In this blog, we are going to talk about those exact factors that determine the time for your SEO to start working. In addition, we are also going to talk about how much time it is going to take for bringing your webpage from darkness to a number under 10, let’s say page 6 of Google, and how much time it is going to take for covering the journey from Google’s page 2 to Google’s page 1.
We are used to instant-gratifying results. If any marketing strategy makes us wait for even more than a month, we start questioning that strategy itself, or our marketing team/agency or marketing in general. We quit in the midway, thinking that SEO is ineffective and why are people even wasting their time on it.
There is a huge ROI on SEO, it’s just not instantaneous. You will be required to pay monthly to your digital marketing agency without even seeing anything. This journey is going to be tough but when you reach the destination, you will be happy that you have decided to embark upon it.
SEO is Lengthy
SEO is one of the lengthiest digital marketing strategies. While you can see results from your Google ads almost instantly, you can’t say the same for your SEO. There are many business owners who have to wait for almost 10 years before seeing any results.
Moreover, SEO strategies can take months and sometimes even years. Google’s Maile Ohye has mentioned that in most cases it will take four months to a year to see improvement in your ranking.
Interestingly, we were able to achieve exceptional SEO results in just 2 weeks for one of our clients. But that doesn’t mean every company can expect the same results. And here’s why:
7 Mind-blowing Facts Why SEO Results are Slow for Some Businesses
We have handled many SEO projects in the past. One of our clients had to wait for over 3 years, while another one only for a few weeks. Could any other digital agency have achieved the same results in less time? Definitely no! SEO is dependent not just on which SEO agency you’re going to choose but on many other factors which we are going to discuss below:
Fact 1) Your Industry Competiton Decides Your SEO Results
How Competitive is Your Market?
This is what is going to write the future of your SEO strategies. The low competition will allow you to see faster results. However, high competition will bring you a wait of many months and years.
We helped one photographer rank for “fashion inspired wedding photography” and one for “fashion photography” in their respective cities. The former took only two months while the latter took three years.
Your competition can be further divided on the basis of the following:
Fact 2) Your Location Affects Your SEO Results
Where are You Located?
If your target audience is the entire USA, then definitely you have to wait for long before you see any difference in your search engine rankings. Competing for a keyword in the entire USA is going to be tougher and lengthier than just competing for it in New York.
Similarly, ranking your keywords for New York City is going to be harder than ranking the same keyword in Louisville. The reason is that New York is more crowded than Louisville which increases the chances of competing with many similar businesses.
If you are planning to open a clothing store in New York City, just imagine who all you will be competing with. There is a clothing store on every lane. Now, let’s imagine that you have changed your mind and now want to open your clothing store in Louisville. You won’t find even 1% of those clothing stores here which automatically brings your competition down.
On the same note, if you’re competing for just Williamsburg in Brooklyn rather than the entire Brooklyn, it’s going to be way easier than competing for the latter.
Fact 3) Your Industry Decides Your SEO Efforts
What is Your Industry Or Business Area?
Some industries or business areas are more competitive than others. If you are competing for “winter wear for women over 60”, it’s going to take less effort than if you’re planning to build a name as a “winter wear for women.”
To start with, retail, in general, is going to be very competitive while healthcare is not so much. There can be many clothing stores in your city but there might not be an equivalent number of orthodontists in your city.
Similarly, there will be many restaurants in a city but not as many schools or universities. Ranking your university in San Diego higher on Google versus ranking your cafe higher on Google is not going to be the same. The former will generate outcomes much faster, provided its target audience is limited to San Diego.
Fact 5) Your Target Audience Decides Your SEO Fate
Who is Your Target Audience?
Your target audience also decides your wait time. If your target audience is everyone in New York, you need more work and more time to see positive changes in your search engine ranking.
On the other hand, if your audience is New Yorkers above 50 who are interested in electric cars, then your wait time is going to be low as you are targeting a very small and well-defined subset.
Fact 6) Selection of Keywords for SEO is Linked to How Much Work You’ve to Do
Which Keyword do You Want to Rank For?
When you do SEO, you’re trying to rank yourself for a particular keyword. It can be “ad agency in New York” vs generic “ad agency” or it can be “mindfulness meditation center in Brooklyn” vs “meditation center.” Maybe you are trying to capture the keywords like “top orthodontist in New York” or “best packaging company” or “landscaping services” or it can be something else.
Based on the other factors that measure your competition, some of these keywords are going to be highly tough to rank for while others won’t. As explained above, ranking for “best photographer” is going to be tougher than ranking for “best photographer in Manhattan.”
Fact 7) New Websites will Need More Time to Show SEO Results
Have You Done Any SEO Work in the Past?
If you have done any SEO work previously, then it can increase the effectiveness of your current SEO strategies and can help you rank for your desired keywords much faster
Past SEO work can affect your current strategies positively, only if there was an effective SEO strategy in place. Many inexperienced people engage in SEO activities which are not healthy. Such activities end up hurting a business rather than building it.
One of my clients had a similar problem. When they approached me for SEO work, they didn’t even know the current condition of their website. Upon research, I found out that their website is marked as spam or as a porn website by many of the business directories.
This was hurting their business badly as their target audience had completely lost their faith in their company and didn’t even treat them as a genuine business. In their case, their SEO work didn’t help us at all but pushed us back by a few years. We have to start with a lot of brand image and reputation correction strategies which took a lot of time.
How Good is Your Current SEO Company?
In addition to all the above factors, the experience and expertise of your current digital marketing agency also play an important role in determining the rate of your SEO success.
Let’s say your competition is low but if you’re not doing much SEO, then your business is not going to automatically come on top in a few months. In such a case, it can actually increase your wait even though you had very low competition.
As I mentioned above, bad, misleading, ineffective, spammy SEO strategies can actually hurt your business and its reputation. You can get categorized as spam or you can get penalized by Google.
When it’s time for you to pick a digital marketing agency for your SEO work, ask the agency how good their SEO is. If you want, you can do a little research. A crooked teeth orthodontist is not someone you will trust much with your teeth. Similarly, a digital agency in business for over ten years and still not having a good SEO presence is also not a good sign. For example, Bizadmark ranks for many competitive keywords from its industry, and we are just getting started. We practice what we preach.
Also, a good SEO strategy will have a great competitive research followed by even a greater strategy covering the areas of content, technical SEO, website redesign and optimization, press release, local SEO, reputation management and… Share on X
Moreover, SEO is a dedicated, ongoing strategy. If you are planning to do SEO until you hit the top spot, and then leave it; then I am afraid to say that it won’t do much good to you. The moment you’ll get comfortable in Google ranking & stop paying attention to your SEO, your competitors will move you from that position and come on top themselves.
Why is SEO Worth the Wait?
Even though social media and Google ads offer you instant gratification in terms of more followers, sign ups and sales, SEO generally takes a long time. But it is still worth it.
As when your SEO will start working, it will even reduce your Google advertising budget. It is going to start bringing you customers organically. Organically means without paying for any kinds of ads. It’s like Google will reward you for all your work by sending relevant people to your website.
SEO also leads to brand building and once the brand is built, you will get a lot of visibility which will increase your brand awareness which will increase your website traffic which in turn will lead to more sales.
In case, you have not yet started doing SEO, it’s high time you should start working on it. In case, you think your SEO is not working as it should or you want to consult us regarding your SEO performance, send us an email at [email protected].
The Stories of Deadly Business Mistakes That You Should Absolutely Avoid
The secret to success in business isn’t doing what other successful people have done; it’s by avoiding the mistakes made by businesses that have failed. Instead of repeating their mistakes, now we can learn from them and best ensure business growth and commercial success.
17 Reasons Why Businesses Fail brings the cautionary tales of mistakes made by many businesses that ultimately led to their failure and which other businesses should avoid at all costs if they plan to survive and grow. Get your copy.
