By Jim Lee – RAPTAP Marketing, LLC.

It’s a bit strange to talk about the importance of SEO in digital marketing because the two things are almost impossible to separate.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is all about improving how well your website ranks for certain keywords on search engine results pages (SERPs). 

Ranking algorithms are incredibly complicated – almost any activity your business undertakes online can affect SEO.

 

Why all digital marketing can affect SEO

Imagine you make a social media post that gets traction, and a lot of users end up on your website. Google is going to notice this – when websites are visited frequently, and when visitors spend a long time on your site, it sends positive signals to Google’s ranking algorithm.

Let’s look at the flip side. Imagine there’s a gaffe in one of your social media posts, and you suddenly get flooded with negative reviews. Seeing all of those poor reviews, less users will visit your site – and that sends negative signals to the ranking algorithm.

 

SEO as a bellwether

SEO, like most digital marketing, is data driven. When you hire an agency for search engine optimization, you’ll have a team of experts constantly pouring over how well your web pages – as well as your site overall – are ranking for keywords.

If there’s a sudden drop in rankings across the board, it’s a bit like the canary in the coal mine – it may mean something is wrong with your website, or that there is some problem in your digital marketing strategy that needs to be addressed. 

 

SEO as digital marketing

Of course, SEO, in and of itself, is a form of digital marketing. It’s an incredibly useful tool – one that can strengthen your hold on the market, all while weakening your competitors’ grip.

88% of people who look for a local business on their smartphone visit a store within the week. A whopping 76% of people visit a business within a day when they search for a nearby business on their smartphone.

huge number of people use Google to find local businesses – just think about how often you’ve looked for local restaurants, contractors, massage therapists, or other businesses online.

We used to use the Yellow Pages or other business directories. Today, we use Google.

SEO is an invaluable, high-converting form of digital marketing. It’s important for local businesses, and it can bolster ecommerce businesses, too.

 

The best approach is holistic

Optimally, you want to use both SEO and other forms of digital marketing, like social media marketing and PPC, to achieve your goals.

These techniques work best in tandem – because they’re all data-driven, you have more access to information about your online presence. You can monitor trends, and spot potential problems more quickly.

The various forms of digital marketing all target different segments – paid advertising can be useful across platforms, SEO captures organic, high-converting traffic, and social media marketing can help you quickly grow your online presence.

Our San Antonio SEO company offers a broad suite of digital marketing services – and they all function in tandem to improve your sales – as well as acquisition and retention – across the board.