In an incredibly competitive marketplace, having a website that is easily discoverable is something that can go a long way towards making or breaking your business. In the old days, when, for example, people needed a plumber, they would look in a phone book or a directory to find somebody to solve their problem. Cunning plumbers would often name their business something like ‘AA Plumbers’ or ‘A1 Plumbers’ to ensure that company was listed first in the alphabetical listings. In more recent times, discoverability happens digitally, and online it is not about alphabetical lists, it is about search engine optimization and about the search engines returning results that are best suited for the person who has done the search. So how do you ensure that your website is well positioned to win at the search game? Here are a few tips.
No space for haphazard
You need to have a complete search engine optimization strategy and you need to make sure that you are focussed on implementing it. The results, in terms of leads and site visits, will be obvious to see if you get it right. So, work on creating a global SEO strategy and then focus on executing it. Either partner with an agency who specializes in this or get somebody internal to be your point person on this but understand that SEO is not something that you should do when you have time, it is a full-time sales function and it needs to be treated as such.
Keep it fresh
The more regularly your site is updated with fresh and original content, the greater will be the approval from the search engines. Platforms like Google frown on repurposed content or sites that are overly static. So, focus on creating regular blog posts and keeping the site well maintained with constant signs of life.
Don’t be afraid to buy traffic
Part of a good SEO strategy is buying keywords and audience. This is not cheating, it is a critical part of the game and a very good way to spend your marketing budget – especially if it is limited. Know what phrases your prospective clients will be search for and pay Google money to ensure that when the search happens that your company appears above the fold. Research has shown that if your page is not in the top one or two sites returned by a search engine, then it is probably not going to get any clicks. So, as much as you spend to get a good organic placing, be prepared to spend to buy a spot at the top as well.
Play to mobile
Increasingly audiences are coming to websites on their phones. As a result, you need to make sure that your site is properly search engine optimized for the mobile experience. This is probably not going to be an issue if your site has recently been developed, but if the site is old and hasn’t been worked on for some time, then you might find that it is not responsive or that it does not render well for mobile. If this is the case, you will be sorely punished by Google and will quickly disappear down the rankings.
