A Newbie’s Guide To Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization or SEO seems like a term exclusive to tech-savvy entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley. But if you have been a keen observer of the evolution of customer marketing, businesses of all sizes are now taking SEO more seriously than ever.

Ecommerce sales have grown exponentially in recent years as more and more people realize the convenience and other benefits of online shopping. And with the coronavirus pandemic causing digital transactions to rise, businesses will need to step up their search marketing game by making their business more searchable to potential customers.

If your business doesn’t have an SEO campaign yet, here are a few fundamentals to getting started:

1. Analyze your website

• How is your website performing when it comes to generating organic traffic?
• How many visitors on average end up becoming customers?
• How well does your website rank in the search engine results pages?

This is a lot to take in, but if you want your website to rank, you should start by doing an audit.

See if your website design is attractive and functional. Aside from that, you also need to check if your webpages are fully optimized. If you are using WordPress as your content management system, you may need to install plugins like Yoast to help you improve content that impresses search engines.

2. Seek Out Advice 

The world of SEO is a complicated one, and different techniques will work better for different companies and websites. Before you dive in, it’s worth seeking out more information regarding your specific circumstances – and there are plenty of resources online to help you do this. If, like many companies, you use Squarespace to host your company website, take a look at the Squarespace SEO guide for particular tips about utilizing SEO on that platform.

If you’re able, hiring an SEO consultant is a great way to receive advice tailored to your particular needs, but in the meantime the internet is a great place to start.

3. Conduct keyword research

It’s always important to know that a well-designed website is not guaranteed to rank well in the SERPs. The bread and butter of SEO is actually the keywords and search terms you want to rank for.

Google runs on an algorithm that lets businesses compete over keywords people search for. So, if you own a cleaning company that offers deep cleaning, you should look for keywords that are closely related to that service. This requires a lot of work that only professional SEO companies can handle. If you need help with this part of your SEO campaign, click here.

4. Create great content

Of course, SEO is not just about cramming as many high-value keywords into your website as you can. In fact, Google now penalizes websites that practice “keyword stuffing” because, at the end of the day, customers are more likely to buy a product if you give them valuable information.

Quality content has become just as important as keyword research. You will need to create engaging and informational blog posts. For your webpages, hire a professional copywriter to craft enticing content that’s focused more on communicating value than on selling your product. Provide context first before you move in for a sales proposition.

5. Build links

Aside from great content and an effective keyword strategy, you also need to create a link-building strategy by writing content for authority sites and sharing content through social media. These strategies will help you attract referral traffic which, in turn, improves your website’s searchability.

With more and more people becoming reliant on the internet for their shopping, it’s always important to improve your business’ online visibility and realize the overall benefits that an SEO campaign can give to your bottom line. 

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