8 Ways SEO Is Helping Businesses Recover During COVID-19

It’s stating the obvious at this stage, but COVID-19 has flipped the economy upside down. Businesses are disappearing without a trace, while others have to utilise all of their resources and ingenuity to stay afloat.

While the lockdown has caused damage that will be felt many years into the future, there has been one saviour during the negativity: the internet. Thanks to the World Wide Web, businesses have the ability to remain in contact with their customers. They can sell their products, build visibility, and put together a long-term strategy for success.

For businesses that were willing to adapt to the changes, SEO was – and still is – particularly important for their survival. For evidence on why this was the case, below are eight ways SEO is helping companies recover during COVID-19:

1. Search is a crucial aspect of marketing

It goes without saying, admittedly, but getting ranked in search results is integral for any marketing plan. People head to Google with their queries – and you want your business to provide the answers. Without search visibility, a company will struggle to attract new customers.

This is essential for any business that relies on local customers. Local SEO is beneficial in a number of ways. For a start, people can instantly find your company via a quick Google search. This means that not only can they learn more about your products and services, but they can also gain updates about your business during COVID-19. You can provide details such as what products/services are currently available and planned reopening dates.

In addition, local SEOLocal SEO is the process of optimizing your website to rank on the 1st page of Google for a search term and geographic location that is relevant to your business. ensures your business can rank among the top search results for your industry in the area. Say you run a hairdressing company. When someone queries “hairdressers near me” or “hairdressers open now”, your business can pop up as one of the main results. As local customers cannot do much else other than conduct these searches right now, it’s crucial your business is front and centre when they do.

2. SEO is free to do

At least, it is free in the general sense of the idea. You still need to invest extensive time into a successful SEO campaign – especially if you’re new to this side of marketing. Plus, that’s not factoring in the cost if you decide to enlist a marketing agency to do the work.

Anyway, you can put together an SEO strategy without needing to spend a penny. This is helpful for any company that has seen their finances take a considerable hit from COVID-19. Plus, if your business is one that has seen a significant reduction in normal operations, you possess the necessary time to get those SEO wheels in motion.

3. It builds brand visibility

Product sale numbers have inevitably dropped. Worse, your business has had to cease selling any products or services during the pandemic. While your customers may have disappeared in the sense of buying products, does this mean they are offline?

The short answer: No.

In fact, more people than ever are currently on the internet due to being contained within their homes. Sure, their search queries will mainly be focused on the latest news and other related COVID-19 topics. However, you could get creative and try to incorporate this into your own blog content.

With that said, simply having a constant stream of posts on your website can boost your brand’s visibility. The more articles you feature on your website, the more chances you have of reaching potential customers. In addition, if your business website continually pops up in relevant searches, your business breeds familiarity – a key component in turning browsers into purchasers.

4. Get ahead of the competition

Because of COVID-19, a lot of businesses have shut up shop in more ways than one. Not only have they paused selling their products, but they have also given their marketing efforts a holiday. After all, if they’re not bringing in any money, why would they bother paying for unnecessary expenses like their SEO strategies?

Well, there’s one big reason: Google doesn’t put a stop to their SEO implementation efforts.

People are still searching. Google is still ranking. Ultimately, it would be crazy for any business to take the foot off the pedal with their SEO plan. Yet this is what’s happening – and it’s the ideal opportunity for your business to take advantage.

In certain niches, your company may be the only one still active with the SEO. If that’s the case, you’re going to gain a sizeable head start for the keywords you decide to target. When the competition finally returns and restarts their SEO efforts, they are going to struggle to catch up.

5. Expand into different SERP types

When running a business during normal circumstances, it can be tricky to find the time to dedicate towards your primary keywords. Now that you have an abundance of time at your disposal, you can begin targeting other search engine results pages.

By exploring other SERPs, your business can expand into different territories. This naturally gives your business extra visibility. You’re going to turn up in more search results than before. Moreover, you can focus on keywords that have untapped potential – the type that won’t bring in the big numbers you desire, but will generate high-quality leads.

In addition to focusing on other SERPs, you also have the chance to further refine your current keywordKeywords are the words and phrases that potential customers might search for to find your business. targets. There’s always more you can do to boost the performance of keywords, and this can be the difference to your website landing on the second page of Google or in that all-important first position.

6. An opportunity to connect with customers

At any stage, communication with your customers is an essential element in business. Yet this point is only exemplified during a pandemic.

However, this isn’t the time to be shoving your products or services down their throats. Now you need to display a large dose of empathy. Show that your business has a human side. Let customers know they are not simply viewed as another cog in the wheel, but that your company truly values their support.

If a customer can relate to your situation – and vice versa – their bond with your business will inevitably grow. The result: they will remain loyal during the pandemic, and even when COVID-19 is a thing of the past.

7. A chance to expand into other marketing areas

When you think about SEO, your main train of thought will typically be focused on producing written content for your website. However, there are various different routes you can go down to optimise your content.

Now that you have extra free time due to the quarantine, this presents a prime opportunity to dive into these different marketing areas.

One such way is by creating video content. Now you might be wondering: how do videos help with SEO exactly? Well, not only can you select long-tail keywords to increase visibility, but your content will also show up in another big search engine: YouTube. It doesn’t stop there! You can also repurpose your videos into blog content. Simply write up a transcription, add a few screenshots, and you gain added visibility for both your YouTube channel and website.

Social media, such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, can also have an impact on your SEO efforts. If you haven’t been able to produce a regular stream of content on these platforms, now’s the chance to get it going. You can increase brand recognition by reaching out to potential customers in a different marketing realm. In addition, social media is the perfect platform for building a dedicated following. Get people to like your Facebook posts and Tweets, and they’ll quickly start consuming the blog content you publish.

8. Prepare for the future

COVID-19 won’t be around forever. At the time of posting, the damage caused by this deadly virus is subsiding. Businesses are starting to recover as they push towards getting back to some resemblance of normality.

This is why now is an excellent time to start fully preparing for the long-term future of your business. One way of doing this is, you guessed it, with SEO.

Characteristically, you need to be in it for the long haul with SEO. There is no shortcut to success. It’s necessary for you to put in weeks, months, even years of work to maximise the search visibility for your business. If you lay the groundwork now, it will bear fruit in the future. Furthermore, it’s not simply a case of enjoying fleeting success with SEO. Once it is established, your business can profit for years to come.

Conclusion

SEO is one of the best methods available to not only promote your business but also to stand apart from the competition.

COVID-19 has presented plenty of challenges, but it also provides the chance to refine your SEO strategy. The slow pace of the pandemic matches up to SEO itself, while any financial burdens you’re suffering isn’t a factor. Become more visible now and position your business for success once the world – and search behaviour – returns to normal.