An increasing number of small businesses are beginning to understand the importance of having an online presence for growth and success. But amidst the sea of industrial contenders seeking the prized position-zero on Google’s search list, is it even possible to get noticed? The answer is YES!

Improving your visibility on digital channels can be done with the help of a few effective and simple techniques that also improve the overall marketing campaign efforts in relation to media outreach, reviews and ratings, and social media platforms.

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, helps businesses move up search result rankings. Despite the fact that Google’s algorithm updates every so often, there are a few core concepts which remain relatively unchanged and can prove to be cost-effective tools in gaining the edge against competition.

In this blog, we take a look at a few essential SEO tips for small businesses.

Be Interactive On Social Media Platforms

The year 2018 saw nearly 3.2 billion people use social media. To put that into perspective, that’s nearly half of the entire human population. Needless to say, if you want your business to gain local visibility, you’ll have to be more proactive with your social media strategy. This includes engaging customers via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and other popular networking platforms. An increase in the number of people following your page and sharing your content will improve search engine rankings for your web pages.

Ideas for effectively engaging with customers include conducting giveaways and promotions, releasing updates on new product, and sharing relevant news and stories with your followers. Be quick to respond to queries and keep a watchful eye for negative comments and reviews. Responding and addressing such grievances aids in creating a ‘human’ side of the brand.

Optimize Information On Your Company’s Website

Your website plays the role of your store in an online environment and requires proper optimization to be noticed in search results. It should reflect a level of complexity and sophistication. Some important things to implement on your web page include:

• Adding appropriate keywords for page titles that correlate with your business, its location, and its product and services.
• Listing your business’ name, phone number, and address not only on the contact or homepage but also on each individual webpage.
• Creating a domain name which preferably includes both the company’s name as well as the location. For example “garysgymflorida.com”
• Apart from highlighting your product and/or services, it is vital to include as much information related to your location as possible. Incorporating Google Map, nearby locations, streets, and restaurants help to push up your webpage in the search engine rankings.

Register with Google Analytics

Using webmaster tools will only provide information from the search engine’s perspective whereas Google Analytics allows access to information from the user’s perspective.

Understanding how users interact with your website allows you to offer them a better experience by improving the quality of the content as well as the website layout and design. These analytics grant an unique insight into issues such as where the majority of your traffic comes from, the keywords searches used to locate your webpage, as well as popular landing, exit, and visited pages.

Also, Register with Google Places for Business

A major cause of concern for small businesses is discovering how to make their online presence known so that it becomes easier for people to find them on the internet which is exactly what Google Places for business does. Not only is it free, but also comes with the following benefits:

• Your company’s name appears on Google Maps, which is the most popular mapping software out there, both on the mobile (available on Android and iPhone) and web.
• It’s easy to set up and doesn’t require specialized knowledge.
• Greatly helps in improving SEO and makes your business a high priority for local searches.
• People can find out about your business even if they don’t visit your website
• Allows customers to add reviews about your offerings to which you can respond back.

Develop an Appropriate Link Strategy

External links on other websites leading to your page and vice versa, contribute to improving your business’ SEO visibility. It helps to create credibility and authenticity of your business. Some businesses tend to go overboard and needlessly integrate unrelated links which only decreases their overall visibility.

Develop a directory of your local community resources which include nearby restaurants, cultural attractions, stores, schools, and hospitals. It usually results in them doing the same in order to return the favour. Starting a blog about activities and services in your local neighbourhood and linking it back to them is also a good idea. Also, integrate the hosting and sponsoring of local events, charity organizations, and neighbourhood businesses into your strategy and then encourage them to link these events to your website.

Create Content Readable by Search Engines as well

Weird as it may seem, advanced algorithms for websites like Google are able to “read” your content and judge its quality. For small businesses, this should include the following 3 steps:

• Create high quality and relevant content in accordance with the keywords your target audience is using. The content can be in video, audio, images, presentation or infographics, the form doesn’t matter as long as it is accompanied by text.
• It pays to be a minimalist. Small businesses tend to overload their websites with animations, videos, and images in an attempt to compete with the competitor’s better-developed websites. Not only does this cause clutter, but the increased load slows the website. Slow websites are common causes for high bounce rates. It also confuses the search engine when searching for your website.
• Ensure the content and layout of the website allows for user-friendly and easier navigation. It should be structured in a way to that requires the minimal amount of clicks to locate what they’re looking for.

According to a report, nearly half of all small businesses in the US do not own a website. If you are one of them, then you need to step up your game. As a small business, utilizing SEO can help you leap over a significant amount of competitors and gain greater access to your target audience. Our content creation services in Alberta provide small businesses with quality content, guaranteeing consistent growth and a high sales turnover. Contact us today!