Have you ever noticed that store in your local community that seems to have a nice storefront, good merchandise and friendly people but goes out of business because they just couldn’t get enough foot traffic to drive sales?
Many companies with physical locations rely heavily on promoting their businesses with signs and banners waving out on the road or by posting on their own social media pages only to lose customers to competition that have a savvy online strategy.
Still others have great looking websites but cannot sustain the traffic to their site to make it profitable.
Any business wanting a steady flow of customers to their website or their physical location needs to understand the importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Improving SEO makes search engines like Google see your site as a trusted and legitimate site. You will show up higher in the search results and your potential customer will be more likely to click on your website.
SEO is an overwhelming topic for so many business owners and leaders I meet.
I get it.
It is a tedious but necessary tactic in your marketing arsenal. I could write for days about how to utilize SEO and other marketing tools to grow your business but here 4 tactics every business should be using, right now.
1. KEYWORDS
Keywords are the holy grail of SEO. Understanding how to use keywords and long tail keywords is the first concept to grasp and start using.
How do you find something online? You type in a keyword and phrase, right? Even if you are using voice features on your phone, those words you speak are keywords that the search engine uses to help serve up the best content it thinks you want and need.
Do you know what keywords your potential customers are using to find similar products and services?
Get familiar with what keywords people are using when searching for your products or services. Do simple research, test out those keywords and then integrate into every facet of your online strategy. And do it now!
Note: This is not a one and done step. The keywords and phrases change over time depending on a variety of factors. Make reviewing them a regular part of your marketing strategy.
Here are a few simple ways to check and verify keywords:
Google Keyword Planner. This is a free tool available in your Google account.
Keywords Everywhere – I like this one because it is a plugin for your browser and thus always available.
SEMRush – A pricier option we use for our clients who need an extensive digital strategy.
You may not be able to use the obvious keywords for your business. For instance, if you own a clothing store and you use “necklace” on your website or in your social media posting so that your business will show up high in search results, you will be swimming upstream, as they say. There are big companies out there spending millions of dollars to rank high on simple things like “necklace” or “womens necklace”.
You will have to get really creative in finding ways to still rank high for the products and services that you sell.
Instead of relying on “womens shoes” as a phrase to help your ranking for your women’s clothing store, try a phrase like “women\’s shoes that don\’t pinch” or “high heels that are comfortable.” Those are long tail keywords or phrases that you can use to work around some of your larger competitors.
Even better, if you serve a local community, make sure that those towns and counties and areas are listed on your website.
Let’s go back to the clothing store example: If you are a women’s clothing store in Pooler, Georgia and you sell women\’s shoes, you can use the phrase “comfortable high heeled shoes in Pooler.” Use it in a sentence or paragraph on your website and it will help you rank higher for that item.
Use keywords and long tail keywords:
- in the content on website pages
- in titles
- In metatags
- In photo descriptions (when uploading the image)
- In social media posts
- In blog posts
Word of caution. Be sure to use the words authentically. Do not just dump a bunch of keywords on your pages. This will be penalized by the search engines.
2. BACKLINKS AND RECIPROCAL LINKS
Another really great way to improve your Google rankings is backlinks. I sometimes refer to them as reciprocal links. This is when other websites are linking to your site or you are linking to theirs. The more legitimate backlinks you have on your site shows search engines that you are trusted and that other sites believe in your business.
The importance of backlinks becomes apparent for our advertisers in Pooler Magazine and Effingham Magazine. Whenever we post an article about a local business on our websites, that article often shows up above the actual business’ website. This is due to the amount of traffic we get to our sites and is quite helpful to the advertiser. It adds another online connection which helps them rank higher on Google. They also get the extra benefit of capturing more eyes on a story about their business.
Word of caution. Backlinks need to make sense. Again using the clothing store example – if your uncle owns a car repair shop in another town, there probably isn\’t much value in having him post a backlink to your clothing store website on his site. Links should be relevant in subject and context or in location.
3. LOCATION BASED CONTENT AND LINKING
Another overlooked tactic and one that is very important for SEO is location based content on the website.
If you have a company that serves multiple towns or communities, you want to make sure those towns and communities are listed on your website. Have a page that mentions that town – with backlinks!
If your business has multiple locations, you absolutely should have a separate page on your website for each of those locations, even if the content is the same. Listing and linking the name of that town on your website is really important.
4. Content Marketing
Content marketing is the most underutilized tactic but is extremely useful for a number of reasons including SEO.
Posting useful and interesting content on your website and social media channels is really one of the most important tools available to you. This will allow you to use keywords and position your company as the leader in your industry and community.
Content does not include just posting your hours or your services. It is about content that can be entertaining or helpful to your target audience. This is an entire topic in and of itself but for the purpose of SEO, updating your site and your social media with new, relevant content and the right keywords frequently can raise your profile and your ranking in search results online.
We have just scratched the surface of SEO in this article. There are many ways to grow your business by understanding your customer, being more strategic with marketing efforts and using the right tactics for your goals and business. SEO is a great start in growing your business and improving your online presence.
What other tactics do you use to make sure your company ranks higher in Google?
I welcome your feedback and ideas! You can always reach me at Jan@JDelSURMarketing.com or find me on LinkedIN, Instagram and Facebook.
If you would like to hear this topic in an audio version, listen to the “Want Better Google Rankings and SEO Performance?” episode of the Its ALL Marketing Podcast.