Some experts will say it takes somewhere between four and six months, while others say it may take up to a year. These are all ballpark figures, which means there’s no definitive answer to this question. Some companies will start seeing results in 3-4 months, while others may have to wait for more than a year.

That doesn’t mean one campaign is inferior to another; it just means the circumstances are different. You can make sure all pieces in the puzzle are right and wait for the algorithm to change the ranking accordingly. However, external factors, like competition will have an impact on the results. A successful SEO campaign requires consistent effort and regular optimization to keep up with the current trends.

Because of this constant optimization, SEO campaigns gain traction and evolve. It delivers better results with time, which means SEO will deliver excellent results in six months, but it will deliver better reports after a year or two of running constantly. A well-planned campaign continues to expand organically and get you good leads.

Think of SEO as an investment that builds up over time. If you’re patient and wait for the results, it will deliver eventually and take your brand to new heights.

Factors that Influence the Speed of SEO

Several factors influence SEO speed, but the five most important are competition, content, location, keywords, and links. All these factors dictate the pace of your results in different ways. Here’s a look at how these factors influence SEO:

1. Competition

SEO is a popular marketing strategy, and almost everyone is working on it. Your competitors are vying for the same rankings and leads that you are, which can hamper an SEO campaign’s success. They will target the same keywords as you and implement similar strategies. It can take more time for your campaign to gain traction when it is facing such a competition.

Smaller companies in less-competitive industries see results quickly. They can target popular keywords without facing much competition. Businesses in competitive industries need to work harder and dig deeper to get significant results. For example, a large-scale national clothing retailer will face more competition than a small town’s niche craft beer company.

2. Content

Content helps you maintain a dynamic presence online and remain at the forefront of the search engine results pages. The quality and frequency of your content publication will have a significant impact on SEO. For example, if you publish around 2,000 to 2,500 words every week on a consistent schedule, you will see an improvement in rankings quickly. Dynamic websites with a steady flow of traffic climb the rankings faster than other platforms with less activity.

The quality of your content also matters. If you publish several small 500-word articles every day on general topics, the campaign will take more time to gain speed. However, if you post a well-written, informative article of around 2,000 words with new research or current data every week, the strategy will be more successful. Consider the value of the content and how it can help your target audience. Valuable and informative articles will gain more traction quickly.

3. Location

The location of your business also influences the speed of an SEO campaign’s success. Local SEO can show results in around three months when implemented well. National SEO can take over a year to show good results. The location and scale of your campaign influence its speed. Small town businesses in suburbs or low-competition neighborhoods will get more traction.

For example, a digital marketer based in a big city like London or New York will have to work hard to promote their services and gain traction online. However, a small town’s candle-maker will gain attention quickly and see massive improvements in their organic traffic numbers after just a few SEO tweaks to their online presence.

4. Keywords

Keywords are the foundation of SEO campaigns. It is crucial to pick the right ones to target. Experts recommend a combination of popular and less popular keywords. Popular keywords have more competition, so it is more difficult to rank high on their SERPs. You will need to work hard and establish a robust online presence with these keywords. Ranking on popular phrases is still essential, but the campaign will take several months to show any positive results.

Less-popular keywords and long-tail phrases won’t bring as much traffic to your website as trending search terms, but they will initially provide good visibility. You will show up on the first page more often, which will help you establish a stronger brand presence.

5. Backlinks

Inbound links are the most critical ranking factors, but getting good quality ones is an exercise in patience. Marketers need to create worthy content, reach out to popular publications with page and domain authority, and then wait until these publications agree to add links to their content.

This takes a lot of time, and it will be months before your website has a decent link profile. You won’t see converting traffic on search engines unless you have a reasonably influential link profile.

SEO takes time, and the results can vary from one campaign to another. It is essential to keep working on it until you gain consistent results. If you need help from one of our SEO experts, please contact us today.