Having a clear understanding of how people are searching for your product or service is a critical component to your business. Using search forecasting is one way to keep ahead of the competition and make informed business decisions. It can also help you avoid unpleasant surprises and set reasonable standards for organic search development.
Search forecasting can be done manually or with a software application. The software will analyze historical data and predict future trends. Some softwares will also include other metrics such as conversion rates and site traffic. This information can then be used to set goals and allocate resources. However, predicting trends too far in advance is not always useful.
Search volume data is the most common forecasting data available. This information provides an estimated amount of searches for keywords. These estimates can be adjusted depending on how much users are searching for specific keywords. It also tells you whether traffic goals are aligned with user behavior. There are also certain factors that can affect search volume, such as the location of a search. If a product goes viral, it can increase search demand. In addition, changes in user behavior can have drastic impacts on search results.
Search forecasting is not only important for businesses, but it can also help businesses save money. Having a clear understanding of how people search for your product or service can help you avoid overstocking and understaffing. In addition, search forecasting can also help you identify opportunities for growth. You can use these insights to adjust your content strategy or marketing efforts.
You can also use search forecasting to understand what your competitors are doing. In order to stay ahead of the competition, it is important to know how they are conducting their marketing campaigns. This will allow you to focus your efforts and allocate resources more effectively. Then, you can make an informed decision about your marketing strategies.
When using search forecasting, it is important to consider the impact of seasonality on your SEO strategies. If you know what is expected for a particular holiday season, you can focus your efforts accordingly. For example, most product businesses plan their holiday marketing around May and July. Likewise, if you know that a holiday season will have an increased level of traffic, you can increase your SEO strategy to ensure that you reach a large audience.
It is also important to consider the search-to-sale lead time. This means that the time from when a person searches for your product or service to when they actually buy it. This time varies between products and services. In this case, you can use search forecasting to determine how long it will take to get a sale from the start of the holiday season to the end. The search-to-sale lead time can also be affected by the design of a website. Changing the design of a site can drastically affect search results.
Other factors to consider when making SEO forecasts include how long you want to wait to roll out your holiday gift guides. While it isn’t realistic to plan for it in November, you can use forecasting to help you determine when it is safe to begin marketing your product or service.