Search engine optimization is not an option for those businesses who wish to compete at any level. This is well known and most small businesses work hard at their SEO strategies. As the algorithms at the search engines continue to morph, SEO continues to be an ongoing practice as it, too, must shift with the prevailing search winds. Staying on top of your SEO will allow you to dominate your rivals like few others things can. In some recently published data from Bluecorona, you may be able to see where you SEO has been strong and where it may be stumbling. The following is taken directly from that data:
- According to Hubspot, about 64% of digital marketers invest time in SEO.
- 85% of Google users find an answer to their query with their initial search term. (Backlinko, 2020)
- Title tags that contain a question have a 14.1% higher CTR vs. pages that don’t have a question in their title. (Backlinko, 2019)
- The average top-ranking page also ranks in the top 10 search results for nearly 1,000 other relevant keywords. (Ahrefs)
- The #1 organic result is 10x more likely to receive a click compared to a page in the #10 spot. (Backlinko, 2019)
- On the first page alone, the first five organic results account for 67.6% of all the clicks. (Impact, 2020)
- 50% of people are more likely to click on a particular brand name if that brand name shows up more than once on the search results. (Omnicore, 2020)
- 29% of search queries have featured snippets in their search results. (Ahrefs) – These helpful blocks of information pull from pages within Google’s index automatically. Featured snippets are often found for queries that contain questions.
- In the majority of home services verticals, over 55% of consumers run a search before scheduling an appointment. (Source: LSA)
- Callers convert 30% faster than web leads. (Source: Forrester) – When a user needs emergency service or wants an immediate response, they tend to call. This is increasingly important to remember for home service brands where emergency and same-day service are a significant part of their business.
- On average, ranking in position #1 on mobile gets you 27.7% of the clicks. Ranking in position #1 on desktop gets you an average of 19.3% of the clicks. (SEOClarity)
- As page load time goes from one second to 10 seconds, the probability of a mobile site visitor bouncing increases by 123%.(Google, 2017)
- Nearly 70% of consumers admit that page speed impacts their willingness to buy from an online retailer. (Unbounce, 2019)
- Sites that load in five seconds (compared to 19) see 70% longer average sessions. (Think with Google)
- The first five seconds of page-load time have the highest impact on conversion rates. (Portent, 2019)
- Companies that blog have 55% more visitors on average (HubSpot)
- Google rewrites meta descriptions 62.78% of the time. (Ahrefs, 2020) – As Google gets better at understanding search intent, it changes meta descriptions to try to emulate what a user is looking for. So no, you aren’t crazy, you didn’t write that meta description, Google did.
- 40% of mobile searches have local intent. (Think with Google)
- Google saw 350 times more searches for the keywords “local” and “near me” in 2019 than in 2009. (Google) – If you have a local business, these types of keywords are going to drive essential leads for you, as they reflect a desire to convert. Local and “near me” searches are especially common on mobile.
- 88% of searches for local businesses on a mobile device either call or visit the business within 24 hours. (Nectafy)
- Whether it’s by visiting the business or contacting them by phone, a combined 47% of consumers get in touch with a business after making a local voice search. (BrightLocal)
- 28% of searches for something nearby result in a purchase.(BrightLocal)
-Written by Kevin Sawyer
