So. You and the team have worked real hard, impressed the bosses with a little brand refresh, you’re feeling real good about the new look. Now you’re about to launch a bright, shiny, new website, you’re hoping for a promotion… Because if you build it they will come, right? Um…No.
This question is one we at EIM get asked, well sometimes daily! Many of our clients have been with us for a long time, long enough that we work on their second, or even third website refresh with them (because as you should know, a website refresh every few years is typically a must!). The first time we worked on their site, SEO probably wasn’t a huge priority. Now? Well 99% of the time it’s a must-have. I mean, most websites are built with the goal of growing a business and increasing sales, right? Unless you are one of those businesses that is so busy you don’t want or need additional sales, then read on for WHY your new site needs a search engine optimization strategy.
1. It’s where your customers are. I shouldn’t need to explain this one much, it’s just a reminder. Search is huge. Your customers are most likely searching online for you, no matter what phase of the buying cycle they are in – Interest, Research, or Buying. Don’t you want to make sure when they do a search for your brand name, or your service and products, that you have a presence in the search engines?
2. You worked hard to establish yourself online, don’t lose it! If you have previously done some search engine optimization, or other online marketing efforts have pushed you up in the search engines, you want to make sure you don’t lose your hard-earned search equity. With a new site, you probably are going to have new web pages with new URL’s that are going to need new meta tags. You’re probably also have incoming links to your old site URLs that you need to redirect to the new ones to ensure you don’t lose that linkjuice. While your new site may drop slightly in the search engines at first, an SEO professional can put certain precautions in place that will make the impact minimal and help your site to rebound quickly. For example, did you know that if you change domains you can file a Change of Address form in Google Webmaster Tools?
3. If most of your online traffic is for branded terms, there is an opportunity for new traffic. The difference between branded and non-branded search terms is that with Branded, the searcher knows of you and is specifically looking for you (which is typically a highly qualified lead or sale), and Non-Branded search traffic is when a visitors does a search for a broad term (“pizza restaurant chicago”) and may or may not have heard of you. This introduces your brand and site to a whole slew of new traffic and opportunities you never had before. However, this does take a strategic plan, keyword research, and some relevant content.
4. The work you did 3 years ago is probably not accurate anymore. You tried SEO once two years ago, and you should be good, right? NO once again. The search engines change their algorithms and relevancy factors so much it makes me dizzy sometimes! You need to know the latest industry news and what are the best, most effective SEO methods now, because i guarantee what was most effective 2 years ago is not the same today.
So next time your marketing manager or interactive agency tells you you need SEO for your new site, listen to him/her. Because, while that pretty new site may have landed you a nice promotion, putting a profitable search engine strategy in place can get you a nice fat bonus 
