The digital marketing industry in Los Angeles is changing nearly as quickly as a script gets rewritten in Hollywood. While most social media agency LA specialists have a grasp on the basics of search engine optimization (SEO), a new hot trend is emerging that’s changing how we think about optimizing for search engines by focusing on the user experience: Search Experience Optimization (SXO).
SXO vs SEO: What’s the Difference?
Traditional SEO is all about getting your content found (i.e., drive traffic to your website). SXO is about what happens once someone clicks through to your site. SEO is like getting someone to the movie theater; SXO makes sure they stay through the entire film and leave wanting to see more.
This is a critical distinction for LA social media agencies. In such a highly competitive marketplace as Los Angeles, you cannot simply rank well; you must convert visitors into engaged followers and ultimately paying customers. SXO fills this void by optimizing for user experience, engagement metrics, and conversion paths.
Why Agencies in Los Angeles Cannot Afford to Ignore SXO Anymore
LA-Based Organizations Are Competing In An Extremely Competitive Digital Marketplace
Beverly Hills's brands and boutiques, as well as Venice Beach start-ups, are all attempting to attract their fair share of the GA Tech marketplace. There are several advantages of SXO over traditional SEO at this point:
The User's Behaviors Have Changed: Consumers in Los Angeles typically display very developed behavior patterns. Rather than merely searching, they conduct research on different products, compare various options, and have high expectations for delivering seamless experiences. SXO's goal is to assist in finding ways to connect user intent with keywords and other types of search engine content.
We Are Living in a Mobile-Only Market: Due to Los Angeles' car-centric culture and active lifestyle, developing a mobile-optimized web presence is no longer an option; it is a requirement. SXO allows organizations with a more mobile-friendly web presence to provide more favorable social media campaign results.
Localized Competitive Landscape: All social media agencies in Los Angeles compete and use the same keywords for their marketing strategies, giving them the opportunity to differentiate themselves from all other agencies by implementing an SXO strategy. SXO has shifted the focus from obtaining high-ranking placements in search engines to providing the best experience for the end-user upon arrival.
The Benefits of Using SXO Principles in Social Media Campaigns
The use of SXO strategies is becoming common practice for many agencies when designing their social media campaigns. Below we detail how agencies are implementing SXO strategies in their social media marketing efforts:
- Content That Works: Agencies that use SXO strategies will create content based on what consumers are searching for, not necessarily on what search engines want to see. This means greater engagement on social media platforms and higher ROI for customers.
- Consistent Cross-Platform Experience: SXO principles place great emphasis on the importance of having a consistent user experience across all channels. In this way, when someone clicks through from Instagram to the client's website, the experience should remain consistent (message, logo and value proposition).
- Make Informed, Data-Driven Decisions: Because SXO is primarily based on user behavior data, it relates directly to social media analytics because it allows agencies to gain deeper insights into what leads to conversions, rather than simply looking at the number of clicks.
As you implement SXO into your LA agency, begin with an audit of how you currently approach both search engine and search experience optimization (SXO) by turning to the following tips for an easy transition:
- Develop/Update Your Content Strategy: Place an emphasis on providing value (i.e. solving problems) to your target audience rather than solely focusing on obtaining a high rank from keyword searches. The audiences in Los Angeles are looking for both authenticity and value, so provide them with both.
- Ensure Your Technical Performance Meets Expectations: Page speed, mobile-ready and easy navigation all contribute to not only SEO, but also overall experience which can affect the effectiveness of any social media marketing campaign.
- Measure What is Relevant: In addition to using traditional SEO metrics such as website visits, monitor the amount of time users spend engaged with your content, track your conversion rates, and measure the satisfaction of your users. These types of SXO-related metrics often have a significantly greater correlation to increased business opportunity than traditional SEO related metrics.
The Future is Experience First
Those agencies and Social Media companies in Los Angeles that learn SXO today will be the businesses with market share tomorrow. While your competitors will try to compete through "gaming" the search engines’ algorithms, you will compete through authentic connections with potential customers.
The SXO vs. SEO discussion is about evolution, not picking sides; SEO gets you "found", whereas SXO gets you "chosen". Your agency's success will ride on the fact that in a marketplace such as LA where image and experience are as important as substance, you are choosing to be an agency that utilizes both to gain clients.
Are You Ready to Lead the SXO Movement in LA? Your clients and bottom line will be very glad you did!