Time for High-Growth Businesses To Drive Faster

This article updated February 26, 2025

Picture this: You are at the starting line of an auto race with nine other competitors. Your car is tuned, and the pit crew is ready. The race is on.

You’re speeding along — your competitors are all in front of you, traveling as fast as you or even faster, and you are stuck in last place.

Suddenly, something happens, and all nine cars stop or slow down. Do you stop as well? Or do you seize the opportunity to catch up and pass them? I opt to drive faster.

This is a great allegory that illustrates what businesses have experienced in recent times.

As a search marketing advisor to many high-growth businesses, we’ve been closely following both search trends and economic trends. I want to provide my current thinking from a market opportunity perspective.

• Navigating the Highs and Lows of Recent Years
• SEO Growth in Uncertain Times
• FAQ: How can I leverage SEO growth to overcome uncertainty while outperforming my competitors in challenging times?

Navigating the Highs and Lows of Recent Years

Starting with the 2019 COVID event, the world experienced something unlike anything else in our lifetimes.

COVID and the subsequent impact it had on the health and well-being of people, their businesses and their livelihoods was a major setback for many — devastating for some.

Since then, we’ve experienced more volatility. Here in the U.S., headlines about wars, shortages, inflation, rising prices and potential recessions dominated the airwaves.

At the same time, many businesses have been impacted by Google’s search engine algorithms.

Sweeping algorithm updates have led to sudden fluctuations in rankings, penalties and even de-indexing from spam violations. The March 2024 core update comes to mind as one example.

From “page experience” updates to “core algorithm” updates and “helpful content” updates, maintaining rankings in Google requires constant vigilance and the most trusted SEO strategies.

To me, the state of affairs over the past handful of years has meant an opportunity to protect those we care about by driving more business.

Despite the volatility, here’s what we’ve seen: Most businesses that have invested in quality search marketing over the past five years have succeeded in driving growth.

Instead of freezing up, the most common reaction among our client base in the face of uncertainty has been to keep working hard and to get creative about operating under a new paradigm while the competition is paralyzed by current events.

For brick-and-mortar businesses, despite closed doors and empty buildings, many realized new ways of doing business, knowing that their websites still persisted.

So, our advice to clients is to quickly push forward and leapfrog over competitors who are not as nimble.

There is a great opportunity to gain traction in the coming year by expanding your search marketing programs.

SEO Growth in Uncertain Times

The search marketing economy remains very favorable for short- and long-term growth:

• Google processes more than 6 million searches per minute. A segment of those searches will be for services, products or information you can provide.
• In fact, the organic search channel drives 53% of traffic to websites.
• Plus, the SEO market is projected to expand from an estimated $66.97 billion in 2024 to approximately $98.38 billion by 2029, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.98%.

Our SEO agency is well-acquainted with navigating turbulent times — both in the economy and within the ever-changing search results.

When it comes to SEO, the industry may as well adopt the motto: “The only constant is change.”

With more than 29 years of experience in business, we’ve weathered countless cycles of highs and lows, building resilience and adaptability along the way.

Despite all this, we know one thing to be true: If you focus on the fundamentals of creating a good website backed by a solid SEO strategy, you can weather the storm.

As we face more unknowns, the opportunity to focus your energy has never been greater. While your competition is:

• Slow to act
• Uncertain about the economy
• Has decided Google is too volatile
• And has analysis paralysis

… you can embrace the opportunity to get ahead.

Correct the flaws in your website, add meaningful, insightful and compelling content, tune up your performance and pass the competitors.

Everyone has their own race to win … do not stop. And, if anything, drive faster. As with any great race, your future depends on your next decision. This is an all-in moment.

Don’t let uncertainty slow you down — our SEO experts can help you develop an SEO strategy that accelerates your business growth.

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FAQ: How can I leverage SEO growth to overcome uncertainty while outperforming my competitors in challenging times?

With markets constantly shifting and adaptation key for survival, optimizing content for search engines ensures not only visibility to audiences but resonates with them too – helping turn it into a trusted name that reduces anxieties caused by uncertainty.

How can SEO growth become part of your business DNA? By keeping your website relevant and using data to measure customer sentiment. Also be ready to adapt with changes in the market. SEO isn’t something you do once and then be done with. It’s an ongoing journey that evolves just like your market environment.

As more users access websites via mobile phones these days, make sure your website is optimized for viewing on these mobile phones. Speed matters, too — fast load times keep users happy while improving search rankings. Furthermore, having an impressive backlink profile boosts credibility of the site itself and should never be underestimated.

Step-by-Step Procedure

1. Conduct an in-depth SEO audit on your website in order to identify its strengths and weaknesses.
2. Research and select keywords that accurately reflect both your industry and target audience.
3. Adjust meta tags, headers and content so they correspond with your chosen keywords.
4. Make your website mobile-responsive for the optimal user experience.
5. Speed up your website with optimized images and intelligent code.
6. Produce content of premium quality that not only engages and benefits your audience, but is also high-quality and engaging.
7. Implement a strategy to build more links to strengthen your credibility.
8. Use social media to create buzz and send people to your content.
9. Use Google Analytics and Search Console to track your website performance.
10. Adjustment SEO strategies as needed based on data analysis and industry developments.
11. Utilize local SEO techniques to target nearby customers if this fits into your business model.
12. Staying abreast of changes to search engine algorithms will maximize success.
13. Form relationships with influential figures and industry leaders for possible collaboration opportunities.
14. Add schema markup to boost visibility.
15. Content should be regularly revised and refreshed to remain relevant and engaging.
16. Examine competitors to identify potential gaps and capitalize on opportunities within your SEO approach.
17. Make use of A/B testing in order to optimize advertising campaigns and landing pages.
18. Engage your target audience through comments, surveys, and feedback mechanisms.
19. Establish an extensive FAQ section in order to meet customer inquiries and satisfy common inquiries.
20. Use paid ads as a supplement to organic growth efforts.
21. Explore voice search, AI and other cutting-edge tech to stay competitive.
22. Make a content calendar to build a pipeline of high-quality articles for your audience.
23. Create a strong brand presence across digital channels.
24. Monitor and adapt your SEO strategy regularly in response to changing conditions.

SEO growth can be an excellent way to address uncertainty and outwit competitors. By prioritizing quality content production, website optimization, agility and building real relationships with your audience – as well as ensuring lasting success – SEO growth offers any brand the chance to experience long-term success.

Bruce Clay is founder and president of Bruce Clay Inc., a global digital marketing firm providing search engine optimization, pay-per-click, social media marketing, SEO-friendly web architecture, and SEO tools and education. Connect with him on LinkedIn or through the BruceClay.com website.

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