SEO is Dead in the World of AI

A client once asked me, "People say SEO is dead in the world of AI, what do you say to that?"

Great question; there are so many ways to look at this question.

Will SEO become obsolete because everyone will start asking ChatGPT or another AI for answers instead of Google?

Or will Google completely change SEO because everyone is flooding the internet with AI-generated content?

The truth is, it's hard to say 5, 10, or even 20 years from now, and no one, not even the so-called "AI" experts, knows.

This is because human behavior is hard to change.

Even if there is an increase in reliance on AI like ChatGPT, most people will still default to Google.

Do you think Google, a behemoth of a company, will just throw in the towel to OpenAI (a partner company of ChatGPT)?

Of course not.

So here is the thing: AI may replace some SEO searches, typically the question-and-answer type of searches or "long-tail" searches.

Terms like...

"What kind of dance is suitable for kids?" "Is martial arts good for kids" etc...

However, it is unlikely someone will go to ChatGPT and ask:

"Best martial arts school near me." "Top BJJ gym in California."

I would argue that SEO may be the best option to grow your martial arts, dance, swimming, schools, and studios in 2024.

Here are the 4 Reasons Why Local SEO is a MUST to Grow Your Business in 2024

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1. Highest Quality of Leads and the Best ROI

For some reason, most school and studio owners like to turn to Facebook ads to generate leads.

I don't know why, maybe because many so-called "experts" have been advocating Facebook ads.

However, while Facebook Ads can work, it rarely does for the majority of the owners we have spoken to.

I believe maybe only 10% of the owners we spoke to have ever had any real success with Facebook ads, while almost everyone has tried it in one way or another.

Yes, Facebook ads are easy to do, and leads are cheap.

But the quality is lower, as no one goes on Facebook to actively seek out a martial arts school, just like most people won't ask ChatGPT to look for a martial arts school either.

On top of that, the golden days of Facebook ads are gone, with an increase in CPM (cost per 1000 impressions), lower inventory (fewer people on the platform), reduced ability in targeting, and an increase in competition.

The days when you could get leads for $2, $5, or even $10 easily are gone.

Cutting away at your ROI day after day until it simply becomes not profitable.

Plus, even if you have a working campaign, as soon as you stop putting ad dollars into it or if it stops working, your entire business comes to a halt.

Google specifically SEO or organic ranking on Google, on the other hand, yields the best quality leads right next to referrals.

This is because that's where people naturally go when they look for martial arts, dance, swimming, math turoting school for their kids or themselves.

So instead of attracting people who just click on your ads because you offer some kind of Groupon discount, you get people who are actively seeking a service you provide.

I know what you're going to say...

"But Steve, these people are price shopping."

Sure, people price shop, everyone does, but most people are looking for the best value for what they spend.

And it's your job to present that to them.

2. Sow Once and Reap the Reward Forever

Facebook ads are fast and give instant gratification. You turn on your ads, and boom, you see a flood of leads.

It's exciting, I will give it that.

But SEO is not; it's more of a longer-term play. In some cases, it can take 6 to 12 months before you see any results coming.

I know that's not sexy for many business owners.

I get it; you want results, and you want them now.

However, think of it this way.

With Facebook ads or any ads, you're renting the results or leads.

As soon as you stop spending money, it goes away.

With SEO and ranking on Google, you are sowing.

Yes, it takes a little bit of time and it takes a bit of work to get your business ranked top 1 on Google, but once you do and with a bit of maintenance, you get to keep reaping the rewards.

3. Low Competition

"I have lots of competition in my area, what do you mean by low competition?"

Sure, you probably have a few other marital arts studios/schools that you're competing with.

But while in other niches such as HVAC, Dental, Plumbing, etc., SEO is highly competitive and everyone is doing it.

For some reason for school and studio owners, most of your competitors are not paying attention to SEO at all.

Why?

I have no idea. I guess it's the same reason I mentioned above.

Everyone is running Facebook ads; very few are actively investing in SEO and generating organic traffic.

This is why if you get into the game of Local SEO today in 2024.

It's not that hard to get yourself ranked as the most found martial arts school, dance studio, or Math tutoring on Google in 3 to 6 months.

4. It's Not That Hard

I think one of the reasons why most school and studio owners don't attempt SEO is because they believe it's hard.

But the truth is SEO overall can be highly technical and can be hard depending on the keywords and niche you're going after.

But Local SEO is not.

Wait? What?

Is there a different SEO?

Yes, there is.

The general SEO landscape is called organic SEO; this is where if you want to rank for keywords that may be replaced by ChatGPT, as mentioned earlier.

But for school or studio like yours, all you want to do is rank locally.

After all, no one or very few people are going to drive 10 and 20 miles to attend your classes.

So why do you want to rank across the nation?

You don't.

Local SEO is the ranking of your Google Business Profile. It is ranking on the Google Map Pack. You know when you search "best burger in my area" and McDonald's shows up :D.

And to rank locally, it's not that hard. Here are the 4 key factors that Google looks for to rank locally for your school or studio:

1. Proximity: How far is your business located from the searcher?
2. How optimized is your Google Business Profile?
3. Reviews and frequency of getting reviews
4. How optimized is your website that is attached to your Google Business Profile?
5. Citations and backlinks.

There are a few more other factors such as content, but for the most part, those are the top 5 key factors to ranking on Local SEO in that order exactly.

So, what does all of this mean for you?

While the world evolves with AI, SEO remains a powerful tool, especially for local businesses. It's not about replacing one with the other but finding a balance for a robust online presence for your school or studio.

It is in my opinion a huge missed opportunity that many dance, swimming, cooking, arts, music school, and studio owners are missing in 2024. But it's not too late to start.