Putting All Your Eggs on SEO? Terrible Move.

As I was searching for topics for the NO-BS Marketplace blog, I stumbled upon a thread on the r/SEO subreddit. It would be over a month old by the time this post goes live, but the OP goes on to blame Google and its updates for killing their six-figure business.

It has since grown to become one of the hottest threads on r/SEO, with many users sharing OP’s frustration with the tech giant. And I understand where they’re coming from. Between keeping details of its search algorithm a secret and introducing a new update when people barely have a grasp of the last one, Google can get on one’s nerves at times.

However, some users pointed out that OP shares some of the blame for relying too much on organic search. This may sound unbecoming of a digital marketing agency that thrives on SEO, but even we know that SEO can only take a brand so far. Otherwise, the industry wouldn’t be talking about other approaches like proper web design or pay-per-click (PPC).

This post doesn’t aim to point out what that business owner did right or wrong (the Reddit thread already did that). Instead, it’s to help you understand the consequences of putting all your eggs on SEO. Going all in on one thing risks losing everything.

The Disadvantages of SEO

Nothing in life is without its share of downsides—even life itself. In this context, for all the promising benefits SEO brings to the business’s table, it also has its drawbacks. Focusing on just the good is one of the biggest mistakes any business owner can commit.

Results Don’t Happen Overnight

In a recent episode of Search Off The Record, Google advocates John Mueller and Martin Splitt discussed how long it takes for SEO to make visible changes. They explained that it depends on the extent of the optimization efforts. Changing a few text lines can be picked up quickly, but more strategic ones will take time. (1)

While a projected timeframe would be nice, it just doesn’t work that way. You might think that many businesses said they started seeing the changes after several months (three to six, according to an Ahrefs poll in 2024), but there’s no guarantee that it’ll apply to you.

For starters, SEO is not advertising. You don’t pay Google top dollar to rank your website at the top of search results (that’s PPC, but it’s a topic for another time). The algorithm is designed to rank content based on a laundry list of factors, ranging from relevance to the user’s intent to its quality compared to other similar content.

Newer websites are also at a disadvantage. Not only do they have to earn their credentials, but they also have to compete with well-established competitors. At one point, there were rumors that Google keeps new websites in a “sandbox” that prevents them from ranking in search results for a time. Google denies it, but some professionals still believe otherwise.

No Guarantees in Ranking First

There are no guarantees in SEO. You can create quality content and optimize it according to guidelines, but that doesn’t mean that the top spot is as good as yours. Even if your page does rank first today, there’s no guarantee that it’ll still be the case tomorrow.

Search engine algorithms work on a list of factors that aren’t made public (as they’re trade secrets like the Coca-Cola recipe). And before you say, “But I read that Google’s algorithm uses over 200 factors,” that was based on what former Google web spam team head Matt Cutts noted back in 2009. (2)

That year, Cristiano Ronaldo was FIFA World Player of the Year, Disney bought Marvel, and Barack Obama became POTUS. Feel old yet?

Official White House photo (Pete Souza, 2012)

Even when discounting the minor updates, Google has gone over dozens of major updates. The algorithm today is a far cry from what it was roughly two decades ago. New factors are introduced just as outdated ones are removed.

We can only learn about a few of these factors from statements from Google’s people and traffic analysis by industry experts. Search Engine Journal has compiled some related info that tests ranking factor claims, which you can learn here.

SEO Doesn’t Apply to Everyone

Make no mistake: most businesses will benefit from proper SEO. However, some might not even need it due to the current state of their niches.

The whole purpose of SEO is to make your target audience aware that your brand or service exists. That said, household brands aren’t usually worried about losing traffic because any user can simply search for their all-too-familiar name. This is different from a viral brand, as virality can decline within a month or two, requiring consistent online engagement.

A local store that’s already well-known in the community also may not need SEO because people already trust it to deliver. If anything, it’ll benefit more from its long-time customers spreading the word and providing recommendations. It rarely needs search engines to help increase its awareness (though it still benefits from having a website or social media page).

Marketing Through Various Channels

SEO isn’t the only way to promote a brand. Technology has provided the modern consumer with multiple ways to reach out to sellers, something worth taking advantage of. Marketing through various channels is known as multichannel marketing.

But that’s not far enough.

Eric Gewirtzman, co-founder and former CEO of insurance technology platform bolttech, explains that consumers are already moving across channels. He iterated that a business’s focus must be on ensuring a consistent brand experience across all channels. Multichannel marketing that achieves this becomes omnichannel marketing. (3)

And yet, we can still go further.

With three-quarters of consumers expecting a personalized shopping experience (as per a McKinsey study in 2021), any omnichannel marketing strategy must cater to a consumer’s preferences across the customer journey. If done right, McKinsey believes, omnichannel personalization can boost a business’s revenue by as much as 15%. (3)(4)

Organic search is one of dozens of marketing channels. Here are some of the media you want your brand or business to be present in.

• Social media: Establish a solid presence across multiple social media platforms to maximize your brand or business’s reach. The ideal choice of platforms depends on the nature of your business (e.g., Instagram for posting new menu items).
• Brick-and-mortar store: A physical storefront (if you maintain one) can serve as a platform for promoting new products or announcing limited-time promos. It’s also great for holding product demonstrations to attract passersby.
• Email: Despite more convenient means of communication, email continues to be an effective marketing medium. Experts say email marketing’s precision in helping identify target audiences and their behaviors is unrivaled.
• PPC: SEO’s paid sibling produces more visible results more quickly, as its ads take priority in showing up on search results over top-ranked organic results. The return on investment (ROI) depends on the industry and the platform used.

How much you spend on marketing for each medium depends on your campaign’s goals. A small-time brand with a limited budget may want to invest in low-cost strategies such as working with influencers who match its market. Meanwhile, setting aside a budget for in-store marketing doesn’t make sense if you don’t have a physical storefront to begin with.

Other than campaign goals, other budgeting factors include: (5)

• Marketing metrics: Determine the campaign’s cost-effectiveness by monitoring key performance indicators (KPI) focused on revenue. Some examples include customer acquisition cost (CAC) and ROI.
• Target audience: Determine the ideal target audience groups for a brand’s products or services and their preferences. Consider tapping into social media to connect to a vast pool of potential customers.
• Attribution: Determine how much the marketing campaign resonates with the target demographic. This is mainly done by identifying each consumer’s progress through the marketing funnel (i.e., awareness, consideration, decision).

SEO Isn’t The Only Way

SEO remains one of the most cost-effective means of promoting a brand or business, but it isn’t the only method. Consider investing in other methods, such as email, PPC, and social media to avoid losing big when your marketing for one medium goes south. You may just be surprised at how much potential these approaches have.

References:

1. Montti R. Google Explains How Long It Takes For SEO To Work [Internet]. Search Engine Journal. 2025 [cited 2025 Jul 28]. Available from:https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-explains-how-long-it-takes-for-seo-to-work/550899/
2. Google Algorithm – What are the 200 Variables? [Internet]. Webmaster World. 2025 [cited 2025 Jul 28]. Available from:https://www.webmasterworld.com/google/4030020.htm
3.McKinsey. What Is Omnichannel marketing? [Internet]. McKinsey & Company. 2022. Available from:https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-omnichannel-marketing
4. McKinsey. Unlocking the next frontier of personalized marketing [Internet]. McKinsey & Company. 2025. Available from:https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/growth-marketing-and-sales/our-insights/unlocking-the-next-frontier-of-personalized-marketing
5. Gibson K. 4 Factors to Consider When Creating a Digital Marketing Budget [Internet]. Business Insights Blog. 2024. Available from:https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/budgeting-in-marketing-plan