Why is SEO important for companies like P&G?

A friend and colleague recently asked me why SEO is important. I sent him to a series of articles I recently wrote that starts with the basics of “What is SEO“.

He read it, and came back asking the same question: “Your article says WHAT Search Engine Optimization is, but… I’m still not sure WHY it’s important, or I’ll rephrase why SEO is important for big companies like P&G. They spend millions of dollars marketing their products, so should they even bother!”

Now I was the one scratching my head. I thought the answer was obvious. But, maybe you have the same question. So I tried approaching the topic from his perspective, and realized there is more he may need to understand about marketing in general.

When a consumer decides to purchase a product there is a typical purchase cycle (see diagram).

Every marketing channel has a different role to play in this purchase cycle. At the highest level, there are 2 types of media; Creative and Directive.

Creative Media:

Creative types of media are intrusive, meaning the advertising is not user initiated.

Common types of creative media would be:

a) newspaper

b) radio

c) television

d) billboards

e) vehicle wraps

f) online advertising

f) etc.

This type of media has many purposes that for the most part revolve around awareness building, creating interest, brand or product positioning, or branding.

Directive Media:

Directive types of media on the other hand are most useful only once the consumer has been made aware of the product and has already recognized they have a need (made possible by creative media channels)

So in reality directive media is user initiated i.e. phase three in the diagram (evaluation!). It is during this stage that SEO is very important. The consumer has seen the ad on television or in print (or any other media), wants more information about it, and the next thing you know they are searching online.

The Synergies:

SEO has the ability to improve the effectiveness of all types of marketing campaigns. So if you’re going to advertise your product, make sure your website is well optimized before the TV channels start airing your ads. SEO has the ability to improve the effectiveness of every other type of marketing campaign, and equally important is the concept that all other media have the ability to positively impact results from SEO.

The Issue:

The problem with the creative media is that they work only as long as you are working. As soon as you stop investing in other media types, or stop paying for ads, the traffic to your website stops. That’s why SEO is so golden — when you stop working, the elements you have set in place keep working to attract new traffic to your site. And new traffic means potential income.

Question for you:

Would you advise your client to use marketing techniques that they have to continually work, or techniques that continually work for them?

Hopefully you choose the second. P&G is going to market their products anyway, right? Why not market in a way that will actually increase your website traffic, not just maintain the status quo.

Don’t fret, SEO isn’t the big mysterious monster people make it out to be. Our goal is to help marketers refine and expand their marketing efforts. It’s important to realise SEO is “ongoing” - it never stops. Many brands have yet to realize the consequences of going dark in search. When managing budget challenges, stopping search activities may seem like a low risk decision, however, pausing search support can have some major impacts on P&G’s business. “Going dark” in search essentially throws away the dollars previously invested and the success gained.