Some people think that SEO is now less important than before, and some have commented that high-quality content is more important than SEO. Yes, content is crucial, but SEO is not dead and remains an essential element to your digital marketing strategy.
Yes, it is true that SEO changes as frequently as the weather, and sometimes it can be hard to keep up with the latest best practices. However, SEO is still the method by which search engines find us in an increasingly more competitive marketplace.
“I’ve been hearing SEO is dead since the moment it began. The bottom line for SEO is as long as there are search engines, there will always be a need to optimize websites.” – Stoney deGeyter Pole Position Marketing CEO
Without SEO, content alone can’t deliver the progress you need for your business to thrive. How will people find your site?
SEO complements great content – it is a symbiotic relationship. One can’t work without the other. Here are 4 simple reasons why SEO is not dead.
1. Google Says SEO Is Alive and Well
As the biggest search engine in the world, we trust Google. Through revolutionary and smart (almost human-like) algorithms, the search engine determines whether a site offers quality, relevant content based on user search queries. While they are secretive about the exact algorithms, they do offer an SEO guide that provides advice and how to make the most of your rankings.
Experts agree that focusing on SEO alone is not a good idea, but that it should incorporate other aspects too.
“SEO is not dead, however … if you believe the opposite get ready to watch your competitors take all your organic traffic. Pay attention to all three pillars of SEO because they are all equally important: Code and Structure, Content, and Keywords, and finally Authority (Links and Social engagement).” – Garth O’Brien
2. User Experience Goes Hand-in-Hand With SEO
There’s a direct link between SEO and good user-experience on a website. As part of your SEO, sitemaps represent another important SEO factor that plays directly into your user-experience. A sitemap opens up communication between your site and the search engines so that the search engines know when you’ve posted or altered your content. It also makes your site easier to navigate for your users.
3. SEO Allows Small Businesses to Compete Against Major Players
In his post on Entrepreneur.com, Jayson Demers explains how small businesses can compete with giants online, thanks to SEO. Now you don’t have to throw in the towel just because you’re competing with massive corporations, as Google has leveled the playing field for you.
“It’s getting more complex and more fun. Focus on how you can leverage first-party data and deeper audience understanding to create richer digital experiences. Bonus tip: technical SEO matters more than ever: ASO, app indexing, deep linking, JavaScript and dynamic sites, personalized content…the list goes on.” – Adam Audette
4. Google is Working Towards Processing Real Speech Patterns
As more and more people lean towards using mobile devices to search, Google must find new and innovative ways to capture the ever growing market. Google Speak is a prime example of the type of technology they are working on constantly improving, and as mobile search increases in prevalence, so does the importance of natural patterns of speech.
“Over time, people are going to increasingly gravitate towards voice search in environments where that is acceptable. Voice queries are much more likely to fall into the pattern of natural language queries.” – Eric Enge, Copyblogger
Based on these facts, it is pretty clear that SEO is alive and well, and going nowhere anytime soon. The only constant is the fact that Google constantly changes the way in which they process the keywords. I’ll close with a final word of advice from Craig Wilson of Media Hunter:
“SEO is not dead, but your business might be if you don’t rank for searches that solve customers’ problems. Advice: Write for humans first, Googlebots second. If you consistently publish great content that solves your potential customers’ problems, then optimize it for search, you have the potential to generate ridiculous amounts of traffic and leads.”