As the Coronavirus crisis continues to affect every industry across the globe, many companies are struggling to stay afloat. According to recent statistics, most brands are seeing performance drops of -20% (or more) from just a few weeks ago. So, if your business is not servicing “essential needs,” odds are your financials are not looking very promising. This unexpected loss in revenue is forcing enterprises to decide on how they can trim budgets and maximize their efficiency. Nonetheless, your SEO budget should not be one of them!
Below I will go over eight reasons as to why you should not reduce your SEO budget during the COVID-19 crisis, and if you want more information about how to do SEO copywriting you can see it here.
• Bids in many industries are lower
To start, know that amid this pandemic, search demand is low — meaning that bids are also lower than they have ever been. So, if your company can offer products/services that consumers can still buy, you should be maximizing your SEO budget (not cutting it.)
Why? Simple. You will profit from every dollar spent! Now that everyone is cutting down on their SEO efforts, companies who choose to maintain it will quickly escalate ranks and become more visible.
• You are putting at risk your organic rankings
Eliminating, or hastily cutting down your SEO budget, will considerably affect your rankings. Remember that SEO is a long-term strategy. And once the search demand returns to normal, you will still drive significantly less traffic to your company’s site.
Simply put, if you cut down on your budget now, all the money you invested up until the COVID-19 crisis began will have gone down the drain! Furthermore, you will then need to spend more money to re-gain the positions and visibility you had.
• Competition is fierce!
Given that there is less demand, companies are struggling to keep a piece of the active market. So, this is not the time to fall through the cracks. On the contrary, your brand needs to be more present than ever in your audience’s minds. Note that users trust search engines, and having a presence in the top positions for the keywords they are looking for, increases your site’s trust, visibility, and traffic.
Consequently, companies who invest in SETO will be ahead of their competition once the outbreak has passed, and the markets stabilize.
• Digital Media is flourishing
While the crisis has taken a toll on many industries, others have flourished. For instance, media companies, like streaming and television, have seen an enormous spike in traffic. The same goes for delivery services and e-commerce. So, this might be the best time to advertise as audiences are literally captive in their homes and consuming more content than ever! As a result,
investing more of your marketing budget in SEO now could have an immediate impact on your business’ bottom line.
• SEO is “trending”
According to Google Trends, the search term “SEO” and other related words have seen a spike since February 2020. As we mentioned above, companies are doing all they can to get a chunk of the already slim market. Thus, it comes as no surprise that SEO is suddenly on everyone’s radar.
Given that the brick and mortar stores are closed in virtually every corner of the world, brands have had to turn to online stores to keep their businesses alive. And the best way to drive traffic to your website and have better rankings is by developing a solid SEO strategy.
• SEO is very cost-effective
SEO is very cost-effective, making it a smart investment during an economic crisis. In other words, when compared to other channels, such as regular media, SEO is considerably cheaper. Hence, if you know how to implement an effective SEO campaign, a small investment can go a long way. Plus, SEO has the added benefit that it does not have and on/off switch. Thus, whatever you invest now will still pay off long after the investment.
• It can open the door to new markets and opportunities
You might now know this, but, while the Coronavirus crisis has brought a drop in paid traffic, organic search has risen! And when you stop and think about it, it makes total sense. We are spending more time at home looking for things to keep us occupied, which results in people going online to pass the time and stay in contact with the “outside” world.
As a result, people are going online to read blogs, look for recipes, find exercise routines, chat, keep up-to-date with news, and more. So, if you can connect your product or service with what is trending, it will improve your brand presence and reach new audiences.
• People still need to buy products/services
Lastly, know that even throughout a crisis, people still need to buy products and services. And I am not talking just about “essential needs.” Even while quarantined, life goes on. Babies will continue to grow in need of bigger clothes. People will continue to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and other special occasions. And we will continue to spend money on things we want or need.
Plus, studies have shown that in times of crisis, people crave “normality.” Hence, being able to buy whatever they need/want allows them to feel in control when everything else is falling apart.
Wrapping it up…
SEO is a cheap, efficient, and easy way of reaching customers— even more so in times of crisis. It is also a medium to new opportunities, better rankings, and broader audiences. Thus, take all of these reasons into consideration when facing the hard decision of cutting down your SEO budget. Investing in an efficient SEO strategy, while closely monitoring your ROAS (Return On Advertising Spend), is the best thing you can do for your company in times like these.
And if you cannot afford to invest more in SEO, at least maintain designate a small budget or try to stay true to your current budget. Because once this is over, you will definitely have something to show for it!
