Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Do You Google?
Online search has existed for over 20 years, yet has grown enormously in the past 5-6 years. With global growth due to faster bandwidths, advanced mobile device technologies, the popularity of social media and increased consumer confidence in e-commerce safety, these are very powerful reasons why businesses need search engine optimization.
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, has become very valuable in identifying strengths and weaknesses in a website, and in a business itself. This also allows us to try new things and helps us learn what works and what doesn’t, so we can keep growing the business, raising our bottom line, and tackling issues when they first arise.
Why SEO is Important for Your Business
Reason #1: If people can’t find you, they can’t buy from you.
Reason #2: 8 out of 10 consumers research online before purchasing.
Reason #3 Search is one of the most powerful influences when a consumer is considering which brand or product to purchase. If your website isn’t on page one in a Google search, but your competitor is, who’s going to get that customer’s business?
Yellow Pages vs. Google
Less than a decade ago, our primary resource tool for finding things to buy was the Yellow Pages Phonebook. Even when we let our fingers do the walking, we’d still visit a shop or two before making a purchase.
- Do you still use the Yellow Pages?
- Where do you go to learn about the products or services you want to buy?
- Why do you specifically use Google? How often do you use that search engine?
- When using a search engine, how do you decide where to click? Why?
These are all questions we need to consider when thinking about how our customers go about looking for our services. We want to know exactly where they are when they’re ready to buy, and be there before or ahead of our competitors (ie. higher search engine rankings).
Local Optimization
Another way to competitively optimize your business over other local competitors is to explore your social media channels. Using the right Local Optimization tools, we can help you reach out to the neighborhood and location-specific audiences.
Find your Local Twitter Audience
We can show you how to pinpoint people who tweet about your company, products or brand within a distance of 1 to 1,000 miles from a particular city or zip code
Find Local Customers and Prospects on Facebook
Did you know you have local optimization choices beyond FB advertising or reaching others through your personal profile? Use your Facebook as a Fan Page and post comments on FB pages that would attract your targeted local customers.
Be Prepared to Respond to Fans and Critics
Thank your fans for their support; they’ll be thrilled that you’ve taken the time to respond and that they’ve been heard. As for bad reviews or comments, this is your chance to defend your brand. It’s really all about how you respond to any criticisms that counts. Not only does your response impact future fans, but it may also turn around any wayward or disgruntled customers.
More Local Optimization Tips
- Place your local street address and phone number on the footer of every page on your website
- Create a “Contact Us” page – include all your contact information
- Have more than one location? Create a page for each location, listing their respective contact details. Make it unique by adding anything specific to that location: map and directions, customer reviews by people who live in that area, area photos or landmarks, and a Google map with a link to driving directions.
- Set up or Claim your Business Listing on Google and Bing.
- Set up or Claim your Business Listing in Top Local Directories
These are just a few reasons why you and your business need SEO.
If you think this is something you’d like to do better than your competitors, KKom is a professional SEO services company, ready to be part of your team and increase your bottom line! Contact us today for more information.