When did you last click on the 5th page of Google results? Probably never.

That’s because the chances of finding your answers on the first couple of your search result pages are higher. Google has made it so. Of course, there are rare cases. But still, 50% of Google users click on their results within 9 seconds of searching, and only 9% even make it to the bottom of the first page (Backlinko research 2025).  The fact is that searchers are unlikely to scroll to the next page of search results. This article will explore what it costs businesses to be missing on the first page of Google search results and how you can boost your website ranking using SEO.

Search Engine Optimization In Simple Terms 

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of improving a website’s content, structure, and authority to enhance its ranking in search engine results pages. The goal is to position your web page at the top results that 50% of Google users click on within the first 9 seconds of searching, as mentioned earlier.

Semrush, a trusted provider of SEO and digital marketing tools, offers a classic definition: “SEO is the process of making your website more visible in search engines like Google without paying for ads.” This earned it (SEO) another name: organic search marketing.

SEO is like a library catalog. Imagine search engines as massive libraries and websites as books. SEO is the process of ensuring your book (website) is well-categorized, properly labeled, and recommended by librarians (Google’s algorithm) so that readers (users) can find it quickly among millions of others.

In other words, SEO helps to get answers to user queries within seconds of their searches without having to scroll much before getting your answers. Website owners incorporating SEO techniques into their web page content have a better chance of ranking on the first page of their search results.

SEO techniques involve creating high-quality content and incorporating primary keywords based on users’ search intent, typically with the help of keyword research tools. This makes it easy for search engines like Google to understand your content and create a better user experience for searchers.

A well-structured SEO content drives organic traffic to your website–unlike ads, which can often feel less trustworthy. The more you optimize your web content for SEO, the higher your website will rank. As a result, it will likely achieve a higher conversion rate, more signups, increased customer engagement, and more leads, depending on the context.

What is an SEO Strategy? 

An SEO strategy is a planned approach designed to drive organic traffic to a website and achieve better visibility in search engine result pages (SERP).

There are four key elements involved in a standard SEO strategy;

1. Keyword research

Keyword research is the first step for every successful SEO strategy. One of the best ways to analyze a keyword is by using Google Suggest, which lists suggestions related to your searches based on the user’s intent. You can also use keyword research tools such as Ahrefs and Semrush.

2. Off-page SEO

Off-page SEO is all efforts done outside a website to improve your website ranking on Google and other search engines. This includes getting other sites to link to your website (building backlinks). It encourages branded searches, increasing engagement and shares on social platforms to get search engines to see your site as trustworthy and an authority.

3. On-page SEO

If there’s one thing you can do directly on your website to impact its ranking on search engine results pages positively, it’s optimizing internal links, image alt text, title tags, keyword usage, content, header tags, and SEO-friendly URLs. These are key parts of On-page SEO.

4. Technical SEO

 This is a process of optimizing a site’s technical aspect to meet the technical requirements of search engines. The essential elements of technical SEO include website architecture (improving site speed), crawling, indexing, and rendering. Save these for the expert.

5. Local SEO

This is a process of optimizing your content for local searches within the geographical location of your target audience. Oftentimes, optimizing your content for local-based searches makes it visible to your audience and attracts more local customers.

Important Note: SEO is not paid advertising, meaning it’s very different from PPC (pay-per-click) since no cost is involved

Why is On-Page SEO so Important?

The main objective of On-page SEO is to increase your website traffic organically by ranking high on search engine results pages (SERPs). A well-structured and standard SEO strategy should include internal links, relevant keywords, and high-quality content.

To state it clearly, you must invest in on-page SEO to beat your industry’s competition and rank high on search engines such as Google. This on-page SEO strategy will make search engines understand your content structure and your site’s relevancy.

What is Local SEO, and Why is it Important?

Local SEO is an SEO strategy in which website owners optimize their content for local searches within a specific locality. For example, a salon in London can optimize its website with keywords like ‘best hair salon in London’ to attract nearby customers. 

Optimizing content for local searches helps drive targeted traffic to the website organically, boosting visibility and ranking on search engine results pages. This strategy is essential for small businesses and businesses with physical locations.

The Cost Of Being Invisible On Search Engine

1. Missed Opportunities

When a brand or company is nowhere to be found on the first few pages of search results, it becomes difficult for potential customers to locate that type of brand. Amongst the most common causes of this is ignoring SEO strategies and techniques. Optimizing your content for SEO will boost your brand visibility online. Likewise, paying no attention to SEO could close doors to searchers or your prospects.

2. Lost Customers

Many people are seeking what your brand is offering. Since you are nowhere to be found, you are giving your competitors another advantage to take up the industry. Imagine that DMi Agency always shows up when you search for a marketing agency near you in the UK or Nigeria amongst all other competitors. You will tend to trust the DMi Agency more than all other invisible agencies.

3. Wasted Potential

Imagine working and investing your time day and night, but your brand remains invisible online like a ghost. See what you need to prioritize: your online presence and building authority in the industry should be your utmost goal.

4. Lost Credibility

In today’s digital age, people often research brands online before making a purchase. When a company has little to no online presence, it can raise doubts about its credibility. After all, how can I be sure the business even exists?

In some cases, consumers could even ignore you if the words you use to express your products or services don’t match their desires. This sometimes leads to confusion and distrust about products. Your product or service description must precisely describe the products or services and what the target audience can see from the picture. Oftentimes, credibility is lost during this process and cannot be regained quickly.

5. Low Sales

How does SEO impair sales? Ultimately, SEO can significantly impact your sales depending on its usage. Without SEO, your page won’t rank high on the search engine result page (SERP), making it difficult for online shoppers to find you. In the end, it could lead to lower traffic on your site and ultimately decreased sales.

Why is SEO important for your website? 

1. Increased visibility

Increased visibility is one advantage of using a good SEO strategy, and it’s vital for businesses seeking a strong online presence. When you optimize your content for SEO, your website is most likely to rank high on search engine result pages (SERP), driving more traffic to your site and making it easy for potential customers to locate you.

When DMi Agency worked on SEO for Radd LLC, a US-based financial risk management company, they saw amazing results. Before the changes, RADD LLC’s website was viewed 111,000 times with 1,300 clicks. After DMi Agency applied its SEO expertise, those numbers jumped to 1.54 million views and 15,300 clicks—a nearly 90% increase. This example shows that having an SEO expert can make a big difference in how many people find and interact with your business online.

Before DMi Agency intervention

After SEO by DMi Agency 

2. More Traffic

 Every business desires to rank high on search engine result pages because it builds trust more often. Users tend to trust organic search results rather than sponsored results. Ranking high is another advantage of SEO, which helps generate more traffic around your website.

3. Better Conversation

Visibility isn’t just enough. The utmost goal should be to create authority and top-of-mind awareness (TOMA) within the industry or your location. 

Sometimes, SEO blogs are written explicitly for a brand to put them at the center of meaningful conversations in their industry. These conversations (SEO blogs) answer the pain points of their potential audience. Marketers call this TOFU content.

For example, the first SEO blog I worked on as an intern with DMi Agency involved writing ten SEO blogs for a company based in Texas that ranked top in local searches for relevant topics. Their SEO technique was majorly on local SEO strategy, where we created and optimized their content for searches within Texas and its environs, yielding a positive impact on the brand.

4. Competitive Advantage

Establishing a strong presence using SEO can give you an edge over your competitors and help you stand out within the competitive landscape of your industry. When people search for products related to yours, your site/content will most likely rank above all other competitors in the industry when you use the best SEO strategy.

5. Boost Credibility

 Just like Jumia, Temu, and other global purchasing apps. Brand visibility is so important that when people see your brand consistently, they tend to trust and consider you an authority in the industry.

Knowing if your SEO strategy works is as simple as saying Yes or No to a proposal.

Here are Some Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to Watch out for;

Organic Traffic:

The number of visitors coming to your site naturally through search engines. A steady increase indicates strong content performance.

Keyword Ranking:

Your position on search engine results pages (SERPs). The higher you rank, the more visibility and traffic you gain.

Impressions:

The number of times your website appears in search results. A rise in impressions shows that your content is reaching more people.

Click-Through Rate (CTR):

The percentage of users who click on your website after seeing it in search results. A higher CTR suggests that your titles and descriptions are compelling.

Conversion:

The ultimate goal of SEO—turning visitors into customers. This could be making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or filling out a contact form. A good SEO strategy doesn’t just bring traffic; it ensures that visitors take meaningful actions on your site.

Final Thoughts

SEO isn’t an easy technique, but with the help of an SEO expert, you can get help optimizing your content for  Search Engine and earn the numerous advantages that come with it, such as increased visibility, driving traffic to your site, boosting credibility, and a lot more.

Want to improve your SEO? Contact DMi Agency for a consultation or a free website audit to kickstart your growth. Our expert content team specializes in SEO-driven writing and has helped brands across America, Europe, and Asia boost their online presence. Let’s make your brand the next success story—don’t miss out!

Frequently Asked Questions 

How does SEO help my website?

SEO helps brands to rank high on Google and other search engines and, as such, drives traffic to websites organically.

Why is search engine ranking important?

Search engine ranking is one of the indicators that shows how effective your SEO strategy is, and the higher you rank, the more likely users are to click on your site and vice versa.

How is SEO effective?

There are some key indicators that show whether an SEO strategy is effective or not; for example, looking out for the click-through rate, impression, rankings, and bounce rate will give an in-depth insight into how your content is performing.

What impact does SEO have on search results?

A good SEO strategy makes content easily understandable for search engines, and as such, your site becomes more visible to searchers/your audience.

Why is SEO the ultimate power now?

SEO is like an all-in-one strategy that helps users get answers to their search queries; search engines understand your content and help website owners increase visibility.

What is an example of search engine optimization?

A great example of SEO is optimizing content for local searches. For instance, A builder in Texas trying to attract audiences from Texas and its environs to his store will most likely create content around the building industry and optimize for the related keyword like “Texas” for easy accessibility by search engine algorithms and searchers.

What matters most in SEO?

SEO needs vary for businesses. However, the most defining needs involve creating high-quality content and user-friendly websites, optimizing for local searches, incorporating relevant keywords, link building, and a lot more.

What has the most significant impact on SEO?

The one with the most significant impact is creating high-quality content that both users and search engines can easily understand.

Do I need SEO for my website?

Yes, every business needs SEO for their website to enjoy the numerous advantages that come with it.

What is the purpose of SEO?

The primary purpose of SEO is to rank high on search engine results pages, drive organic traffic to your website, boost conversion, establish credibility, and a lot more.

What are the backlinks in SEO?

Backlinks are also known as inbound links, which come from other websites but link to your site.

How often should SEO be done?

SEO is an ongoing process that needs to be updated regularly to maintain your good rankings on search engines.

How to tell if SEO is working?

SEO can be measured by some key performance indicators (KPIs), such as checking out for the numbers of visitors, impressions per post, and the click-through rate your site is getting.

What is the best SEO tool?

The best SEO tools can help boost your visibility online, such as Semrush for keyword research and Google Analytics, to analyze your website audience behaviors and track website performance.

How do I get my website to the top of Google?

Use SEO strategies in your content, such as keyword research, on-page and off-page optimization, technical SEO, and high-quality content creation.

Is SEO important for web development?

Yes, SEO is important for web development because it directly impacts the visibility and user experience of a website. Your website can remain invisible to users even after it’s been designed beautifully because SEO has not been properly implemented.