SEO strategy is a long-term plan aimed at getting your website in front of the maximum number of eyeballs, driving relevant traffic and generating sales.
As with any other business strategy, SEO plans also need to be viewed as an ongoing effort that yields significant ROI if you stick to your plan of action without giving up midway.
SEO is not only to bring in more traffic. It should also multiply leads and conversions through your website. A well-performing website can be your biggest business asset and a powerful marketing tool.
Experts hold the outcomes of SEO to be more important than outputs, thus making the SEO waiting game inevitable when you are giving a major overhaul to your site. But still there are ways in which you can speed up SEO results and benefits.
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#1 Invest in Improving the Technical Aspects of Your Site
An SEO overhaul will require your website to be fast, optimized, and light. A profound SEO audit of your site will help reveal missing tags, broken links, and error pages. Images that do not have alt attributes are not search engine-friendly, and should be updated. Meta titles, descriptions, and other HTML tags can be made searchable and easily comprehensible to users.
Sometimes there are duplicate pages on a site that distract and divide traffic, and an audit enables you to remove duplicate content.
A mobile optimized site is essential in today’s world due to the changed searching patterns of the ‘global’ audience. Responsive sites have a faster loading time which is vital to retain and pull in organic search traffic.
Fixing all the technical aspects of your site itself is time and resource-consuming, but is essential to set the right pitch for SEO optimization. Even by itself, a technically top notch site will increase traffic almost immediately.
#2 Concentrate on Link Building
High-quality backlinks will improve your authority and will help your search rankings improve. All sites on the Web are on the lookout for backlinks, and if you succeed in getting them from high authority sites on a consistent basis, then there will be a massive increase in your website traffic. Building quality links takes creativity, great content, high-value propositions, tireless effort and an in-depth understanding of all online media on which your content appears.
- 404 error pages can turn away visitors from your site. Error pages happen when you have changed your permalinks or site structure, removed pages or when you get a backlink with a misspelled or incorrect link. 301 redirections on 404 pages will direct traffic to correct pages or relevant or related content.
*If the content has been moved temporarily, you can place 302 redirections on 404 pages to link to the suitable content or category.
- Guest blogging is another great way to earn a mention on top blogs and sites. Polish onsite copy with updated and expanded product portfolios, images and user manuals. Publish white papers, FAQs, and articles that will keep your site fresh, active and relevant to Google, helping you pop up in searches.
Fabulous on-site content will not necessarily build links, but it will bring valuable traffic, leads, and ultimately sales which are the end goal of SEO. But this cannot be the sole basis for your SEO strategy. You need to adopt a proactive approach and seek and build the quality backlinks that form the bedrock of a successful SEO plan. However, be careful not to cross into black hat methods.
#3 Incorporate Social Media
Once you have built and established a healthy link profile, cleaned up low quality or spam links, technically optimized your site and invested in a sensible content strategy, it is time to focus on social media platforms to amplify and promote your content. All forms of social media do not work for every business, so choose wisely and decide upon one that suits your business requirements. It is important that you support social media outreach with consistent content creation.
Influencers are the social media stars you need to turn to to build a buzz around your business. They have already done the hard work and developed a loyal and large following on their social media channels, whether it is YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest.
Approach an influencer who will be a natural fit for your business. For example, if you are in restaurant business approach a famous food blogger to link to your site or you can post relevant and useful content on their platform to get natural backlinks. Activating influencers in niche categories to build brand awareness has worked wonders for several companies. The most recent example is that of Universal Studios teaming up with influential marketing company SharkReach to create viewer demand prior to a release of movies.
#4 Create Communities
Communities are a great way to get in touch and interact with your target market. If you are in pet food business, a forum or community for pet owners will get you to know your potential customers up close.
The online personas of a business need to be real, human, humorous, and approachable. Ensure that everything is not about you and your brand. Contribute actively and join discussions that do not have a direct bearing on your product or service.
An active contribution is always noticed by community members. Address pain points and problems expressed by members and contribute to solutions in an honest and straightforward way. Do not promote your brand or product in places or conversations where they are not relevant.
#5 Invest in Talent
SEO is undeniably a waiting game. You wait for rewarding opportunities, exciting social media interactions, and natural and organic growth in traffic. But SEO returns can be hastened if you have the right people on board working for you.
SEO and social media, in particular, are virtual minefields where even a silly mistake can bring your brand equity crashing down. If you are not familiar with online customer outreach and social media marketing activities, ensure you hire a smart and experienced team, or outsource your requirements to a reputed SEO consultant. This will help relieve the burden on your shoulders as well as allow you to concentrate on other critical needs of your growing business.
Conclusion
SEO is one of the most powerful marketing tools available to businesses right now. With a judicious investment of time and money, it will not be difficult to build an SEO strategy that works for you. And do not be disheartened if you have to wait to see ROI; instead, use the time to build a strong foundation for your business which will support future growth and more evolved outreach strategies.
Want to discover more about SEO & understand how you can benefit from an SEO-friendly website? Download this free Beginner’s Guide to SEO:
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