How to Know When Your Site Needs SEO Before Social Media

: Image via Wikipedia

The majority of calls we receive are from companies wishing to develop a presence in social media, however, most of these companies would benefit from investing in search engine optimisation (SEO) first. In most cases the additional revenue generated from SEO will cover the investment required to develop a Social Media Strategy.

Should we be focusing on SEO before Social Media?

Here’s a quick checklist:

You website is well established and works well but receives little traffic

Search engine traffic is qualified traffic: they are looking for your product or service as opposed to having it pushed to them via an advertisement etc. Therefore, they should be relatively easy to convert into customers. By investing in search engine optimisation (SEO) you can reach this audience.

When people typically research your product or service online

If your product or service costs more than say $100 then it’s unlikely to be an “impulse buy”, and will often be researched online. Prospective purchasers will tend to research broadly then specifically. For example, if I’m looking to buy a used car my search pattern might be:

-used cars
-used SUVs
-Used Honda CRV

If you can establish a presence throughout this purchase journey then you will have a better chance than competitor’s who might appear at one stage.

Google’s keyword tool will give you an indication of the search volumes for your product or service. If they are high enough then you should allocate sufficient budget to SEO to capture a reasonable share before investing in broadcast media.

In summary, social media, while incredibly powerful is unlikely to generate the increased revenue that SEO would. Once you have your SEO on track then tackle social media. As with any marketing, an integrated campaign works best.

Need help with SEO? Call Steer – SEO Agency, Auckland