Perplexing. Confusing. Complicated. SEO for insurance agents appears mystical and ever-changing. Hundreds of variables constantly change, making it difficult to unravel.
Google is smart. There are no more SEO shortcuts. Google levels the playing field, so you must earn your website traffic — honestly.
To help you as an Insurance Agent focus your time, energy and funds into SEO efforts, this is what you need to know.
What is SEO?
SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” Using SEO gets traffic from organic, free, or natural search results on Google and other search engines. Simply put, when someone types insurance agent and the name of your town into their search bar, you want your website to show up on the first page of their results. The search engines, Google, Bing and Yahoo rank the content on your site based on what it considers most relevant to the person searching.
The basis of success for your SEO as an insurance agent is the content on your page. SEO is based on your content, but that’s not all there is. Without your content, there is nothing for the search engines to find.
Why insurance agents should use SEO
As an insurance agent, you have probably heard that SEO is essential. Perhaps you have even given it a try. However, it is difficult to make much headway to rank on the front page for search results.
There are three main problems:
1) Insurance is competitive. You are in a competitive industry, both online and offline, when it comes to marketing. Online, insurance agents work harder for fewer results than in any other industry. The competitors in your space all want the same customers.
2) Plus, with modern online marketing, you compete both with other local agencies and with national brands that out-spend smaller agencies. Companies like Allstate, Geico, State Farm, and Progressive hold all the primary keywords in Google for insurance. So, it’s virtually impossible as a small agency to rank for general, competitive terms like New York Car Insurance.
3) Small insurance agencies struggle to create unique content to rank in Google. It may seem time-consuming or expensive to create quality content for your website. This is critical if you expect organic leads to come in from your website.
So, why should insurance agents use SEO? – Because it works!
Marketing online presents significant challenges in the insurance industry. Marketing has always been a challenge in the insurance industry, so most of this message is not new. If you put in the effort, be creative, and focus your resources, you can see real results using SEO.
The latest term for this is the ROBO Economy. Research Online, Buy Offline. And the latest stats from a recent study of hundreds of brands and categories suggest that 82% of your potential clients will at least check your online presence before making a purchase. Even if they already know you.
They search. They find. Then, they check you out, all online. All use search engines, which entirely depend on your SEO.
Technical services support your SEO efforts
However, SEO is highly technical. Goggle (and the other search engines) change their algorithms regularly. Although content is always critical, the details change. The technical aspects of how to optimize your content change over time, too. At least regular monthly checkups are required to keep you on the front page, once you get there. And it takes more frequent work to increase your ranking.
Your SEO tech service guides you to specialize your words, images, and video content to optimize search rankings. SEO supports you as you build your brand. Many variables go into SEO, but ultimately, we all play along with Google, so it’s critical to remain agile enough to do what works now. Change is guaranteed.
Contact Us for information about how SEO for insurance agents builds your brand, brings you clients and creates your critical online presence.