My friend Jason Kilgore again posted the argument that Search needs a seat in the C-Suite. This is one of my primary frustrations with our industry and large companies. It is frustrating to continuously explain the importance of Search Marketing, especially SEO, to senior management across the organization. Especially when they are screaming about losing most of their traffic.
In one case, board members brought me in to help them understand why they lost their organic traffic, forcing them to suddenly need to spend 30 million dollars that quarter on paid search and other digital advertising to make up the shortfall. The reason for the loss was relatively simple: a creative director made “creative changes” to headings and the content length and the URL structure that destroyed their organic search performance. During my presentation, the CMO argued that the website’s look and feel were more critical to reflect its brand image than the “ever-changing requirements of trying to make Google happy.” This view was echoed by the CTO, who was tired of using his dev resources to make never-ending technical SEO changes. After those comments, I looked at the board members and said:
There is your answer. Search does not have strategic importance in your organization, so you must force it to become strategic or accept that you will need to purchase traffic and align your budgets to purchase the traffic you used to get for free.
Frustrated, I asked the CMO if having grazeable content and “more whitespace” was worth 30 million a quarter. Turning to the CTO, I wondered how many engineers he could hire if we could save 30 million each quarter to handle those pesky search tickets. I don’t necessarily fault the CTO and CMO as they have strict KPIs and limited resources, and search does not fit into their bigger picture.
Search is Not Aligned to Strategic Goals
The C-suite often does not prioritize search performance because it can seem disconnected from their high-level strategic goals or immediate business priorities. Executives focus on increasing Shareholder Value, which boils down to two tracks of activities – revenue growth and operational efficiency that increase the per-share price and/or dividend.
The focus on shareholder value decreases as you move down the org chart as each successive rung of the ladder is focused on doing their respective job, which their boss assumed would help them achieve their contribution. So, unless search performance is directly linked to these outcomes in a way that resonates with their KPIs and responsibilities, it will be overlooked or undervalued.
I once did a “Search Effectiveness Audit” on an enterprise Serch program and found zero alignment to strategic goals. A major goal was to grow revenue in BRIC markets, yet there were no search activities or paid campaigns. The Global Search Manager was not even aware that it was a strategic goal, nor was he aware of the key industry verticals they told investors they were targeting. This was more of an executive communication problem than an oversite of the search team as they tend to do what they are told. I learned of these strategic goals by reading their annual and quarterly financial reports which I recommend everyone on the search team of a public company take time to read.
Search is Viewed as Tactical
Additionally, SEO is often viewed as a tactical or technical discipline, making it difficult to capture the attention of senior leaders. Search algorithms’ complexity and ever-changing nature can make SEO seem opaque or unpredictable, reducing its perceived reliability compared to other, more easily quantifiable marketing channels. Furthermore, the results of SEO efforts often take time to materialize, which can conflict with the C-suite’s focus on short-term results or quarterly performance metrics.
SEO is a Long-Term Investment and Initiative
SEO is typically positioned as a long-term investment that may not deliver immediate, measurable returns, making it harder for C-suite leaders to connect search performance with periodic business outcomes directly. A few months ago, I saw an SEO agency make two major mistakes in their pitch presentation. The first was the need to pivot from any revenue and traffic reporting to how many impressions, featured snippets, and AI answers because of the changes in search. The second stated it would be between nine to fifteen months before they would see results due to the necessary research and audit tasks. The executive responded that if we cannot generate revenue and leads from organic search, and if I cannot see results in this fiscal year, we should shift the budget to marketing activities that can satisfy those requirements. The agency quickly tried to backpedal with several reasons for both responses. Still, the executives needed to spend money to see a positive return within the budget window.
Communication Misalignment
If the search programs are not aligned with the strategic objectives or lack clear strategic communication from the search team, they will not get the attention they deserve. Search performance is often presented as a collection of metrics like rankings or organic traffic—without connecting these to revenue, customer acquisition, or competitive positioning—executives may struggle to see its relevance. Bridging this gap requires reframing SEO as a strategic investment that directly impacts the company’s bottom line, competitive edge, and digital transformation goals.
How to Get C-Suite Alignment?
There must be significant changes if we want to get the attention of senior leaders and position Search Marketing as a strategic play.
Secure an Executive Sponsor and Champion
Identify and educate a key executive who understands and advocates for Search Marketing’s strategic value. An internal champion within the C-suite can influence peers more effectively and ensure search remains a priority in decision-making. This champion is rarely the CMO or CTO but the CFO, as they are not invested in technology or marketing activities but in the return on any investment. Especially with organic search traffic, they will advocate for lower relative cost SEO actions vs paying for traffic. I wrote this article: Does your CFO understand the cost of not ranking that addresses the need to discuss the opportunities and risks of Search Marketing with the finance side of the business.
Translate Metrics into Business Outcomes
Present SEO performance in terms that resonate with the C-suite, such as how it generates revenue or cuts costs. Focus on total revenue and customer acquisition numbers. There are long sales cycles where you cannot directly tie actual revenue, so I would use “Search Influenced Revenue” using the same waterfall metrics as other forms of marketing that cannot show direct revenue. For efficiency and cost reduction, data points focus on the lower acquisition costs or customer satisfaction and support completions from external or site search that shows savings over call center or sales team questions. With consumer products companies, we would use “SERP Shelfspace” to represent multiple products listed, replicating physical store shelf domination and the competitive advantage of denying competitors visibility. Avoid industry jargon like “rankings” or “impressions” without connecting them to financial or competitive impacts.
I recently told someone about my experience with a Senior Vice President during a strategic planning session. I was showing opportunity models using that team’s waterfall calculations. It showed we could generate 12 million dollars in incremental revenue if we could increase organic traffic by 10 percent. The executive told me he does not get out of bed for $12 million. Anticipating his being underwhelmed, I showed the three choke points that resulted in ONLY 12 million. I demonstrated how the current monolithic process of trying to force information and offers upon people who wanted other information was a barrier to our success. We further demonstrated, using examples and a case study, that wStihen we present those million-plus searchers who explicitly stated a solution need or interest in our products via their keywords and conneStct them with the information that satisfies that need and nurtures a forward action, our funnel conversion increases exponentially and would raise that measly 12 million to a minimum of 120 million—by pressing on his pain points of missed opportunity, competitive positioning, brand representation, customer growth, and risk mitigation and their contribution to an economic value for his level enabled us to gain his executive sponsorship to make radical infrastructure changes.
Leverage Risk Management
Refer back to the statements of risk in the financial reports as a lever to motivate management. I have had CFO’s nudge their counterparts to focus on the financial risk to profitability when Search is not well integrated into the organizational structure.
By reframing SEO as a vital, strategic business driver rather than a technical or marketing task, you can elevate its importance in the eyes of senior executives. This approach not only secures buy-in but also ensures ongoing investment and support for search marketing initiatives.
