Many people think if they can just create a website, the customers will start pouring in.
While I would love that if it were true, there is a lot more to getting customers once you’ve started a website than simply sitting back and watching orders come in or having customers magically start calling because, you know, you have a website now.
While I wholeheartedly believe every business should have a website, I strongly believe that isn’t enough. In today’s digital world you have to make your company stand out from the crowd and draw or even funnel people to your website more than ever.
How can you funnel people to your website and get more website traffic? Well, there is no quick answer, no gimmicks, no super secret methods only some guy in India knows about, no right to the top ways unless you want to pay LOTS of money for ads. And we are strong believers that there are better ways to spend your money than on ads!
Probably not what you wanted to hear right?
Sorry, there is no magic way to rank in the 1st page, but here are some tried and true ways to work on your SEO to increase your ranking organically over time that even you can do!
Make updating your website a priority.
Remember Mobilegeddon a few years back? Yeah, Google was serious about you having a mobile friendly website. In 2017 they are giving higher ranking to those sites again that are mobile friendly. So if you haven’t updated your site to a responsive site yet, and thought it was a fad, it’s time to get on board!
A responsive website “responds” to the screen size it is viewed on and will make the viewing experience of someone on a cell phone just as good as someone on a desktop. (If you need help getting your website mobile friendly, contact me for a quote. I only build mobile friendly websites these days and there is a reason why!)
You can do a quick 1-2 minute test offered by Google to get a idea of how well your site is optimized for mobile, try it out now: Mobile Website Speed Testing Tool
Get serious about your blog or informational pages on your site.
I know, you don’t have time for writing blogs, you don’t see the point, you don’t feel like a great writer, the list goes on.
But you know what? Content is king these days and quality content on your website is what will make the difference between a site that reaches page 1 and a site that is buried deep in the search pages of Google.
One site we know of has been able to put them selves in authority through blogging about their field (pools & spas) and from 1 blog post they have been able to track over $2 Million dollars (yes, you read that right, 2 freaking million) in revenue has come into their business from that one post!
With the change in algorithms, you have to have relevant content that people are asking and searching for or you will never get ahead of your top ranking competitors. If you don’t feel like you have the time, consider outsourcing this to a trusted firm or hire someone to write blog posts for you who either knows your field already or who will take the time to research properly.
In my opinion you should NOT be outsourcing this on Fiver! You don’t want junk posts and you will need to pay someone at least $25-$200 per post to get quality content worth putting on your site. When it comes to your blog, remember quality over quantity wins the day!
Be sure to install SEO plugins if you are using WordPress.
SEO isn’t always the first thing you think about when updating your site, and it is easy to forget that you need to check your meta-tags, have relevant keywords, alt-tags, SEO friendly urls, and so much more when you are in a rush.
Luckily there are many SEO plugins if you are using WordPress that will help you along in your quest to rank higher. I recommend trying Yoast SEO. It is fantastic and keeps SEO friendly website building at the forefront of your mind as you blog or update your site.Give the people what they want front and center.
While I love building visually beautiful websites for my clients, there has to be some substance on the homepage to draw people in and target your keywords so you can be found, AND so your potential clients don’t leave before they find out what you are all about.
Get rid of the “Welcome to my site” messages, and instead be clear and direct as close to the top of your homepage as you can. Write 200-300 words of permanent intro text to really outline for your customers who you are and what you do.
Nothing will lose customers faster for you than hard to find info and lots of clicking to get to the meat of what your business is all about. The more customers have to click and wait for pages to load, the faster they will leave your site these days.
Have a marketing strategy in place that is more than build a website and wait for customers to knock down your door!
You MUST use a variety of methods to draw customers in to your business not just the “if you build it they will come” approach. You have to get in front of their faces, over, and over, and over again. Here are some areas you might have forgotten about incorporating into your marketing strategy.
- Web Page Copy – every page counts, make it memorable and compelling!
- Blog Posts – go back to #2 and re-read if you need a reason why.
- Guest Blog Posts – show you are the authority!
- Landing Pages that convert – don’t lose customers along the way, guide them to the destination you want them to go!
- Press Releases – you can get quality links back to your site if you do this one right.
- Web videos (and post them all over the place! Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, your website, LinkedIn, etc.)
- Podcasts – create authority and build an audience.
- Slideshare Presentations
- Social Media Posts – draw people to your site from your social media platforms, don’t overlook this step!
- Infographics – People search for them, make sure yours is well thought out, gives valuable information, is posted on your site with the content of the Infographic also outlined in printed text, and use alt-tags on the infographic to make the best use of this marketing tool.
- Webinars – while not quite as popular as they once were, IF you do them right, with great content, you can still get a lot of interest and show yourself as an authority in your field.
- eBooks & Whitepapers – all that blog content can be turned into valuable downloadable content for your audience that will bring them back or help you get email contact information in exchange for these nuggets of wisdom from your business.
Remember SEO isn’t an overnight thing, it takes time and it takes marketing your business effectively to get clients that are right for you and right for your services.
