We’ve all heard the expression “less is more,” and when it comes to comes to some things, that is absolutely true. When it comes to SEO efforts, however, local search engine optimization agencies have learned that that is not the case. In terms of cliches, search engine optimization is much more of a “you get what you pay for” situation. Get in touch with us today to discuss how SEO fits into your digital marketing strategy.
Search Engine Optimization is the practice of optimizing your website content to be discovered by search engines. This makes your website rank higher on the search engine results pages (or SERPs) so that you have a better chance of being discovered by customers searching for businesses like yours.
The short answer is yes.
The longer answer is absolutely! The number one goal of your local search engine optimization agency is to improve organic visibility and make it easier for your customers to find you. People can’t make conversions on your website if they can't find it! And chances are, no one will find your site if it’s not on page one of Google. In fact, based on a study done this year by Backlinko on over 4 million Google search results, less than 1% of searchers will bother going to page 2 of the SERPs! The key takeaway here is the more visibility and presence you can give your website and your brand, the better. But you have to do it right! Having a well built, properly structured website with on-page SEO elements, an active well written blog, and a social media presence that benefits your customers will help move you up the search results page and into those high-ranking spots.
SEO is a marathon, not a sprint! While local search engine optimization agencies, such as Smart WSI Marketing, would love to give you a timeline, we just can’t. The results take ongoing effort and are not a stop and go process. Consistent effort and trust in the process is the name of the SEO game. Be patient, trust in your agency, and the results will come.
One of the biggest questions local search engine optimization agencies get asked when onboarding a new client is “how much SEO do I need” and the bluntest we can be with our answer is:
As much as you can afford!!
This is simply because the more content you put out the more pages you have for google to crawl and index, more opportunities to get discovered and found.
A bit more modest of an answer is as much as (or a bit more than) your competitors are doing. You want to at least keep up with you competitors when it comes to marketing and advertising. If you aren’t keeping up with them, you aren’t competing, are you?
If you can afford to beat them, do it!
If we’re being completely transparent here, maybe you can. But unless you have a lot of extra time, and a particular interest in SEO, you might not want to go it alone. Again, SEO is time consuming and its own area of expertise. It’s my full-time job! It takes consistent effort in content creation, keeping up with Google’s constant algorithm updates, and evolving industry standards.
“I’ve read that SEO doesn’t really cost anything, so why is it the most expensive part of my digital marketing package?”
Well, it’s not exactly true. When people say that SEO doesn’t cost anything, they mean you can’t just buy the first rank. But a lot of hard work goes into make your website and content good enough to earn a ranking on page one. You’re paying for the expertise of your local search engine optimization agency and access to their software and platforms (believe me, you don’t want to know how much we spend on that!) SEO is a fickle mistress. The guidelines and standards change often, and it’s our job to keep up with what it takes to stay on top. A busy business owner such as yourself doesn’t have the time to keep up with our industry as well as your own! Hiring local search engine optimization agency is also often much more cost-effective than in-house marketing, by the time you pay those staff members salaries (and those software and platform fees we mentioned!)
When you think of SEO your mind might go directly to keywords but it’s a little more complicated and involved than you might think. There’s more that goes into it than just picking a word that seems to make sense and scattering it through a blog post and your website and calling it a day.
Local search engine optimization agencies carry out extensive keyword research to identify what keywords will perform well based on your industry, competitors, locale, searcher intent and more. We identify synonyms and other variations as well to avoid missing out on opportunities (for example, you might refer to your product as a “sofa”, but the majority of your customers are actually searching for “couches” or “chesterfields.”) We also build out long tail versions of your keywords that have lower search volume, but higher conversion value, as those searchers are looking for something much more specific.
After all of that research, keywords must be expertly placed. They need to be conversationally used, and not awkwardly stuffed in in hopes of ranking for that specific word phrase. Google can tell that’s what you’re trying to do, and you’ll actually get penalized for it. Your keywords need to be used often enough that it’s obvious that that is subject of your article or blog post, but not so much that it’s awkward and robotic.
Content creation is so much more than just a blog post here and there. Blog writing is an art. A nerdy, niche, not-for-everyone art. Content for SEO should be educational, helpful, and engaging. When searchers find your blog, most of the time, they are not looking to buy something. They are looking for an answer to a question or help with a problem. You are offering them value in the form of knowledge before you ever offer them a sales opportunity. This builds trust and authority in your brand. Expertise, authority, and trust (or EAT) not only inspires confidence from your customer base, but it improves your SEO signals too.
Google also craves fresh content to crawl and index. With every helpful blog post you add, with your expertly placed keywords, you’re feeding Google more content to index, and more information to rank you with. This is one of the reasons why we say, “more is more.” The more you give Google, the more signals they have to rank you by!
There are more forms of content to explore such as:
All of these will help your organic visibility, if they are appropriate for your business and your customer base. An analysis done with your digital market agency can help you decide which styles of content are worth your efforts.
Once you have created your content, you need to promote it so that your potential readers (potential potential customers!) can find it. Post links to your content on your business social media pages so that your followers can see it and share it with their friends and family.
You may have heard of “white hat” and “black hat” SEO tactics. This is essentially the battle of good vs evil in the SEO world. Personally, it makes me think of the old Spy vs. Spy comics!
White hat techniques are the tried-and-true SEO techniques that are proven to be effective and provide real value to both the client and their customers.
These include:
Black hat techniques are spammy, shady techniques that may seem to have a quick pay off but will likely earn a slap on the wrist from Google, and a drop in rankings.
Black hat services may seem cheaper at first, but they will cost you in the long run!
For most things in life, it is quality over quantity. With SEO both are crucial. A skilled Local search engine optimization agency will be able to analyze your competition to find a starting off point to match your competitors' efforts and then build out a strategy and produce high quality content that people will find valuable during their search. Working with experts who know the ins and outs of SEO is always going to get you the best value for your budget! Our team of talented professionals will craft a custom SEO plan for you to help you crush your marketing goals while you focus on running your business. Get in touch with us today for a free consultation!
Lynne is known for her strategic approach to marketing communications, technologies, and lead generation. She has a passion for education, keeping up with current marketing trends and practices, and helping clients keep ahead of their competition.
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