If you thought SEO was important in the past, then SEO in 2016 is going to be the most important marketing decision you can make for your business in 2016. In fact, SEO in 2016 is the only way your business is ever going to rank on Google and if you think your company can get by without implementing some sort of SEO, then you are mistaken.
As the digital space becomes more crowded with all businesses wanting to be on Google, the only effective way to be competitive and drive traffic to your website is SEO or search engine optimisation. Having been in this industry for more than 10 years I thought I would highlight some really competitive niches and industries that rely heavily on SEO and will continue to do so in 2016. These industries rely heavily on their Google rankings and need to be on page 1 to drive new sales leads, inquiries and their revenues. Without SEO, they simply would not exist.
The Travel & Tourism Industry: Websites such as Trip Advisor, Expedia, Webjet, Hotels.com, and all airlines, hotels, motels, travel booking sites (including booking.com, Trviago, Flipkey and Qantas) rely on their SEO rankings for their inquiries. Basically if they were not on Google they would not be getting any business. yes, they do advertise on other mediums, like TV and radio but this is strictly for branding purposes and getting their name out there to the public. It’s strictly to reinforce their brand and fuel public awareness. But, the most important thing for all these companies is Google. These companies live and die by their Google ranking and they pay a lot of money to SEO agencies to ensure that they are always on page 1.
Cosmetic Surgery: The health and beauty industry especially cosmetic surgeons all aim to have their main keywords ( liposuction, breast implants, weight loss surgery, vein treatments, lip / eye fillers, scar & acne treatments) all on page 1. This space is super competitive and in 2016 it’s not likely to get any easier. As this market becomes more and more crowded with more cosmetic surgeons opening up around Sydney and Australia, they are all going to want that coveted page 1 position. I know this because at SEO Sydney Experts I speak to many cosmetic surgeons who all say the same thing:’ we need to be on page 1 to grow our business’. Think about it. If you were looking for any of these types of treatments and did not know which cosmetic surgeon to go to, where would you start looking? The answer is Google.
We manage the SEO for a few well known Sydney based cosmetic surgeons and all I can tell you is that the number of monthly searches their websites are getting by being high on Google is incredible. For some keywords these surgeons are getting about 1000 unique visitors per month. This is absolutely amazing and this is why the reliance on SEO in 2016 is only going to grow. It’s these kind of statistics that really show how fantastic SEO can be for any business, including niches you probably would not have thought about.
Tradesmen: Local SEO in 2016 is going to be a fundamental must have for all tradies in 2016. If you are a plumber, electrician, carpenter, cleaners, builder, or even a engineer, you are going to want to have some type of presence on Google if you are going to ever have a chance of growing and building your business. I make a point here of highlighting the fact that most tradies only need local SEO. After all your local plumber in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney is really only going to want business locally.
For tradies SEO in 2016 is a MUST — where else are they ever going to advertise. Sure, they may do letterbox drops and adverts in the local paper, but nothing compares to the power and lead generation capabilities of Google. Just look the the Jims franchise to see how well they have dominated the tradies space on Google by using SEO to their advantage. This franchise is a great example of how a professional company has harnessed the power of SEO to build a great business model. Before you say: ‘Jims has a much bigger budget than our small business’, remember that local SEO is affordable and you should at least give it a try.
Serviced based businesses: Whether your an accountant, lawyer, barrister, doctor, optometrist, real estate agent, home loan broker, mortgage and finance brokers, basically any type of service that people may need, your service based website must have a prominent position on Google in 2016 and this is where SEO and the team at SEO Sydney Experts can really help. I cannot put enough emphasis on the virtues and benefits of an ethical SEO campaign especially for business that rely on Google.
SEO for Pharmaceuticals in 2016. As this space tightens up with overseas competition and more products entering the market, Pharmaceuticals are going to need a SEO strategy if their products are going to be prominent in the eye of the consumer. Pfizer, Nova Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, Pharmaxis, Bayer and Merck Sharp & Dohme all need some sort of SEO.
Let me explain this in a bit more details. Suppose your child has a bad flu and you want to do your research online before you go to the chemist. What SEO can do, is bring up Pharmaceutical companies websites that have products that relate to helping or curing the child’s flu. So if the mother types int he words: ‘ children’s flu help”, she is going to read the information on the first page of Google and this is where the major pharmaceuticals want to position their brand and products. Without this exposure, they will not sell their products. Without SEO they will never ever get to page 1 of Google and this is only going to get harder in 2016.
SEO for eCommerce and large retailers websites If you sell anything online and rely on Google, like most eCommerce sites do, then SEO is a must. Look again at all the major eCommerce websites such as Harvey Norman, Bing Lee, Kogan, David Jones, Daily Deals sites etc. They all have 1 thing in common and that is they want to sell as many products as they can online and the best way to facilitate this is SEO. In 2016 as more eCommerce sites are launched and the race to sell more products heats up, the need for an aggressive SEO campaign is mandatory.
If you want to sell fridges, dishwashers, 2nd hand goods, microwaves, fitness products, baby products, clothing, fashion, toys, machinery, even toasters you better start thinking about your SEO and the kind of company you want to partner with.
This leads me to my next point; how to find the right type of SEO agency in 2016? Choosing the right agency is going to be more critical than ever, moving forward into 2016 you better make the right decision or you are going to get absolutely smashed by Google.
By simply doing an online search and typing in the words SEO you will find heaps of companies. My suggestion is to look for those that are ranking organically and those that have a solid track record. For heavens sake never ever use any type of SEO company that tries to lure you by offering guarantees or pay on performance. These scammers are becoming more prevalent and this trend in 2016 will grow.
As Google tightens its ranking algorithm the need to partner with an SEO agency that will only implement ‘ white hat’ SEO is the only way your business will ever rank in 2016 – you have to take my word on this because over the last 12 months I have seen really great businesses get penalized by Google due to bad and out dated SEO techniques being implemented. These once prosperous companies are literally on their last legs because their websites gone. It’s vanished and so are all the new leads and sales inquiries.
In conclusion if you intend to commence and SEO campaign in 2016 or have been working with an agency and are simply unhappy with the results, make 2016 the year that you commit to working with an ethical and trusted SEO provider.
