Search engine optimization (SEO) is more or less the practice of manipulating internet search engines through the use of coding, content, and a variety of under-the-hood technical strategies. It is the stuff of internet geeks who thrive on keeping up with Google. Yet it is a topic that every website owner should be familiar with. Even insurance brokers should care about SEO.
Insurance brokers and SEO? Absolutely. Insurance brokers have websites, ergo SEO affects them whether they know it or not. BenefitMall, a Dallas-based general agency that offers cutting-edge insurance broker services, says brokers who don’t pay attention to SEO are not competing in the online environment as well as they could be.
According to BenefitMall, here’s why insurance brokers should care about SEO:
1. It Drives the Internet
For right or wrong, SEO is the engine that drives the internet. It is all due to the sheer volume of available content.
Back in the early nineties, SEO wasn’t so important because the number of pages available to the public was rather small. Today, there are billions of pages floating around in cyberspace. The chances of a user randomly finding information they want is slim to none. Users have to go search for it. And when searches are conducted, SEO wins the day.
2. First Page Matters
SEO’s primary goal is to ensure a given website shows up in the first page of search engine results for a particular set of keywords. For example, an insurance broker would want employers looking for new health insurance benefits to find his site listed within the first 5-10 results in a typical Google search.
Here’s the thing: seventy-five percent of all search engine users never get past the first page. They never scroll past the first set of results that appear on the screen. The only way to appear in a coveted top position is by paying attention to SEO.
3. Mobile Matters Too
Although keywords are the foundational principle of SEO, they are not all inclusive. SEO involves other strategies designed to get attention. These include making websites mobile friendly. A broker who doesn’t understand the importance of being mobile friendly doesn’t understand SEO.
Google made a big deal of announcing its mobile-first search algorithm a few years back. They made it clear they would start giving preference to mobile friendly websites. Today, Google is more mobile friendly than ever. And because they are the undisputed king of internet search, designing websites that make their algorithms happy is no longer an option.
4. The Competition Cares About SEO
If none of the technical reasons are enough to convince insurance brokers to pay attention to SEO, competition should. Insurance brokers know that they work in an incredibly competitive industry. They should also know that, even if they don’t care about SEO, their competition does.
Insurance brokers have websites, for the most part. But those websites are virtually useless if customers don’t know they exist. The whole point of SEO is to give internet users a way to find a website. You might even say that search engines are to the internet what the Yellow Pages used to be to landline telephones. That is why SEO is so important.
If you are an insurance broker, how is your website doing? Is it generating the traffic you want? Are casual visitors to your site making positive decisions about your business – including seeking more information on the benefits packages you offer? It all boils down to SEO. If you have not cared about SEO to this point, it is time to change your thinking.
