How long SEO takes to work

Search engine optimization (SEO) is not advertising. You cannot pay your way to the top of the search results. 

If you want to rank number 1 for a keyword, you have to demonstrate to Google that your website is the best result for that query. Google has two types of results: organic and paid. 

Organic results are the kinds that appear naturally, without any advertising. Paid results will be the ones appearing at the top of search results, but they are marked as “Ad.”

The time it takes for SEO to “work” depends on many factors. Here are some factors to consider:

• The competitiveness of the keyword. If the keyword is very competitive, it will take longer to rank number 1.
• The quality of your website content. Your website content needs to be high-quality, informative, and relevant to the keyword.
• The backlinks to your website. Backlinks are links from other websites to a website. The more backlinks a website has, the higher it can rank in the search results.
• The technical SEO of your website. Your website should be technically sound and easy for Google to crawl and index.

If you want to see results from SEO, you need to be patient and persistent. It takes time to build a strong SEO foundation, but it is worth it in the long run.

Here are some additional factors that can affect the time it takes for SEO to work:

• The age of your website. Older websites often rank higher than newer websites.
• The industry you are in. Some industries are more competitive than others.
• The changes Google makes to its algorithm. Google’s algorithm changes frequently, which can affect the ranking of websites.

If you are serious about SEO, it is important to work with an experienced SEO agency. An SEO agency could help you develop a strategic SEO plan and track your progress over time.

Defining SEO ‘results’?

Before we discuss how long it takes to see results from SEO, let us first define what “results” mean. When you start an SEO program, you should set goals that outline what you want to achieve with SEO. 

Revenue may be one of your goals, but it is not the only one. SEO can drive many things, including traffic, leads, and sales.

One metric to measure SEO success is organic traffic. When we talk about the timeframe to see SEO results, we are referring to a significant uptick in organic traffic. 

This is because organic traffic is the best indicator that your SEO program is working. You want to see organic traffic driving revenue. 

And the good news is that when SEO drives targeted traffic, that traffic can be one of the biggest revenue drivers for a website. However, there are many factors (many of which are outside of the scope of SEO) that can contribute to whether you get a conversion on a website. 

For example, your price point, landing pages, and sales process. That is why that traffic is the best indicator that an SEO program is working. 

If you see a significant uptick in organic traffic, it is a good sign that your SEO program is on the right track. Here are some additional thoughts on why organic traffic is the best indicator of SEO success:

• It’s objective. There’s no arguing with traffic numbers. If you see a 20% increase in organic traffic, you know that your SEO program is working.
• It’s measurable. You can track your organic traffic over time with a variety of tools. This allows you to see how your SEO program is performing and make adjustments as needed.
• It’s scalable. As your website grows, you can expect your organic traffic to grow as well. This is because SEO will be a long-term strategy that could help you build a sustainable online presence.

If you are looking for a way to measure the success of your SEO program, focus on organic traffic. It is an objective, measurable, and scalable metric that can help you track your progress and make necessary adjustments.

Time necessary for SEO results

It typically takes several months to a year for measurable SEO results, although results can often vary. This still happens to be a general consensus among most SEO experts. 

Google suggested a similar timeframe in one video, and research from Ahrefs also supports this as well. Here are some real-world examples of how long it can take to see results from SEO:

• Ahrefs found that the average website takes 6.3 months to see a 10% increase in organic traffic.
• Moz found that it can take up to 12 months to see a significant increase in organic traffic for competitive keywords.
• Backlinko found that it can take up to 18 months to see a significant increase in organic traffic for very competitive keywords.

It is important to remember that these are just averages. The amount of time it takes to see results from SEO may vary depending on several factors, including:

• The competitiveness of the keywords you’re targeting
• The quality of your website content
• The backlinks you have
• The technical SEO of your website
• The changes Google makes to its algorithm

If you are just starting out with SEO, it is important to be patient and persistent. It takes time to build any strong SEO foundation, but it is worth it in the long run.

Here are some tips for speeding up the results of your SEO efforts:

• Target low-competition keywords. These keywords are easier to rank for and can give you a quicker boost in traffic.
• Create high-quality content. This can be the most important factor for SEO. Make sure all content is well-written, informative, and relevant to target keywords.
• Get backlinks from high-quality websites. Backlinks will be a signal to Google that a website is authoritative.
• Fix any technical SEO issues on your website. This can make it easier for Google to crawl and index a website.
• Stay up-to-date on Google’s algorithm changes. Google is always making changes to its algorithm, so it is important to stay up-to-date so that you are able to make necessary adjustments to an SEO strategy.

If you follow these tips, you can expect to see measurable SEO results in a few months to a year.

Ecommerce websites

One ecommerce furniture business lost significant search rankings and traffic after launching a redesigned website. We worked with them to identify the primary cause of the problem, which was a bloated index. 

After implementing our recommendations, we saw the following results:

• Within two months, we ranked 56 priority keywords back onto the first page of search results.
• Within three months, the client saw a return to their previous traffic levels.

Here is a more detailed explanation of the timeline of results:

• Month 1: We began by conducting a technical SEO audit of the website. This audit identified the bloated index as the primary cause of the website’s ranking and traffic problems.
• Month 2: We implemented our recommendations to fix the bloated index. This included removing duplicate content, redirecting broken links, and optimizing the website’s crawl budget.
• Month 3: Within two months of implementing our recommendations, we saw a significant improvement in the website’s search rankings. We ranked 56 priority keywords back onto the first page of search results.
• Month 4: Within three months of implementing our recommendations, the client saw a return to their previous traffic levels.

We were pleased to help this business recover from the ranking and traffic problems that they experienced after launching their redesigned website. We believe that our recommendations were effective in fixing the bloated index and improving the website’s overall SEO performance.

B2B websites

A manufacturer’s website suffered from lost rankings and dwindling organic search traffic. They did not know why.

After an in-depth analysis, we recommended improving user experience, internal linking, and content quality. We also recommended creating more high-quality content that was relevant to the website’s target keywords.

After implementing our recommendations, we saw the following results:

• Within four months, the client started to see traffic results.
• Within nine months, they received record levels of organic traffic.
• Within two years, they saw a 100% increase in organic traffic.

Here is a more detailed explanation of the timeline of results:

• Month 1: We began by conducting an SEO audit of the website. This audit identified a number of issues that were contributing to the website’s ranking and traffic problems. These issues included poor user experience, weak internal linking, and low-quality content.
• Month 2: We implemented our recommendations to improve the user experience, internal linking, and content quality of the website. This included making changes to the website’s navigation, adding more internal links, and creating more high-quality content.
• Month 4: Within four months of implementing our recommendations, we saw a significant improvement in the website’s search rankings. We also saw an increase in the website’s organic traffic.
• Month 9: Within nine months of implementing our recommendations, the website received record levels of organic traffic. This was due to the improved user experience, internal linking, and content quality of the website.
• Month 24: Within two years of implementing our recommendations, the website saw a 100% increase in organic traffic. This was a significant improvement from the website’s previous traffic levels.

We are pleased to have helped this manufacturer’s website recover from the ranking and traffic problems that they experienced. We believe that our recommendations were effective in improving the website’s overall SEO performance.

B2C websites

A automotive repair company reached out to us because their website was underperforming. We conducted an SEO audit of the website and identified a number of issues that were contributing to the website’s performance problems. These issues included:

• Poor on-page optimization
• Technical SEO issues
• Poor user experience
• Low-quality content

We recommended a number of changes to the website to address these issues, including:

• On-page optimization: We improved the website’s title tags, meta descriptions, and content so it became more search engine friendly.
• Technical SEO: We fixed a number of technical SEO issues, such as duplicate content and broken links.
• User experience: We improved the website’s navigation and made it easier for users to find the information they were looking for.
• Content: We created more high-quality content that was relevant to the website’s target keywords.

After implementing our recommendations, we saw the following results:

• Within six months, traffic increased 166% compared to the same six-month period two years prior.
• The website’s ranking improved for a number of its target keywords.
• The website’s bounce rate decreased.
• The website’s conversion rate increased.

We were pleased to have helped this automotive repair company improve their website’s performance. We believe that our recommendations were effective in addressing the website’s SEO issues and improving its overall performance.

Factors That Impact Time for SEO results

The amount of time it takes for a website to see results from SEO depends on a number of factors. Three of the most important factors are:

• Your actions: The actions that you take to improve your website’s SEO will have a direct impact on how quickly you see results. This includes things like creating high-quality content, building backlinks, and fixing technical SEO issues.
• The website: The age of your website, the quality of your content, and the technical SEO of your website can all affect how quickly you see results from SEO. Older websites with a lot of high-quality content and good technical SEO will typically see results faster than newer websites with less content and poor technical SEO.
• The competition: The competition for target keywords can also affect how quickly a person sees results from SEO. If there is a lot of competition for your target keywords, it will take longer to rank for those keywords.

In general, it can take anywhere from a couple months to a year to see significant results from SEO. However, if you take the right actions and make the necessary investments, you can see results much faster.

Your actions

The “SEO results” clock starts ticking once you implement the SEO program, not when you hire an SEO expert or when strategies are being formulated. Many businesses have failed at SEO even after hiring SEO experts because they are unable to implement the recommendations. 

This is a significant cause of failure. There are many reasons why this can happen, including:

• Lack of SEO buy-in from decision-makers
• Technical limitations on the website
• Lack of resources to implement the recommendations
• Lack of follow-through

Regardless of the reason, for every month that is wasted not implementing SEO strategies, it’s a month that you can expect not to see results. Here are some tips for ensuring that you implement your SEO recommendations and see results:

• Get buy-in from decision-makers early on in the process.
• Make sure that the technical limitations on your website can be overcome.
• Allocate the necessary resources to implement the recommendations.
• Create a plan and track your progress.
• Be patient and persistent.

If you follow all of these tips, you will increase your chances of success with SEO.

The website

If you have a really challenging website, it will usually take longer to see results from SEO. This is because you may have a number of issues that need to be resolved, such as:

• Technical issues: If a website has technical issues, such as duplicate content or broken links, it can be more difficult for Google to crawl and index the website. This will make it difficult to rank for your target keywords.
• Manual action: If your website has been penalized by Google for spammy or manipulative SEO practices, it will take longer to recover. You will need to fix the issues that caused the penalty and then submit a reconsideration request to Google.
• Google core update: Google core updates can significantly impact the ranking of websites. If your website was negatively impacted by a recent core update, it will take time to recover.
• New domain: A new domain will typically take longer to see results than an established domain. This is because Google takes time to build trust in new domains.

However, there are also some quick fixes that can improve your SEO results. For example, if you have a robots.txt file that is accidentally blocking search engines from accessing your website, you can quickly fix this by updating the robots.txt file. 

This can allow search engines to crawl and index your website, which can lead to faster SEO results. If you implement certain quick fixes, you can see results from SEO faster.

The competition

It is often said that SEO should aim to beat the competition, not the algorithm. And depending on what industry you are in, the competition can be tough.

Sometimes your competition will have more resources than you, so they can work faster. However, as long as you can stay nimble and creative, you can still compete.

Or maybe you’re in a “your-money-or-your-life” industry where you’ll be held to a higher standard by Google. This means that it might take more effort to compete, but it is still possible to succeed.

Or maybe you are after top rankings for million-dollar keywords. These keywords are highly competitive, so it can take a long time to rank for them. 

However, if you are patient and persistent, you can achieve your goals. It took one company two years to get a client to position 1 for a short-tail keyword. 

And to say it was worth the time and effort for the client is an understatement. Here are some tips for beating the competition in SEO:

• Do your research: Understand your competition and what they’re doing well.
• Create high-quality content: This is often the most important factor when it comes to SEO. Make sure all content is well-written, informative, and relevant to your target keywords.
• Get backlinks from high-quality websites: Backlinks will be a signal to Google that a website is authoritative.
• Optimize your website for mobile: Many more people are now using cell phones to search the web. Make sure your website is optimized for mobile so that you can reach these users.
• Be patient and persistent: SEO is a long-term game. Don’t expect to see results overnight.

If you follow these tips, you will increase the chances of beating the competition in SEO.

Getting better SEO results faster

While you’ll probably never get faster results than the timeframe outlined in this article, there are ways to speed up the process.

Here are two tips:

• Get an in-depth, technical SEO audit on your website. This can pinpoint exactly how to fix your site and how to beat the competition. A technical SEO audit will identify all technical issues preventing a website from ranking well in search engines. It will also identify any opportunities to improve your website’s SEO.
• Enlist the help of an expert SEO consultant or agency to help you implement an SEO program. Expert guidance is worth its weight in gold, and having that wisdom on your side as you enter the search battlefield will make all the difference. An SEO consultant or agency could help you develop and implement an SEO strategy that is tailored to your specific needs and goals.

In addition to these two tips, there are a few other things you can do to speed up the results of any SEO efforts. If you follow the tips, you can increase your chances of seeing results from SEO faster.

Initial SEO results are promising, but ongoing efforts are essential for long-term success

The SEO results you see within several months to a year are not necessarily the best results you will ever get. SEO will be an ongoing process that requires constant effort and improvement. 

As you continue to create high-quality content, build backlinks, and optimize your website, you will see your SEO results improve over time. In fact, some of the best SEO results come after years of hard work. 

This is because Google takes time to learn about your website and its authority. The more time you spend on SEO, the more Google will trust your website and rank it higher in search results.

So, do not be discouraged if you don’t see immediate results from your SEO efforts. Just keep at it, and you will eventually see the fruits of your labor.

Here are some tips for getting better SEO results over time:

• Optimize your website for search engines. This can include things like using the right keywords, creating a clear and concise title tag, and optimizing your images.
• Track your results and make adjustments as needed. It’s important to track your SEO results so that you can see what’s working and what’s not. You can then make adjustments to your strategy as needed.
• Be patient and persistent. SEO is a long-term game. Don’t expect to see results overnight. Just keep at it, and you will eventually see the fruits of your labor.

If you follow all of these tips, you will be more liekly to achieve better SEO results over time and grow your business.

Need SEO Help in the United States or Houston, TX?

If your company is in the United States or in Houston and need help improving your Google rankings, make sure you get qualified help. SERP Matrix has helped multiple companies get the results they are seeking.

We specialize in local SEO. We also offer an SEO services guarantee.

You can further rely on us for any landing page design and testing. We also handle search engine submission issues.

Contact us today for help right now. You can call (713) 287-1134 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.