SEO strategy.
Improve your Mobile UX
When have you last time Google something on your smartphone?
If it’s a couple of hours or minutes before, then you are not alone.
The research revealed that searches on mobile phones are 88% while the searches on desktop & tablets combined make up 84%.
Clearly, mobile phones have surpassed desktops.
More and more people are using mobile phones for conducting searches.
But does your website have an impressive mobile version to engage your targeted audience?
If your answer is maybe or not sure, then you need to recreate your SEO strategy.
High-Quality content
Ever thought about what is the main work of Google?
Simple, it’s an answering machine.
User’s head to search engines with questions and Google bring the most relevant, and helpful information to them.
For this Google take the help of your web pages to deliver answers.
That’s why creating high-quality content is Google’s topmost priority.
No wonder high-quality content is an essential element for effective SEO strategies.
Your content should not be just well researched but also follow a logical structure that makes it user-friendly.
So it’s 2020, is SEO worth it anymore?
Yes, for those who are relentlessly creating informative quality articles.
If your content piece is too promotional, then online consumers will quickly ignore them.
Don’t write like a sales pitch!
Remember, your targeted audience is interested in educational content that is easy to understand.
This could be created in various forms like blog posts, videos, podcasts, infographics and others.
Content length matters
(Image source: SerpIQ)
It’s clear the bar of your content should be high.
But what about the content length? Is it important? Yes, it’s very important!
Hubspot’s has conducted the latest analysis of 6,192 articles and found that blogs with 2000+ word content got more backlinks and social shares.
As per CoSchedule’s analysis, the top 5 results that ranked on the first page have more than 2000 words.
But high word count is not enough.
Your content must be in-depth and comprehensive too. It should be rich enough to answer all your queries.
Focus on Content marketing
Content marketing is what Google wants you to focus on.
It has become a new form of SEO. The interesting part, content marketing work not just on search engine result pages but work on different mediums.
With content marketing, you achieving multiple things:
- Enhance your brand in highly visible places.
- Create goodwill
- Build a solid business asset
- A solid fan base
- Increase customer loyalty
This is what we call a unique, evergreen, long-form content.
95% of SEO is concentrated on creating quality content.
When it comes to SEO, content is king. Google focuses on delivering the highest quality information.
It’s the single most factor for showing results on your website.
So if you want to nail SEO in 2020, let a professional content marketing agency create the strategy for your website.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is one of the most important technologies in today’s day and age.
This technology is used in a wide variety of domains to deliver personalized experiences for users.
Google uses artificial intelligence to deliver better answers to the user’s query.
But how does this work in real sense?
See the thing is AI has learned the characteristics of selecting a valuable article from millions of results.
Once it is done, AI quickly segregates these pages and determine their rankings with good precision.
We live in a time when AI has become an important component in determining web pages ranking.
So shouldn’t you need to use AI when optimizing for search?
Well, you should and that’s exactly what savvy marketers are doing.
By integrating AI for SEO success you not just enhance your page rankings but also a more cohesive strategy and better content.
Are SEO Agencies Worth It?
Gone are the days when we used to get information via commercial, magazines or billboards.
Today, we live in a digitized world.
Customers take a proactive role in researching about the product/company/reviews etc before making a purchase decision.
Certainly, you need to have a robust online presence to gain a competitive advantage.
In this scenario is it even surprising why marketers all over the world investing in SEO?
It shouldn’t! From this standpoint, SEO agencies are worth it. But only if you choose the right SEO agency.
Today SEO is more than ranking for particular keywords, link building and aligning your site to a bunch of algorithms.
Now, SEO is a strategy that involves a lot of effort.
For instance, we have seen how search engines are now ranking for websites that deliver valuable and convenient user experience.
So are SEO agencies worth it? Yes, but only the ones that offer professional SEO services.
Conclusion
So it’s clear that SEO isn’t dying.
In fact, it is even more relevant in today’s day and age.
More and more people are using the internet to perform searches.
However, the ways of doing old SEO has dead now.
so if your SEO strategies aren’t showing you results anymore, it’s because they are dead not the SEO.
All you have to do is find the new SEO tactic and use it until it becomes ineffective.
Then? Find the new one. That’s how it will go. SEO will keep on evolving.
But it’s not dying anytime soon. So which SEO tactic will you pick this year?