It’s irrefutable that search engines serve as much more than digital directories, which is why business-owners spend more than $79 billion to enhance SEO strategy each year. Research shows that 93% of the time that people access the internet they will begin their web-browsing experience with a search engine. Given that Google’s first page has a near monopoly on all search traffic, chances are that if someone arrives at your company’s website, they were guided there in part by Google. Establishing a unique brand is an accomplishment, and working with Google’s algorithm to support online brand protection can keep you hitting key performance indicators that keep your business running.
SEO and Digital Marketing
Whether you’re a B2B company or deliver direct-to-consumer, the majority of your page’s visitors will flow to you through a search engine. That means that SEO needs to be a significant consideration when developing online branding in digital marketing efforts. Of course, brand messaging needs to be authentic. A marketing campaign can’t be based entirely on SEO, and it’s not difficult to sniff out when keywords are being forced. However, thinking critically about long-tail keywords, optimizing web pages for mobile visitors, and building backlinks are straightforward SEO strategies to integrate into your workflows.
Stay Vigilant
Just as important as making Google your friend is ensuring that it doesn’t become your enemy. Landing your name among the top ten results should be a reason to celebrate. If that link directs potential clients to an unsavory article, however, Google’s algorithm could be hurting you more than it’s helping you. Dedicating efforts to brand monitoring online will allow you to stay on top of unwanted digital attention before a minor mess becomes a crisis. There are numerous brand monitoring solutions that scan the internet for mentions of your brand’s name and provide useful analytics. While these exist at all levels of investment, Google Alerts is a simple and free tool to serve as your digital watchdog. Considering that users linger five times as long on a web page with negative reviews, pushing out positive content while neglecting to manage unfavorable content makes being branded online an uphill battle.\
Prioritize SEO Over Social Media
Ideally, companies should utilize all the tools the internet makes available when thinking about online brand protection, but those who have to be more discerning about where to place their efforts should first consider SEO strategy. Google has about 90 billion visitors each month. Their number of monthly users is exponentially higher than any social media platform which makes it no surprise that SEO generates ten times more traffic than social media. Click-throughs get potential customers one step closer to clicking ‘Add to Cart,’ and organic search generates B2B companies twice as much revenue than any other channel.
If your business has any online presence, Google is intrinsically linked to your operation. Its algorithm is a powerful tool in interacting with customers and it has the potential to either elevate or impair your online presence. SEO isn’t a flashy strategy, but understanding and employing it is integral to online brand protection and can translate to augmented business outcomes.