Importance of SEO – A Complete List of 25 Compelling Reasons

So why is SEO important ? If you are reading this article, you probably know by now that SEO is important and you can appreciate the importance of SEO, and that it can have an overall positive impact on your business.

However, there are lot many questions such as “Why is SEO so powerful?” that I routinely come across as an SEO consultant and expert.

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Based on the numerous questions I have answered, I decided to put together a an extensive list of 25 strong reasons to make my case for you to go all in on your SEO endeavors.

As you read this list, you will find that a lot of the reasons are not reasons but also tips, ways to effectively implement your SEO strategy, and little known secrets about the SEO world.

Are you ready to find out how and why a good, well planned SEO strategy can influence your business and put you straight among the best of the best?

Here we go then!

1. SEO Is an Investment, Not a Cost

If you have to wholeheartedly believe in the power of SEO and go all in, you have to have this paradigm shift – SEO is an investment and not a cost.

When you look at SEO this way, you will understand that your capital resource will be working for you.

Whereas, looking at it as cost may not motivate to go the extra mile.

There are no half measures and cost cutting when it comes proper SEO. To fully realize the importance of SEO, you got to get both feet in it.

2. SEO Creates the Perfect Salesman for Your Business

How does it feel to have that ideal salesman on your team? One who works relentlessly, without complaining a tiny bit?

One who is willing to put in extra hours of hard work to ensure that your business not only gets the right leads but also converts them to customers?

Well, you don’t have to look any further than your company’s website. It’s there 24/7, handling hundreds of potential and existing customers at the same time.

So if you want to hire that rockstar of a salesman,you know where to start.

3. Without SEO Your Marketing Mix Is Incomplete

Having a great SEO strategy in place is not the be all and end all of your marketing endeavor.

The importance of SEO cannot be overstated.

Along with other digital marketing techniques such as social media marketing and search engine marketing, traditional marketing techniques and proper brand management are also equally important.

However, the point that I am trying to make is having SEO in your marketing mix is not about creating a competition among the various teams involved but creating a collaborative atmosphere where each of the marketing efforts complement each other.

So don’t prioritize one strategy over another. Instead, create a synergy among all the marketing efforts with SEO being an integral part of it.

4. SEO Is Not Just About Sales, It’s Also About Information

You cannot be naive enough to think that you will convert all your visitors to customers on their first visit to your site.

In fact, first time visitor conversions account for a tiny bit of your overall conversion rate.

This is because, over the customer lifecycle, the research phase comes first and often this is the hardest nut to crack.

This is where your prospective customers are looking for reliable and credible information about the products and services in your niche.

With good SEO, you can attract a great deal of potential customers who are going through this phase.

By providing them the right information they are looking for, you will win their trust and push them over to the next phase where they will begin making sales enquiries.

This is another point that drives home the importance of SEO.

5. There’s No One Size Fits All SEO Price Package

So why is this a reason for you to adopt SEO?

The answer is simple.

Because SEO is inherently a highly customized service, what you pay is for what you need. Nothing more, nothing less.

This means, the services you will get from your SEO team, either in-house or outsourced, is tailor made.

No other marketing technique comes this close to being fully customized.

And because of this, the techniques adopted by your business is bound to work.

Just keep in mind that all SEO practitioners are the same.However, the emphasis they place on the importance of SEO varies.

Just like in any other profession where you will find different levels of skill set, you will also find expert, intermediate, and novice SEO professionals.

Be sure to hire the right one. And remember the first point – SEO is an investment, not a cost.

6. There’s No Such Thing as an Expensive SEO

This point reiterates the true power of SEO and therefore is another compelling reason for you to pursue it.

And remember, SEO pricing varies from business to business.

Assuming that you hire the right SEO professional who truly knows his trade, it’s worth every penny you pay him.

In fact, this may sound counter intuitive but the fact of the matter is, it always pays to go with the most expensive deal that you get.

Here’s why.

Let’s say I am willing to pay you $10 for every $3 you give me. How much will you be willing to pay me?

In all likelihood, you will be willing to pay me just about everything you have.

And that’s exactly how hiring an SEO professional works.

Again, this point only underscores how powerful SEO is and how sure you can be of its results.

7. SEO Is Not The Cutting Edge, It’s The Sword

This is a very crucial aspect of SEO that most website owners miss out.

You don’t go to an SEO consultant to get his help after you have your website up and running.

SEO is not the same as forging a sword and sharpening the edge.

You need to have a strong SEO foundation right from the time when you have developed the first headline of the copy, from the time you have wrote the first line of coding, and from the time when you have uploaded the first image of your site.

This is another inherent quality of SEO that makes it so powerful.

Because this marketing technique is a part of your website’s DNA, it is able to deliver results in ways other marketing techniques cannot. What better way to make you understand the importance of SEO?

8. SEO Is Not Just About SEO Friendly CMS

Agreed that your Content Management System forms the foundation of your site and a lot of how it was created goes towards convincing search engines that your site is technically sound.

This is forms a part of SEO called the technical SEO.

However, you need to keep in mind that you cannot get carried away when your CMS vendor tells you that it is SEO friendly.

He might even tell you how CMS plays a part in underscoring the importance of SEO. But that’s not the case.

One cliche that’s used more than others in the SEO world is ‘Content Is King’.

So understand that while having a robust CMS that’s built using cutting technology is very important, the onus is still on you to develop it further and make the most of it.

9. SEO Will Magnify Your Online Presence

While there’s practically a limit on the number of prospective customers you can reach through off-line marketing collateral such as brochures and flyers, you can literally reach anyone across the globe with your website.

To do that, you have make sure that your site fully optimized for search engines with highly targeted keywords that are relevant to the search queries used by your potential customers.

With careful planning and a water tight SEO strategy, it is fully possible to reach a market that’s spread worldwide.

Once you unleash the power of SEO, you will find that your site will attract thousands of visitors everyday.

And not just any visitors but visitors who are interested in what you have to offer.

10. A Powerful SEO Strategy Is an Ongoing Ad Campaign

So what happens when your website shows up on the first page of Google search results?

Your prospective customers will read the meta title and meta description.

This is great news for you because with SEO you are in control of what they read.

With time tested SEO techniques such as A/B testing, you can display more than one version of this ad copy and determine which of the copies attract higher click through rates.

Until the advent of digital marketing, such a control was unheard of.

Even if you did run two ad campaigns separately on television or newspaper, there was no objective way to find out which of the two campaigns really hit off with public!

11. SEO Enhances Your Social Media Presence

Like I mentioned earlier in this article, your SEO efforts are an integral part of your overall marketing strategy and that includes your social media interactions.

It’s not enough if you create highly engaging content that your readers will find useful and relevant.

You should be able to share it with the right headline and teaser text.

With the help of SEO professionals, you can decide what your social media followers see when you share a link to your latest post.

These snippets entice your followers to click and consume your content.

Once they find it informative (and sometimes entertaining), they will share it among their own network generating valuable social signals for your site.

As you can see, SEO and social media complement each other and therefore makes a compelling case for you to adopt a powerful SEO strategy.

12. SEO Will Drive People Towards Your Site

This is one of the more obvious and fundamental reasons but cannot be ignored.

If your website has to stand out among the thousands of similar sites within your niche, SEO is your only way out.

These days almost every business no matter how small, will have a website.

However, the differentiating factor within this islands of information is who can grab more eyeballs.

You can build the best of the websites with stunning graphics and engaging content But if there’s no enough traffic to show for it, your website is as good as non-existent.

13. SEO Takes You to The Core of Your Business

Being fully involved with the SEO activities of your company can be a rewarding experience.

If you have hired the right SEO professional, interacting with them to come with a sound strategy can reveal a lot about your business and the value proposition it offers.

I have this experience several times during my career.

Often times, it’s during the keyword research. As the tool pops up all the option, I frequently hear “Well, I could do that as well!”

But remember that SEO is not something any one can do.

You need to be very careful with choosing the right man for the job as he/she can make or break your business.

14. SEO Promotes Trust and Credibility

Nothing builds instant trust and credibility like the result on Google’s first page of search results.

Here’s an interesting scenario that I personally faced in my early career.

When I started my website, I got my business from organic search results and word of mouth recommendations, I still do.

But what I observed was a distinct difference in the way these two sets of clients accepted my work.

The clients I acquired through organic search took my word without hesitation.

However, since I was a newbie, my advice about website design was met with skepticism by those who came through others recommendation.

The key take away here is your trust and credibility increases exponentially if your business appears on the first page of SERP. How about that for importance of SEO?

15. SEO Can Make All the Difference

Being on Google’s first page is not enough.

While ranking number 1 on SERP generates 36.4% of the clicks, 2^nd and 3^rd respectively command 12.5 and 9.5% of traffic.

The share of clicks reduces exponentially as you go further down the page.

Not only does being on the top of the SERP generates disproportional volumes of traffic, but also creates a quick brand recall.

That is, the next time a prospective customer thinks of a product or service you offer, they don’t need to use Google search.

They will be directly searching for your web address to visit your site!

That’s the power of SEO!

16. A Good SEO Professional Is Your Trusted Brand Consultant

Brand building and brand equity have traditionally been the bastion of off-line marketing professionals.

However, with increased application of digital and online marketing principles, branding is slowly but surely moving into the digital realm.

By effective use of SEO techniques, it is possible to create a positive upward spiral to enhance the overall brand image of your business.

With increased traffic to your website, you are widening your customer base everyday.

Which means more and more people are talking about your brand on social media and other online platforms.

This gives the kind of visibility that most brand managers dream of.

And the best part of it all? It comes as a by-product of your other SEO related effort and therefore at a fraction of the cost.

17. SEO Is Not a Tactic, It’s a Long Term Strategy

One reason why SEO is an irrefutable technique is it’s a long term strategy.

What it means only those who are really committed to invest their resources will realize the objectives set out in the beginning.

Although it takes time for the results to show, once you are up there on the search results, SEO delivers a good ROI on a recurring basis.

However, you should keep in mind that reaching the top is only job half done.

You should continue to undertake SEO activities and strive to remain on top and truly realize the importance of SEO.

Most SEO consultants would advise to take up short term techniques such as PPC and paid advertising.

Although these techniques are good to gain initial traction, you should gradually move away from and focus fully on organic search.

18. SEO Can Drive Off-Line Sales Too

If you run one or more brick and mortar stores that target local customers, here’s the news you have been waiting to hear: good SEO can and will drive customers to your store.

This is backed by solid research from many leading internet companies.

According to them, before your prospective customers buy products from your store, in all likelihood, they get on the internet and search for products or services you offer.

If you are one of the popular businesses around, they will still do some research about your business and maybe look for testimonials from existing customers.

19. SEO Is All About Finding Relevant Visitors With the Right Intent

SEO primarily works on a two pronged strategy.

Find relevant keywords using extensive keyword research and target the right users based on their search intent.

This combination is sure to lead quality visitors to your site who are ready to pull their wallet out spend on the product or service you got to offer.

When you hire a good SEO consultant, one number that he will always focus on is conversion rate – the ratio of number of visitors to the site that converted i.e took some desirable action to the total number of visitors to the site.

With this singular objective in mind, it will be your SEO consultant’s objective to find and drive as many quality visitors to your site to boost your sales and revenue.

20. SEO Can Be Objectively Measured

If you consider the technology and the processes involved in SEO, you will notice it is entirely based on IT systems.

Which only means one thing – you have full control over all the data and it makes it possible to measure all of the performance metrics including return of marketing investment.

21. Your SEO Consultant Is Your Ninja Warrior

By now, you have read under various sections of this write up about how a professional SEO consultant can make or break your marketing initiatives.

Here’s another element to how he can be your ninja warrior.

Based on the popular book about marketing by Jack Trout and Al Ries, Marketing Warfare, it is safe to conclude that marketing is indeed a war.

Unlike the traditional war, your SEO consultant can actually use all the data – both yours and your competitor’s – to simulate the conditions.

Figure out exactly your key strengths and weakness and prepare you to take on them with the right strategy.

This is the importance of SEO to win the marketing war against your competitors.

22. Importance of SEO in Cost Reduction

Dollar for dollar, SEO returns a higher rate of profits than other channels of marketing.

It all begins with building the right website by targeting the right keywords with good technical SEO in place.

Once you have taken care of this, your SEO investments will be off-page activities such as link building, social media marketing, and other efforts to improve traffic towards your site.

Now, this cost will be the same if 100 people visit your site or 100, 000.

So by attracting a large number of quality visitors to your site, and with a good conversion rate, you are sure to reap the benefits of the SEO techniques you will implement.

23. SEO Is Ideal for Outsourcing

SEO works best when it’s outsourced. This is the simple truth.

When you look at some of the biggest names in the industry, you will find that they all outsource their SEO activities to other companies specializing in the field.

This is because, SEO is a fast changing industry and to keep up with the pace you will need a large team of specialists working 24/7.

Also the tools and software used by these professionals require access to specialized databases from around the world and only a dedicated SEO company will access to such data.

Now how can this be a benefit to you?

By having a separate team operate your SEO, you will be insulated about the bias your team maybe subjected to.

An SEO specialist who is outside of your company will have a neutral perspective in addition to that of your competitors.

This will give you a clear advantage that can work wonders for you.

24. SEO Is Based on High Customization

Because SEO is inherently a highly customized service, what you pay is for what you need. Nothing more, nothing less.

This means, the services you will get from your SEO team, either in-house or outsourced, is tailor made.

No other marketing technique comes this close to being fully customized.

And because of this, the techniques adopted by your business is bound to work.

Just keep in mind that all SEO practitioners are the same.

Just like in any other profession where you will find different levels of skill set, you will also find expert, intermediate, and novice SEO professionals.

Be sure to hire the right one. And remember the first point – SEO is an investment, not a cost.

25. SEO Can Overcome the Staunchest of the Critics

SEO is totally based on data and this data can be effectively used to predict how your SEO project can be implemented effectively.

By taking in to account various parameters such as market size, competition position, future trends and demands, your consultant can present you with a clear picture including projections for cost of running the SEO campaign and the ROI.

You will have the detailed report from your SEO consultant within few days or couple of weeks depending the niche you are in, the competition you are facing, and the size of your business.

Armed with all these details, you can allocate the right budget and take your competition by the horns.

The Bottom Line

With so much of hype built around SEO, it sometimes becomes difficult to understand where exactly does the power of SEO emerge from.

With this extensive list of reasons you should be in a good position to not only understand the power of SEO but also the way forward in terms of implementation to reap the full benefits of SEO.

So why SEO is important is all too obvious now.

I understand that this is an extensive list and therefore will be glad to further explain in detail about any of the points.