Imagine buying a brand new boat and it’s so beautiful that you cannot wait to get it out on the water. On your first day at sea, you start the engine, push the throttle forward and your boat surges forward into the vast ocean. Whilst at sea, you decide to do a bit of fishing so you steer the boat to take you to your usual fishing spot but the boat doesn’t react. The boats steering wheel is not working and you have no choice but to switch off the engine and radio for help. You are lost at sea and after spending all that money buying a new boat, it cannot even point you in the direction that you want to go.
Well this is what is happening businesses every day across Ireland, the UK and the rest of the world. Businesses are spending thousands of euros on a corporate website that may look the part but when it comes to search engines, their website is lost at sea.
A Common Problem
In my role, as a digital marketing consultant, I have worked with a wide range of small and medium sized businesses across various sectors and this is one of the most common issues I come across. Business owners often tell me that even when customers “Google” their business name, their website does not appear in search engines. I even worked with one company and their website was set to block Google from accessing their website so it wasn’t being indexed at all!
A website may be beautifully designed but if it is not “Search Engine Optimised” (SEO) then you are losing out on valuable opportunities for your business.
Start Smart
It is essential if you are employing a web developer or web development agency, to develop your website, that you discuss with them the type of business you want to target in search engines. Before you sign a contract, I highly recommended that you ask them for examples of their work and contact some of their clients for a recommendation.
If it is a website redesign you have to ensure that you protect and enhance your existing position(s) in search engines. For a brand new website, you need to have realistic expectations. Many people expect that the minute they set up a website their phone will start ringing. If you offer a niche product or service this may well happen but in general, when you operate in a competitive market this is not the case. Many of your competitors can have well established websites and they out rank you in Google for many keywords or phrases.
Give Your Business A Chance
There are over 200 factors involved in SEO, it takes time for your website to start ranking higher and your website has to build a reputation with Google. Your competitors may be very well established online and jumping ahead of them in search engines may be difficult but if your website is not properly optimised for search engines then you will never stand a chance.
Image by Unsplash.com/ Photographer: Alvaro
Featured Image By Unsplash.com/ Photographer: Raining Huang
I hold an MSc in Digital Marketing from Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, UCD and I am Google Adwords Certified.
If you would like to discuss what we can do for your business you can contact me on (083) 1026964 or email: cathal@www.www.enablemarketing.ie
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