Among the many strategies for digital marketing, search engine optimization (SEO) appears to be consistently superior to others. First of all, it is not as costly as most other methods (Khorev, 2020). Secondly, it is not as intrusive as e-mail marketing and not as irritating as ads, especially pop-up ones (Smith, 2011). Apart from that, it is also less time-consuming – for example, controlling a PPC campaign to maximize ROI is essentially a full-time job (Khorev, 2020). It means that such strategies are not the best for smaller companies that cannot afford to create a separate position and need to opt for less time-intensive methods (Ritz, Wolf, and McQuitty, 2020). SEO, on the other hand, provides an option with much fewer barriers to entry. Finally and most importantly, SEO addresses target customers by its very design because it impacts those who are already searching for a product or service (Demers, 2021). This is why Chaffey and Smith (2017) call SEO “arguably the most important digital marketing channel” (p. 368). Hence, SEO is a strategy with lower costs in money and time and few barriers to entry.
At the same time, SEO is not flawless, and there are issues inherent to it. SEO cannot provide a quick boost to the company’s visibility because the results may take a long time to materialize, even for a well-optimized website or social media account (Khorev, 2020). Moreover, while it is not particularly costly in money, it is very knowledge-intensive and requires conducting considerable amounts of research (Kingsnorth, 2016). Kids Club Dentistry, a pediatric dental service from Phoenix, Arizona, may serve as a good example of both benefits and limitations. Optimizing the website and ensuring it includes all necessary keywords led to better client engagement and more traffic (Mambrillo, 2020). However, this optimization required thorough preliminary research to identify crucial keywords and form a strategy, and even then, it took some time before accrue enough customer reviews (Mambrillo, 2020). Thus, SEO is an extremely effective digital marketing strategy, but one should understand its limitations and application to succeed.
Reference List
Chaffey, D. and Smith, P. R. (2017). Digital marketing excellence: Planning, optimizing, and integrating online marketing. 5th edn. London: Routledge.
Demers, Y. (2021). SEO basics: Complete beginner’s guide to search engine optimization.
Khorev, M, (2020). Pay per click vs. search engine optimization: Which one is best?
Kingsnorth, S. (2016). Digital marketing strategy: An integrated approach to online marketing. 2nd edn. London: Kogan Page.
Membrillo, A. (2020). Ten best SEO campaign examples to learn from.
Ritz, W., Wolf, M. and McQuitty, S. (2019). ‘Digital marketing adoption and success for small businesses: The application of the do-it-yourself and technology acceptance models.’ Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 13(2), pp. 179-203.
Smith, K. T. (2011). ‘Digital marketing strategies that millennials find appealing, motivating, or just annoying.’ Journal of Strategic Management, 19(6), pp. 489-499.