A new study reveals worrying evidence of the existing knowledge gap in the business sector. According to the survey, at least 1 in 3 business owners do not understand how Google search ranking works or the positive impact of SEO.
Over 900 participants in the United States were surveyed, of which 394 of them were business owners. Although business owners are considered to have a good understanding of search engine optimisation compared to non-business owners, the survey shows that both groups have a long way to go.
According to the survey, at least 33% of business owners have only a vague understanding of SEO. Over half of the business owners and non-business owners were found to have close to no understanding of how search rankings are determined by Google.
Although most of them could be optimising their websites by leveraging on good content, they could be failing to improve their site speed and structure. Should they put more efforts into learning about in-depth SEO, they could be in a better edge against their competitors.
Failed SEO Quiz
The Fractl survey further illustrates the knowledge gap by presenting the basic SEO quiz failed by respondents. All the respondents were given an 8-question quiz. On average, the business owners scored 48.7% (F), while the non-business respondents scored 38.7% (F). Some of the questions asked included:
- Which can best describe organic search?
- Define alt text
- How can you describe backlinks?
- Define anchor text
Some of the true/false questions asked included the following:
- One of the most crucial elements in Google search rankings is site speed. True or false?
- In Google search rankings, nofollow links have no impact. True or false?
As revealed in the survey, at least 70% of business owners believe that SEO can only be moderately or crucial to the sturdiness of their company. It means that they believed it is not about how well SEO is implemented to affect lead and revenue generation of their business.
How Important is SEO?
Business owners must understand that one of the most crucial aspects of the health of their business is SEO. They should have a good understanding of how Google rankings work to rank their sites highly and get traffic, which eventually translates to profit.
According to the study, businesses have an opportunity to boost their understanding of SEO and improve their online presence. The more the knowledge a company acquires or by engaging with an SEO specialist, the higher the gains they are likely to get through aggressive sales and marketing efforts.
When it comes to creating content, business owners need to challenge their marketing and sales department to focus on striking a perfect balance between relevance and keyword placement. This will improve Google rankings and enhance readability.
Understanding SEO allows a business owner to develop effective marketing strategies, especially in digital marketing. Understand that your site will only make sense when it reaches online users who then click on one of your webpages. This is where brand visibility comes in and must be prioritised. Optimising SEO will make your website searchable and allow search engines to crawl and index your site.
A great opportunity to market your brand arises when there is crawling, which triggers visibility. SEO is, no doubt, the only avenue to creating great brand visibility and promoting your goods and services. It allows you to meet your short term and long-term goals.
As brought out by the survey, business owners need to understand SEO. This is because search engine optimisation promotes organic traffic, visibility, sales and long-term benefits. It will also help you boost the overall performance of your business.
