Search engine optimization continues to thrive, especially in these times when businesses are struggling big time to keep up with the loss of demand due to COVID-19.
An SEO company is an integral part of a business’ marketing strategy, but some people are turning away from the expenditure due to budget cuts. Is it the right move in the middle of the pandemic?
COVID-19 has brought quite an impact on how businesses and companies are spending money on marketing purposes. With almost every country affected by the shutdown of establishments and the lack of demand for products and services, it seems logical to do away with the prospect of hiring an SEO company. But when one looks closer, any business with a website and online presence will get that much-needed boost.
With ongoing travel restrictions and lockdowns, traditional marketing initiatives and strategies no longer have the same weight in them. So, struggling businesses find it impractical to stick with them. On the other hand, SEO firms offer a timely and sensible approach to marketing businesses using the web; in most situations, SEO and building an online presence are a “pandemic-proof” approach.
Experts in digital marketing predict a decline of 9% to 15% in search ad spend for the rest of the year. A recent survey also said that only 7% of businesses and brands believe in the opportunity of increasing marketing spend using the web during the crisis. About 25% of businesses think that maintaining their current marketing budget is reasonable, and a whopping 55% are looking at making cuts.
What this “55%” of the business populace fail to understand is what a SEO Company provides a low-cost alternative to paid advertising. So, instead of being hell-bent in cutting ad budgets, a progressive approach is to redirect the “limited” budget to a cost-effective strategy like SEO.
A leading marketing analysis firm called “Conductor” said that over 50% of marketers agree that SEO is a critical tool for businesses and brands during the pandemic. It added that the role of SEO is expected to increase because consumers are more likely to spend more time looking for goods and services online. It means that businesses must establish a web presence to get a share of the pie.
Businesses benefit from SEO in a long-term perspective. Unlike what they get from paid advertising, the effects of SEO on their online presence doesn’t go away like when the paid ads stop once they don’t pay. The implementation of an effective SEO campaign delivers the goods without thousands of dollars in capital. The only expenditure is the money spent on hiring a competent SEO firm to carry out the campaign.
And with online shopping making a massive leap in popularity due to the pandemic, businesses must take advantage. People buy stuff online as they have more time spent on their computers at home. Business websites that offer products and services must use SEO services to at least get a fighting chance against the bigger and more established companies out there.