When your small business is looking to rank on SERPs – search engine result pages – you need all the help you can get. Though Google keeps its exact algorithm for ranking pages top secret, you can help your name show up higher on SERPs organically when with just a few tweaks to your digital marketing strategy.
How to Make It Easy for Google to Find You
Keep these tips in mind to attract Google and increase your search engine optimization, or SEO.
• Have a Strong Digital Presence
An untended website is nearly the same as not having one at all. Google needs to see your website as something that’s alive, so keep it updated and add content regularly. What that content is depends on your business – a blog, weekly updates, or news section are all options for keeping your website fresh.
• Leverage Keywords
When you create content, consider the kinds of words people would use to find your business and include them in your content. Keep location in mind, too. Google’s crawlers will look for those keywords in your content. Avoid “keyword stuffing”— adding in keywords throughout text in non-natural ways. If Google sees such tactics, it may do more than ignore you; it may demote your site.
• Don’t Neglect Social Media
If you haven’t created social media accounts for your business, start today. Consider your target audience and do some research on where they spend their time. Choose one or two platforms, and make sure you share content on your website across channels. When you share content on these platforms, it’s another signal to Google that your business deserves recognition.
Find Your People
When you create content – be it digital or traditional – consider how best to engage with your target audience. No matter how strong your digital reach or valuable your content, if you’re talking to the wrong people, they won’t listen. Once you reach the right people, you get more traffic, Google notices you more, and others can more easily find you. Once they do, your valuable content will keep them there, giving Google another reason to notice you.
