How Long Does It Take To See SEO Results?

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How Long Does It Take To See SEO Results?

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Did you know that more than 90% of online experiences start with the use of a search engine. This is a fact that remains a constant the more that people rely on and use digital media for information, business, and entertainment. 

Because of this, search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the most important areas of marketing today for that reason. You can take a brand to the next level when you master SEO and start getting results through organic search traffic. 

How long does it take to see results from SEO? We’re happy to explain. Keep reading so that you can learn how to make the most of your SEO marketing

How Long Does It Take To See Results From SEO?

So, how long does it take to SEO results? There are a variety of factors in play when figuring out how long it’ll take for your brand to experience measurable change. Expect it to take between 6 months and a year to see substantial results from your SEO efforts. 

Winning the search engine results page (SERP) is a crucial part of getting positive SEO outcomes. It gets your site to the top of the SERP of Google results, which increases your visibility and brand awareness. You can use a combination of local and mobile SEO, in addition to incorporating keyword research and other factors. 

Set goals for your SEO so that you can start going after them one by one until your company’s brand is where you want it to be. 

Why Does SEO Results Take Long?

There is typically no definitive answer as to why SEO can take 6 months to a year to experience substantial changes in your organic search results but the algorithm plays a major role in the length of time that it does actually take. However, there is a certain factor that the algorithm takes into consideration for your website’s ranking and its E-A-T. E-A-T stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness is an evaluation of the search engine that encompasses the creator of the content, the content itself and the overall make up of the website. The algorithm takes this into consideration overtime and helps with the overall ranking of the site. Interested in learning more about E-A-T? Read more in our E-A-T guide.

Consider the Type of Results You’re Seeking

If you’re going to embark on an SEO campaign, make sure you understand what type of results you’re interested in. There are several variables at play when you’re looking to improve your SEO, but it starts with having goals that are specific to your brand. 

What is the process for being able to see SEO results?

Know the SEO Metrics

Before you know how to measure SEO results, you need to understand which metrics are the most significant. From here, you can set goals and work strategies that improve these areas of your digital marketing. Google analytics is the perfect tool to measure and gain insights on how your website is performing.

Some of the most important SEO metrics to consider include:

  • Click-through rate (CTR)
  • Organic traffic results
  • Conversion rate
  • Bounce rate
  • Keyword Ranking
  • Crawl errors

Knowing these sorts of metrics will give you a starting point for all of your SEO strategies. Figure out which variable is the most important for your goals so that you can bring in more traffic that you can convert into customers. 

Quantifying your goals and results lets you reverse engineer your strategies, which makes you more likely to see noticeable results within 6 to 12 months. 

A digital marketing company can help you track your results and take them to the next level. When you consult with them, make sure to ask about these SEO metrics, which variables are most important for what you’re trying to accomplish, and how you can achieve them one by one. 

Fine-Tune Your Content Strategy

If you’re trying to get the best from your SEO, a lot of it starts with your content. Content creation is an important cornerstone of SEO today, so you need to ensure that your goals are aligned. 

For instance, you can create a blog that improves your traffic, provides more link juice, and most importantly, creates value that people want to come back for. The same applies to video content creation, social media, and other forms of content that can help you gain traction with Google. 

Drawing in organic SEO results helps with your online marketing more than anything. You can use your content strategy to get more organic results by:

  • Strategically using keywords in your content such as in headers, sub-headers, and meta descriptions. Mix and match a combination of primary and secondary keywords, and pay attention to the density
  • Using a structure that is easy for people to read and skim. Include chunks of information and use lists, bullets, and other structural choices
  • Creating content that uses conversational language that engages, entertains, and provides plenty of personality
  • Including high-quality, high-resolution images, video, audio, and other forms of multimedia
  • Using e-mail lists and other forms of marketing to capitalize on your new traffic

Creating content strategically will expedite the SEO results that you get while building a sustainable marketing plan. 

Make Your Site Faster and Better

If you’re trying to increase your SEO ranking, much of it starts with the nuts and bolts of your website. Speed kills, so make sure that your site speed is always optimized and improved upon. This makes it easy for people to navigate your website and get the information that they need without waiting and setbacks. Using google search console is a great way to determine what may be working or require improvement.

Some of the ways that you can make your website faster include:

  • Choosing a design that is lightweight and streamlined
  • Finding a host that is equipped to assist you with your site creation
  • Cacheing the various pages on your site
  • Lowering the number of redirects
  • Reducing the number of HTTP requests

Speed aside, you should also design and structure your website in a way that gets results. It should be easy to navigate so that people have no problem finding the information that they need. Go with a minimalist website design, and focus on building it for mobile, since people today browse the web on these devices more often than not. 

Look into some templates, color schemes, and other design elements that will help you make a site that your visitors will appreciate. 

Consider Your Professional Specialty

The way that you handle your SEO is often contingent on your specialty. Your industry and focus dictate how you present your brand and the type of goals that you set. 

For instance, a real estate company or brand will need different SEO results than other industries. This is a personality-driven, hyper-local industry with a good mixture of people dipping their toes into the water with research and others ready to make a purchase now.

Law firm content and SEO needs to be knowledge and information-driven, with a professional tone and a different type of business model. 

Keep your professional specialty in mind so that you’re hitting your intended customer with SEO strategies that get results. 

Hone Your SEO Strategy

If you’d like to expedite the results that you get from your SEO, it only happens with a sound strategy. When you put together a strategy that attacks every goal and metric, you can shorten the amount of time that it takes to notice a remarkable difference. 

Some of the ways that you can sharpen your SEO strategy so you can get results quicker include:

Hire a Professional That Handles SEO

You’ll get the best from your search engine optimization (SEO) when you bring in a professional that can take control of your marketing campaigns. Having a professional helps you establish credibility since you’re leaving this work in the hands of experts. 

They will also help you buy back more of your time so that you can repurpose it for other matters in your business. It frees you up to focus your energy on your expertise rather than having to wear so many hats. 

Consult with a couple of different SEO companies and let them know your business, your current brand, and what kind of results you’d like to achieve. They’ll come up with a strategy for the next 6 months to a year to make sure you’re on track with the results. 

Improving your SEO can help you build Domain Authority (DA), Page Authority (PA), and other key details. Professionals can also help you rank highly for all your most important keywords so that you can build your brand and beat out your competition. 

Add a Timetable to Your Goals

You can’t achieve your ideal SEO timeframe without deadlines. Putting together a timetable for your SEO goals involves several mini-deadlines that let you know you’re making progress. 

Start with your biggest priorities and reverse engineer them as you put together the rest of your timetable. For instance, your top priority for the upcoming quarter might be to grow more organic traffic. 

Stating this as your primary goal will let you set secondary goals like growing your backlinks, increasing conversions, and lowering your bounce rate. These goals will shift in priority as time goes on and as the results begin accumulating. 

Keep these priorities in mind as you map out your marketing year and set strict, manageable deadlines. 

Create an Editorial Calendar for Your Content

Deadlines are also critical for your content strategy. You’ll get better SEO results when you have a calendar for all of your content. 

Once you start marketing to your public, you need to make them accustomed to becoming repeat visitors. This happens when you’re diligent about the way you research topics, conduct keyword research, and approach your content strategies as a whole. 

Many marketers make the mistake of being too precious with their content or trying to reach perfection. Instead, you need to be diligent about putting content out regularly, and using strong calls to action (CTA) that get conversions. 

Pay Attention to Voice Search

Make sure that you’re also evolving in the way that you approach your SEO. Voice search is the next frontier since roughly 30% of people today do voice searches on their mobile devices. Taking the time to optimize your content for voice search requires some of the following:

  • Researching and utilizing keywords that have a conversational tone
  • Use more phrases and long-tail keywords in your content
  • Make your website as fast and functional as possible 
  • Optimize your content with questions
  • Make improvements to your Google My Business page

There are more mobile and home automation devices released every year that put voice search to use. This is quickly becoming the preferred way for people to perform search engine queries, so your brand and site will need to have a strong voice search foundation. 

Factor in Your Local SEO Needs

Consider your brand and the type of local presence you have or need. This will dictate how much emphasis you place on this keyword research. It will also inform the kind of content you make and the topics that you put to use. 

It pays to have both a global and local SEO presence, so make sure to ask your SEO professional for guidance. 

Consistently Do Extensive Keyword Research

Prioritize keyword research so that you’re able to consistently use them by appearing in search queries in turn attaining quick and impactful results. There are a variety of keyword research tools that you can put to use. 

Some tips to try include:

  • Study your competition to see what keywords are working and not working for them
  • Reverse engineer your topics
  • Use negative keywords as well
  • Know your keyword intent
  • Analyze and assess the strength of your keywords

The more frequently you reasses your keywords and make changes, the easier it’ll be for you to establish yourself as an authority. From here, you can get quality SEO results and will be more likely to hit your goals within a short timeframe. 

Learn as much as you can from your visitors and consumers by studying data and analytics. From here, you’ll be better able to improve your marketing results. 

Manage Your SEO Strategies Effectively

So, how long does it take to see results from SEO? Now that you understand SEO timeframes and how to reach them, you’re ready to put together strategies that work. 

Cindtoro is happy to help you out with whatever kind of SEO and digital marketing needs you have.

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Walter Moreira
Walter Moreira is the president and CEO of Cindtoro a digital marketing firm started in 2019. With 5+ years of professional marketing experience Cindtoro specializes in working with professional services firms: commercial real estate, private equity, lenders, accountants and law firms who are looking to increase quality meetings, gain a competitive advantage, and close more real estate deals from online media channels. Walter and his team at Cindtoro do this by using proven and effective marketing strategies. Walter is Cindtoro's head SEO and PPC specialist and a leading SEO consultant for high-profile national companies. Walter is certified in Google search ads, Google Display, Hubspot and other platforms to provide clients with the best quality service. In 2024 Cindtoro became a Google Advertising Partner a designation that Walter and his team are very proud of. Walter spends his free time designing and building handmade pens for people who like unique gifts.