When people search the web for information or services, you want them to end up at your website, and the key to that is Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
However, many business owners treat their websites much like a bad relationship—they take it completely for granted. It is always there, so it gets no attention. Meanwhile, Google and other search engines have a different relationship with your website. They tend to ignore websites that are neglected (not regularly updated) because they see that they are not popular with keyword searchers. They deliver instead the most popular website for that keyword term to the top of the list for searchers. Sure, you can buy your way to the top of the list with Search Paid Per Click (PPC) and Adwords, however, you will pay more for those clicks than you need to and you cannot stay there if you don’t update your content, events, social media, blogs, videos and other sites that also feed Search Engines and keep your content relevant.
There is a lot more to getting that Search traffic than just having a keyword-rich website. The algorithm Google uses for keyword search is based on many different variables and changes over 600 times during each year. There are actually a lot of things you can do to improve your website rank in addition to keyword advertising. In fact, if you make some of these changes before embarking on your next Adword campaign, you will save a lot of money on your paid search and reach more of your target market for the same budget. Here are a few tips to help you get started:
- Start with making a list of all the keywords and search terms you think people use to find a business or organization like yours. Then, do the search yourself and note the companies that rise to the top of the list. Also note the url of the website that comes up.
- Ask someone who is completely unrelated to your business to do a keyword search with their favorite browser to find a company that provides the same type of services or products as yours. Review the first 10 companies in the organic list (not the paid ads!). Then click through to visit their website pages. Note what page on their website loads. Is their homepage performing better than yours, or is it another page on their website that is your competition?When you visit that page, notice any differences that may be causing that page to rank higher on that keyword. Also note the words or phrases that your friend uses to find a company like yours. Are those terms on your list?
- Each page of your website should be optimized for different keyword terms, and the content on the page should be relevant to website visitors interested in that term. Make sure you engage them on that content and add a downloadable document, video or article that keeps them on your page for a reasonable time. Google looks at the words on your website to see if what they searched for is covered well on your website and if those click-thru visitors spend a reasonable period of time on your website. The longer they stay on your page, the higher your Quality Score on Google and the more often Google serves your website for search queries. That leads to a lower price for you on Adwords.
- Don’t forget that referral links are just as important as keywords to bring more people to your website and help Google perceive the success of your website. If other websites reference your website, it can make a big difference on your keyword results. That means your posts on social media, blogs and vlogs, YouTube and listings such as Yelp, Google Maps, TripAdvisor and others should always include links that go to pages on your website. Consider posting less detailed content on social media and post a tip plus a “Read More” reference link. That strategy engages people to go to your website and then be exposed to your entire site. It also means that you are racking up your Quality Score with relevancy with the search engines.
- Consider changes in your industry and new tools that are not covered in your original website but that have built up over the last year. Review your competitor sites and do your own search in your industry to see what you need to update in order to keep up with the top players in your industry.
- Do your search on all search engines, not just Google, and remember that all listing sites from Trip Advisor to Google Maps have free microsites that are free to you and allow you to add content their users can find to learn about resources in their area that match their interests. If you do not fill those out, there is no information about your organization or, worse, someone else has filled it in for you but not accurately. Check out your listings on all these sites and add your products and services including keywords and update photos, add your hours and pricing information if that is an option. Make sure you are in the list and your website link is attached.
- Add video. If you are not currently using it, consider adding video to your website blog, and set up a YouTube station. There are people looking for your information and your industry’s information 24/7. Your YouTube station could be that source of information. Make sure that you are linking it to your website and that you turn on captions. so keywords are activated whenever you post a video. Then consider using ads to bring your information to your target market. Most of us are visual so it makes sense that we go to YouTube to learn something every day.
- Join my monthly webinars and workshops to help you grow your business faster. Determine where to expand this year, adding more effective digital media tools while getting more results for your marketing dollars.
If you need help improving or reviewing your website performance or helping you create a more cost effective Adwords marketing program, contact us by email or call us at 310-791-6300. To get more done with your Marketing efforts, create a media mix that marries your most effective traditional tools with digital media tools. This mix will help you reach your target market more effectively and generate the required number of exposures to elicit sales or your expected results.
Liz Harsch is a media planner and trainer for small business owners with Constant Contact, SCORE, SBDC, SBA, Cities and MWD and County outreach partners, APICS plus many Chambers of Commerce for over 10 years. She owns Tailor-Made Advertising in Torrance, California and provides marketing, training and consulting to identify marketing and media alternatives for business owners. She can be reached at her Torrance, CA office at 310-791-6300 or by email at liz@adteamla.com. You can also see her upcoming training workshops calendar at http://adteamla.com/facebook.
