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Don’t get me wrong – any business offering a product or service online or to their local area can benefit from SEO. Whatever you’re selling, there’s a big chance that someone out there is searching for a business like yours. And with most people doing their research online before going shopping, SEO can put you in your potential customers’ line of sight.
But for some businesses to really thrive, they’ll really need an effective SEO strategy to get their business out there. What are the industries that need SEO the most? Here’s our list.
Hotels, Motels, & Other Accommodations
What’s tricky about SEO for businesses like hotels, motels, hostels, bed and breakfasts, and the like is that the users that are more likely going to search for you are those who don’t live in the area: tourists, traveling businesspeople, and out-of-towners. So, you might be a popular hotel in your area that will get word-of-mouth from locals, but for non-locals doing their research online for accommodations in your area, you’re practically invisible to them.
If you’re running a business that deals in accommodations, SEO is a great way to get new guests through the door. Some hotels can stay open based on word of mouth alone, but by not building your online presence, you’re wasting the opportunity to tap into potential customers online.
And if you do have a website, it’s not enough without an effective SEO strategy. The hotel niche is a very competitive one because, aside from making sure your website ends up on the first page of Google, you also have to contend with online travel aggregators, price comparison booking sites, and Google offering its own suggestions to hotel bookings.
So, for this business, expect the following SEO strategies to be implemented:
- Keyword research on what your target audience is searching for
- Local content to promote your rooms and services
- Supporting content to increase your website’s authority as a hotel within your area
- Optimize your title tags and meta description
- Optimize your Google My Business listing to ensure you appear on Google’s map and Google can accurate information of your business to your intended audience
- Streamline contact forms with as few clicks as possible
Professional Services
Think of your website as the reception area of your business. Studies show that around 70 to 80 percent of people conduct online research before purchasing a product or service. For professional services like accountants, lawyers, financial planners, and others, consumers will want to see your website, services, and reviews. If your website isn’t on Google’s search results, they won’t even consider your business, making you invisible to them.
You’ll want to focus on a localized SEO strategy targeting users searching for your services in the area. There’s a high possibility that there are many other similar businesses in the area, but if you have a strong website, good reviews, and are the closest business to your target audience, you can reach out to them more efficiently.
Construction, Home Repairs, and Renovations
Because of the ease of finding businesses on Google, it’s common for people to find services they need immediately by doing a quick Google search. People in need of renovations or construction services will search locally for the nearest renovation services. And in instances where time is of the essence like emergency repairs, users will search for the closest business to them. This is why if your business falls under this category, local SEO is important to making your business visible online.
Expect that your SEO strategy will include the following:
- Localized content that focuses your services within that area
- Supporting content that supports your website’s authority as a construction or repair business within that area
- Metadata designed to highlight the different services listed on every page
Medical Services
Around 77 percent of patients use search engines before booking an appointment. So, while hospitals are a necessity to people, the volume of patients that show up in your clinic highly depends on how visible your business is. This applies to all forms of medical services, including dentists, general physicians, medical insurance companies, and other medical practitioners.
Local SEO is a common practice in the health and medical industry. After all, unless some people have their preferred doctors, they will most likely opt to go to a medical practice that is convenient to their location.
Businesses with No Brick and Mortar Stores
Online businesses with no physical stores arguably need the most SEO. With the rise of online shopping and faster global delivery services, location stops becoming an issue when buying products online.
Let’s say an online business based in Australia selling a certain product can now compete with a similar business of someone based in the United States. This means that if a person in Australia cannot find that Australian business online, there’s nothing stopping them from making a purchase from a United States business. This makes e-commerce incredibly competitive.
Some online business owners can get the word out to their local community, but how far word can spread is highly dependent on how big and reliable their network is. You don’t have a physical store open to draw locals not in your network or social circles, so the best step is to establish an online presence where people looking for your business will most likely be searching.
This is where SEO comes in. By being visible on the right search engine results, you can draw additional quality leads that can lead you to conversions and potentially long-term customers. The higher number of clicks, the higher chance of converting clicks into paying customers.
Food Business
Unless you own a popular fast-food chain or are based in a small town with only a handful of food service-related businesses in the area, chances are that you’ll be competing with a lot of restaurants in the area. Given that 90 percent of people research a restaurant before going there and that 94 percent are swayed by reviews, it’s important to have a strong SEO strategy to improve your business visibility.
One reason why it’s so important is that people are looking for specific types of restaurants. Not all restaurants in your area offer the same cuisine, and people may be looking for a specific type of restaurant to eat in. With SEO, diners can find your restaurant location and compare it with other similar restaurants. Without SEO and a strong online presence, potential customers cannot find you and may only limit their decision-making to your competitors.
Aside from focusing on your website’s SEO, your strategy should also focus on the reviews your customers leave you in various review websites like Yelp or Trip Advisor. This means highlighting the positive reviews and then professionally responding to negative reviews so that it won’t greatly dissuade potential customers who see it.
Again, just because your industry isn’t on this list does not mean your business won’t benefit from a good SEO strategy. When you’ve built a strong online presence and can attract more potential customers online, it can mean added revenue because of your expanded reach. But for these types of businesses listed, SEO can be what sets you apart from your competition and can make your business visible as more potential customers start looking to search engines for products and services they need.