Why SEO Matters for Manufacturing Companies

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of ensuring your site can be found on search engines. There are two types of SEO, on-site and off-site. On-site SEO is essentially quality control for your website; it makes sure search engines can understand its structure and assures your site has the proper titles, headings and content. An unorganized, poorly written site will not rank on any search engine.Off-site SEO is just as important as on-site, however, it’s a little more complicated. It ultimately helps you earn backlinks (or, links to your site from other sites) with superior content. Both types of SEO are needed before your site is truly optimized for search engines.

Do Websites Need SEO?

Yes. SEO helps your site rank in search engines and helps organize it. Getting visitors to your site can be difficult, but keeping them there and engaged is the true test. SEO helps solve both challenges. People will be able to find your site on search engines like Google, and they’ll be engaged while on your site thanks to on-site SEO efforts. Many people believe that search engines are smart enough to find their sites without SEO. This is only going to be true in very few situations, which mostly include when people search for a company's name. If a site is optimized for search engines, there will be numerous searches that a site can rank for. Many manufacturing companies still rely on referrals and word-of-mouth for sales, but the times are changing and soon companies won’t be able to compete unless that have a modern website that is optimized for search engines.

Can You Handle All SEO Efforts on Your Own?

Many people believe that search engine optimization is just a bunch of tactics used to trick search engines. This couldn’t be more false. Search engines like Google and Bing have come out and given hints as to what helps sites rank on their platforms. They have also openly stated that any attempt to trick or manipulate rankings will result in that site being banned. So, if you search “how to seo” you’ll get many results with helpful information that’ll help your site rank. There will also be some sites that give you bad advice that’ll get you banned from search engines. Most websites receive about 50 percent of their traffic from search engines, so you obviously don’t want them to ban you. If you still think that you can make the changes on your own and that you’re following good advice, how often will you optimize your site? SEO is a continuous process that requires constant monitoring and a long-term strategy that changes when search engines change the rules, which happens a lot. That’s why you should trust professionals to handle your website’s SEO.

Is SEO Expensive?

With SEO, like with most things, you get what you put into it. It doesn’t have to be expensive if you don’t want it to be. If you want to do the bare minimum and follow the laws of Google and Bing, go ahead. Your site will be more organized and you should see a slight bump in traffic. But if you want to fully invest in SEO and organize your site, create amazing SEO-driven, relevant content and get your site in front of lots of people, even better. It’s all about what you want for your site. The more you invest, the more you will get back (e.g., the more quality website traffic you’ll attract). If you’re serious about expanding your business, heavily investing in SEO is the way to go.

Should You Invest in SEO as a Manufacturer?

There’s a lot that goes into search engine optimization—ensuring your site is optimized takes time and is ever-changing. This is what makes it a long-term investment that requires patience and expertise. Many manufacturing companies are late to the party and don’t yet use the web as an extension of their sales and marketing teams. But the ones that do have a serious competitive advantage, making SEO an extra-important tool for manufacturers looking to grow. Today, people are using search engines more than ever. Manufacturers need to make sure they implement the strategies that guarantee prospects are able to find them online.