Remember when small business used the Yellow Pages as their only means of marketing? Now small business must use search engine optimisation (SEO) strategies to keep on top of competitors.
A decade ago perhaps a website was enough for a small business to gain a competitive edge. Now having a website is only about half the equation. An effective online marketing strategy for small business needs so much more than a whiz bang website.
Lets take a look at some powerful SEO strategies that small business can use to get them ranked highly by Google and others, increase website traffic and convert leads to sales:
1. Are you using the right keywords: Research keywords well, place them strategically but don’t over do it.
2. Social media strategies: Use Facebook and Twitter for effective SEO but ensure that you are using these social media platforms for credibility and relationship building.
3. Blogging: Use keywords in your own blogs and blog on other relevant blogs to build your industry credibility and boost website traffic.
4. Search directories: Submit your site to Google, Yahoo, MSN AltaVista and other search engines.
5. Lots of content: Content is king and the key to effective internet marketing. A website that has good SEO usually has more than 5 pages. The more pages on your website the more chance you have lots of keywords working well for you. Don’t forget to use images for SEO.
6. Link Building: One of the most effective SEO strategies there is. The key is to get linked by popular and credible websites which does great things for your SEO.
7. Forums: Post interesting content on relevant industry online forums and use a signature block with a link to your website.
8. Online articles: Another effective SEO strategy. HubPages, InfoBarrel, EzineArticles are just some article platforms which allow you to write interesting material related to your business and link back to your website.
9. Ad campaigns: Obviously there is Google AdWords, and Facebook as popular online advertising platforms. But again some work is required to pick the right keywords.
10. Answers: You can use Yahoo and WikiAnswers to answer questions relating to your business and this can be a great way to achieve SEO through trust marketing.
These are some of the many ways to achieve SEO for your small business website. There are many other strategies available to get your website up the search engine rankings. What is needed though is an appreciation that online marketing takes a concerted and consistent effort. Yes this means that time needs to be invested into a solid and synchronised online marketing campaign that is designed to generate leads which convert to sales.
Many small businesses have fallen into a trap of using off site marketing e.g. social media, to spam their target market. This just results in frustration and sometimes anger.
Small businesses must recognise the power of building rapport through trust marketing which results in the consolidation of your expertise. Only then will people enjoy receiving posts and tweets from you that directly promote your products and services.
Small businesses can really ramp up their online presence by way of tailored and specific online marketing consulting. This way they are getting the right information tailored just for their business. Want the inside secrets to powerful and profitable online marketing?
