With most businesses relying on some form of digital strategy to drive up sales nowadays, it is only fair to assume that you have already considered getting customers through organic searches.
In the current digital age, it is almost impossible to ignore organic search results, especially if you are a small business. In fact, large companies can invest significant amounts in paid searches, so the only way to compete is to get creative.
If you are reading this, then you have probably done the basic research on SEO. However, it may seem like the more you try and understand it, the more complicated it becomes. Search Engine optimization rules change over time, which is important to keep in mind if you are trying to stay relevant in the search rankings. One website may implement a successful SEO strategy, only to have their entire work undone by new guidelines from Google.
So how can you stay relevant in the rankings? The good news is that Google does have some basic guidelines that never change. If you don’t take any shortcuts and you have a solid strategy, then there’s no need to worry. However, keeping in an eye on the latest developments is just as important. If you dont have time to invest in staying current with SEO best practices it may be best to hire a digital marketing agency.
What about other traffic options?
While many smaller businesses prefer to get traffic via paid options and ads, it can be quite costly compared to SEO. While you may get traffic initially, your traffic will slump as soon as you take down the ad. SEO is organic, and will bring you traffic consistently.
This does not mean that PPC ads are ineffective. It just goes to say that you should not ignore the potential of SEO, especially if you are a small business. Not only does it require less investment, it also brings you long term results. In fact, the ROI of SEO is much higher than other marketing strategies for this reason.
Try and have variation in your digital marketing plans and strategies so that you get consistent traffic from different sources.
If you are looking to improve the rankings of your small business and get more organic traffic, then you should consider the following factors:
- Have engaging content
It’s easy to say that you have created keyword targeted content or optimized content, but these terms are often abused by marketer. Keywords do matter in SEO, but they are not everything. In the latest Google guidelines, the emphasis is put on natural informative content that engages the audience.
If you are writing technical, over the top content on your website, chances are you won’t be ranked on the first page of Google.
Try and be informative and use a tone that suits your audience. You should also be creative when adding content to your website, as it helps with customer engagement as well. While this does not mean that you should ignore tags, keywords and other parts of SEO, having a natural, engaging style on your website will help you rank much better.
- Use long tail keywords
The days of ranking a web page for a single Keyword are over. One of the best ways to rank your business using keywords is to use long tail keywords. You can have a reputable SEO company, such as DO SEO Australia, do keyword research and create long tail keywords that will help improve your rankings. The advantage of having a professional service do the technical work is that it saves you time and you will be guaranteed to have the best SEO strategy that will set you apart from your competition.
Long tail keywords are more specific and will help you target a smaller niche when ranking your website. They are also easier to rank for as you are not going up the same level of competition as with generic keywords. You can even look at what your competitors are getting success with and borrow keyword ideas from them.
- Categorize all your pages
One of the most basic aspects of SEO that many businesses often ignore is proper page categorization. Did you know that Google prefers to rank pages that are logically divided into different sections? Search for any major company and you’ll notice that their sub-pages usually come underneath the main page link.
This is one of the easiest ways to boost your website’s SEO ranking and ensure that your website is structured logically as well. You should have an ‘About Us’ page, a ‘Menu’ page, ‘Contact Us’ page, and other pages that fit your website’s style.
- Create unique Meta Descriptions
Meta Descriptions are one of the most underrated aspects of good SEO. However, they play a crucial role in your website’s SEO ranking. A good Meta Description will inform the customer of exactly what the page is about and it will convince the customer to view your page.
It is the first thing that a viewer reads before they visit your website and it has to be effective in order to attract more organic traffic.
Meta descriptions should be simple and not more than 150 characters. They should also contain your targeted keyword, preferably at the beginning of the description.
- Use Local SEO
If you are a small business, you will probably find it difficult to compete against the larger companies in many areas, and SEO is no different. They have money to invest in content, optimized websites and a full time Digital Marketing department. So how do you compete?
The answer is to use local SEO. Local SEO is perfectly suited to smaller businesses, and will help you get a niche that many other businesses might miss. It is also easier to find specific terms to rank for any you will have a better conversion rate as well.
Follow the best practices
While there are many SEO shortcuts available, you should try and avoid these. It’s better to have a website with a good foundation that will rank consistently. By following the best practices of SEO, you can get more organic visitors to your website and watch your business grow online.
