Australians have the entrepreneurial spirit in droves! According to the ABS there were over 2 million businesses operating in Australia in June 2011, 96% of which were ‘small businesses’. That makes for a very competitive environment – and many enterprises don’t survive the first few years.
In the competitive world of small business, your website is a critical factor that should ensure you’re visible when your prospective customers are shopping around for your product or service. How visible is your business website? When a user ‘Googles’ words related to your product or service, do you appear on the first page of the returned results? With the right Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) strategy, that’s where your website could be found!
Is your business surviving or thriving?
Survival rates for small business in Australia have plummeted during the last few years, dropping from 84.6% in 2009 to 60% in 2011. Times are tough for small business, with current statistics indicating that up to 30% of small businesses fold before the first year of operation is through. Small business owners would be wise to consider these statistics and plan for longevity.
Can your customers reach you on line?
While no small business today can afford to ignore the importance of having an effective web presence, there is a surprisingly large percentage of businesses that don’t have a website and of those that do many have sites that are ineffective due to poor SEO and/or site design.
We live in the digital age, where consumers utilise their prerogative to search globally for the best deals in whatever it is they desire to purchase. All that’s required is access to the internet via a web browser and a credit card at the ready, and the world is the shopper’s oyster.
How can your small business benefit from SEO?
Search Engine Optimisation helps make your website more visible when your potential customers are searching for your products or services using a web browser.
Due to the ever-changing and relatively complex methods used by search engines like Google to index and rank websites, it’s difficult for busy business owners to gain the knowledge and find the time to develop and implement a Search Engine Optimisation strategy themselves. The way around this dilemma is to engage an SEO specialist to review your site, and prepare and implement a strategy that will suit your business.
Even if your website is professionally designed, it could pay dividends to have it audited by an SEO consultant, to make sure you have a strategy in place so that your site appears on the first page of results for relevant searches associated with your product or service offering.
It is worth engaging an SEO expert in order to turn your website into your best marketing asset. Given the major role that a good web presence can play in the success of a business, SEO is a worthy investment.
SEO for Small Business is a reputable provider of a variety of web marketing services, with credibility in Search Engine Optimisation. Feel free to contact us for a discussion about your website’s performance.