How Long Does SEO Take to Show Results?
So, how long does SEO take to show results? Don’t wait in the dark - read on, to learn about realistic time frames, along with the various contexts that might impact how long things take.
Key Talking Points:
You can’t expect to see instant results from an SEO campaign. On average, it can take anywhere from four to twelve months before you start to see the benefits. However, once your site starts performing you can expect to reap long-term rewards long into the future.
There's no one-size-fits-all answer, as it depends on the competitiveness of the industry, the complexity of the website, and the quality of your efforts. SEO requires a consistent effort to achieve the best results, as you'll need to continually optimise your website to stay ahead of the competition and adapt to the specific needs of your target audience. Doing this takes time, but by focusing on the right tactics and staying up-to-date on industry trends, you can see more significant returns in the long run.
Many factors can influence how long it will take, so it's important to understand what they are and how to set realistic timelines.
Factors Influencing the Time It Takes for SEO to Show Results
1. The Age and Authority of Your Website
The age and authority of a website can significantly impact the time it takes to achieve SEO success. Older domains, which have had more time to establish their online presence, are often viewed as more authoritative and trustworthy by search engines.
An older website can also help you establish trust and credibility with your audience, as it signals that you have been around for a long time and your site is not likely to disappear overnight. If you’re using a new domain URL and are competing with websites that have been around for years, you can’t expect to rank in high positions overnight. Building this authority takes time and effort to establish trust in the eyes of Google.
2. Competition Level in Your Industry
The competition level in your industry has a significant impact on the time it takes to see your desired results. In highly competitive industries where numerous businesses are vying for top rankings, it can take longer to achieve significant visibility. This is because competitors are also investing in SEO strategies and aiming at keywords, making it a more challenging and time-consuming process to outrank them.
The level of competition determines the intensity of efforts required. The higher the competition, the longer it may take to see substantial improvements in search engine rankings and overall SEO performance.
3. The Quality and Quantity of Your Content
The quality and quantity of your content can significantly impact the amount of time it takes for SEO to show results. Google guidelines indicate that content which follows their E-A-T model has a much higher chance of ranking. That is, the success of your SEO efforts relies on you frequently producing content which (i) demonstrates Expertise; (ii) Authority; and (iii) Trustworthiness.
Therefore, high-quality content that is relevant, valuable, and well-optimised for keywords can help search engines understand your website's purpose and improve its rankings.
On the other hand, low-quality or thin content lacking substance may indicate to search engines that your website is not authoritative and cannot be trusted - which would hinder SEO progress and prolong the time it takes to see improvements.
4. The Existing Penalties or Technical Issues on Your Website
Existing penalties or technical issues on a website can significantly impact the time it takes for SEO efforts to show results. Penalties, such as being blacklisted by search engines due to spammy practices or low-quality content, can severely hinder organic visibility. It can take a considerable amount of time to identify and rectify these penalties, as well as regain trust and credibility from search engines.
Alternatively, technical issues, such as slow page load speed, broken links, or poor mobile optimisation, can negatively affect user experience and search engine crawling.
If your website experiences these issues, we recommend addressing them as quickly as possible. Alternatively, get in touch with our expert SEO team who will happily advise you.
5. Backlink Profile and Link-Building
In SEO, a "Backlink" refers to the links on one website that point to another.
The quantity and quality of links which point to your website can contribute to how authoritative and credible Google perceives it. As such, building a strong and diverse backlink profile through strategic link-building efforts can expedite the process of improving search rankings.
Note that, with the ever-changing landscape of SEO, link building should be a continuous, long-term effort. This process can take time, as it involves outreach and relationship building and, in an ideal world, these links would be achieved naturally. The more authoritative the website pointing to yours and the greater the relevance of the link, the higher the impact on your search engine visibility; ultimately influencing the speed at which SEO results are achieved.
6. Your Social Media Presence and Engagement
Receiving shares and engagement on social media is one way you could gain a healthy and relevant backlink to your site.
Your social media presence and engagement can significantly impact how long it takes to see results from your SEO efforts. By actively engaging with your audience on social media platforms, you can increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, and ultimately improve your search engine rankings. When users engage with your social media content and share it, it signals relevance and popularity. This increased social media activity can lead to quicker indexing of your website, ultimately expediting the time it takes to see SEO results.
7. Your Overall Marketing Budget and Resources
Your marketing resources play a crucial role in determining the timeframe for SEO results. A larger budget allows you to invest in various strategies simultaneously, such as content creation and technical optimisation, which can expedite results. Additionally, a higher budget enables you to leverage other marketing avenues; such as paid advertising or social media campaigns, which can enhance visibility and help your site gain authority. Conversely, limited resources may prolong the process as it takes longer to implement SEO strategies.
Of course, various factors should influence how much budget you allocate to this strategy - such as the size of the website, your competition, and the quality and complexity of the content required.
As we mentioned earlier, SEO is not one-size-fits-all-all. Instead, the time frame and strategies you adopt should be influenced by your specific project.
With that said, here are a few different contexts which can impact your SEO results.
Starting From Scratch: New Websites or Domains
Starting a website from scratch can significantly impact how long your SEO results take.
This is, in part, because Google has yet to establish the authority and relevance of your site. Consequently, it takes time for search engines to crawl your pages, evaluate their quality, and index them. In addition, if you’re using a new website, your domain authority will be low. If you’re competing with highly authoritative sites, you’re unlikely to rank with them straight away. Instead, it takes time to gain that trust from Google.
Despite these challenges, starting from scratch does allow you the benefit of a clean slate and the opportunity to implement SEO best practices from the beginning, potentially accelerating results in the long run.
Existing Websites Undergoing Major Changes
When an existing website undergoes major changes, such as a complete redesign or restructuring, it can impact its success in the short term. Search engines need time to crawl and index the new site, which can take days or even weeks depending on the size and complexity of the changes.
Additionally, major changes may affect the website's rankings and visibility, causing fluctuations in organic traffic and overall performance. It may take a while for search engines to evaluate and adapt to these changes, making it important for website owners to monitor and optimise their sites during this transitional period to minimise any negative impacts on SEO.
Migrating to a New Website URL
If you have a new URL, search engines are going to identify these new links as entirely unique pages. To circumvent this, you may consider implementing technical techniques such as 301 redirecting old URLs to new ones. However, this transition period takes time and can vary in duration depending on the size and complexity of the website.
Moreover, changes made during the migration such as alterations to site structure or content can also influence search engine optimisation efforts, potentially delaying the desired results. Regardless of your method, search engines need to recognise, crawl, and index the new URLS before they start becoming visible.
Redesigning Your Website Structure
Typically, redesigning a website for SEO purposes can involve optimising the website's architecture, navigation, and internal linking structure to enhance user experience and search engine crawlability.
When redesigning the website structure, our SEO team aim to create a logical and user-friendly layout that helps search engines understand the website's content better. This optimisation can involve reorganising categories, creating siloed content sections, improving site navigation menus, and implementing breadcrumbs, among other strategies.
One of the main benefits of redesigning the website structure is improved indexing and crawling by search engines. By creating a clear and logical hierarchy, search engine bots can easily navigate through the website, leading to faster and more accurate indexing of the web pages. This, in turn, increases the chances of higher search engine rankings and visibility.
Furthermore, an optimised website structure enhances user experience by making it easier for visitors to find relevant information. This can lead to increased engagement, longer session durations, and lower bounce rates, all of which are positive signals for search engines.
While redesigning the website structure can take time and effort, the long-term benefits are worth it. These results won't be immediate, but with time and patience, you can start to reap the benefit of your efforts as your improvements show their full effects.
Changing CMS Platforms or Hosting Providers
Changing CMS platforms or hosting providers can have a significant impact on SEO for various reasons, to name a few:
Firstly, site speed plays a role in SEO. When changing CMS platforms or hosting providers, it is important to ensure that the new platform or provider can maintain or improve the site's loading speed. Slow-loading websites can negatively affect user experience, resulting in higher bounce rates and lower search engine rankings. Therefore, a seamless transition to a CMS or hosting provider that prioritises site speed is essential for maintaining or improving SEO performance.
Secondly, sitemaps are crucial for search engine crawlers to understand the structure and organisation of a website. When switching CMS platforms, it is important to ensure that the new platform can generate and submit accurate sitemaps to search engines. A well-structured sitemap helps search engines index web pages efficiently, leading to better visibility and higher rankings in search results.
Lastly, a CMS that allows easy design flexibility is beneficial for SEO. Changing to a CMS that offers easy customisation and design options can help you to optimise the website's appearance, making it more user-friendly and visually appealing. This can lead to longer user sessions, lower bounce rates, and increased organic traffic, positively impacting SEO performance.
Established Websites Seeking Continuous Improvement
For established websites seeking continuous improvement, the length of time SEO takes to yield results can vary greatly depending on the context and the overall goal.
Regular optimisation and content updates can help boost visibility. However, search engine algorithm changes can influence their impact (and, in some cases, render them obsolete). Consequently, it's essential that you monitor and adapt to these changes as and when they arise.
Expanding keyword targeting and visibility is also important, but it's best to start with an analysis of the current search landscape before making any updates. This should coincide with a frequent review of your site’s design and structure - assessing whether the new search engine landscape justifies a change.
Implementing the right strategies can help you speed up the SEO process. Here are a few tips to get started:
- Improve keyword targeting: Conduct thorough keyword research to identify relevant and high-search volume keywords for your website. Use these keywords strategically in your content, meta tags, and URLs to increase visibility in search engine results.
- Optimise on-page content: Ensure that your website's content is well-structured, informative, and optimised for your targeted keywords.
- Build a strong backlink profile: Acquire high-quality backlinks from reputable websites in your industry. Guest blogging, creating valuable content, and networking with influencers can help you earn authoritative backlinks that boost your search engine rankings.
To make sure these efforts are effective, you should also monitor, analyse and adjust your SEO efforts regularly.
The time it takes to achieve results will vary depending on how well you execute the strategies. With the right knowledge and tools, you can accelerate your SEO and get the desired outcomes in a shorter period.
Are you ready to accelerate your efforts and reap their rewards? Here at Omnisity, we take the complexity out of SEO. We have experience in delivering long-term and tangible results with a high ROI.
Get in touch today, and our expert team can help advise you on a realistic timeline for our SEO services.
