How to Not Let Your Campaign Strategy Slip with SEO Maintenance

It’s no secret that SEO matters...a lot. More than 90% of experiences online begin with a Google search or use of another search engine. The top ranking websites receive 33% of clicks in the search engine results page (SERP) and the second page only receives 6%, which makes sense - how often do you scroll to the bottom of a Google search, let alone to the next page?Search engine optimization is not a one-and-done initiative. If you’ve worked with us at Page One, you’ve likely heard us repeat this mantra time and time again: “SEO is a marathon, not a sprint.” Getting into that number one spot is exciting and worth celebrating - it takes hard work and dedication to your SEO strategy to get there! 

It’s important, though, to remember that rankings in the SERPs aren’t permanent and can fluctuate. The rollout of a Google algorithm update can change everything. If you’re not on top of it, your competitors will inevitably work their way into your hard-earned number one position. 

The good news? You can push back by working to hold your ranking using SEO maintenance as part of your strategy!

What is SEO Maintenance?

Essentially, SEO maintenance is the continuous improvement of a site’s visibility in the search engines. This means regularly revisiting the site’s SEO standing, including but not limited to fresh content, user experience, mobile-friendliness, and technical health. For any organization that wants to have an online presence, a long-term SEO plan should be woven into marketing strategy as a best practice to deliver the best ROI possible.

Without SEO maintenance, you leave your website vulnerable to Google’s ranking factors and possible negative impact. 

With SEO maintenance, you can support your website, build a competitive advantage and ultimately generate more leads.

Negative Impacts of Disregarding SEO Maintenance

The positive effects of ongoing, long-term SEO maintenance are substantial and well worth the time and effort it takes to stoke your campaign. Unfortunately, not prioritizing your SEO comes with some negative consequences, too.

You’ll miss out on new keyword opportunities.

Organizations trying to dominate in their industry should be targeting as many relevant keywords as possible to drive traffic and, ultimately, generate leads. The more keywords you successfully rank for, the better your visibility will be.

Keyword rankings will decrease.

In the same vein, not only will you miss out on new keywords, you can also expect to lose your position for keywords you’ve historically ranked for if you don’t maintain your SEO. This leads to less traffic to your website.

Less content means less traffic.

Websites are rewarded by having regular, fresh content that offer valuable links, relevant keywords and serve as a resource to users in the SERPs. If you have old, stale content on your site that is never updated or added to, you’ll almost certainly drop in ranking position. It will give users less of a reason to come back to your site. Additionally, the less content you create, the fewer opportunities there will be to push that fresh content out by way of your social media platforms for your online community. This will negatively impact the amount of traffic you receive from referral or social sources.

Algorithms can shake up what used to be considered best practice.

Google’s ever-changing algorithms are notorious for throwing a wrench into a strategic digital marketing campaign. Your site may be overflowing with organic traffic for months at a time, only to be shot down by a change in what Google is expecting. One great example of this is the BERT update of October 2019, which completely changed the way content was being evaluated in SERPs, with a heavy priority on meaningful, quality copy.

As a Google Partner ourselves, trust us when we say the only true way to avoid a crisis with inevitable algorithm updates is to keep a close, consistent eye on your SEO by way of regular maintenance.

Things can (and will) break.

We’ve all seen it - the dreaded 404 page, broken link or image. Websites can be finicky, and sometimes site changes are made without seeing the full impact. Technical SEO maintenance is like a fresh coat of paint for your website!

Questions to Determine Your SEO Needs

In order to figure out what SEO maintenance might mean for your business, ask yourself the following questions:

• What industry are you in?
• How competitive is your industry?
• What keywords would you like to rank for in the SERPs?
• How competitive are these keywords?
• What is your ongoing marketing strategy?
• Do you create any content for your website?
• Do you have a good handle on your website’s analytic data?
• Who maintains your website?
• Do you have an internal or external team working on your digital marketing?

The world of search engines is constantly shifting, and the most effective way to keep your business in front of the minds of targeted users is to maintain your SEO efforts. When done right, you can see the direct impact by way of increased visibility, better engagement and more leads. Don’t sleep on SEO maintenance - it’s an investment that will pay you back ten-fold over time! 

If you have any questions about how to begin or finesse an SEO campaign, reach out to our experienced team at Page One Web Solutions to learn more!