Often I get calls about doing a website for a small business and the number one question on the potential clients mind is always, SEO. They want to know what SEO is and how I implement SEO into the website I am to build for them. Although I do follow an SEO guideline I made for myself, my SEO tactics are not always the same. Search engines evolve, and by evolving, my tactics must evolve as well to keep up with the new changes.
Before I can show you this SEO tips list, you need to better understand SEO and what makes this list important.
What is SEO?
Well, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Basically it means optimizing your website pages to not only actually “be found” but to optimize the pages to stand out in the search engines so they have a higher click thru rate. For example: A site not optimized might have a title in google such as “Home – burger joint”. An SEO would make the proper choice to name this something more intriguing to the search surfer. Also it must be named to help it better come up in the search engine rather than be lost amongst the pages. So I would take the title “home – burger joint” and name it “Spokane Burger Joint – Serving Up Delicious Burgers Since 1921”.
Why hire a professional SEO when you can just buy SEO for $99 a month?
Because, a computer cannot do SEO for you in a way a human can. A human being, particularly one that understands SEO and has a decent skill with writing, will far surpass what any computer can “automatically” do for you. Don’t get me wrong, SEO’s do use programs which can automate SEO for us, but a good SEO doesn’t let the computer make all the choices. Good SEO’s use these programs as tools or guides into better pointing them in the right direction rather than taking them literally.
Don’t get fooled by these cheap $99 a month SEO packages. They don’t get results.
Should I hire an SEO company that has called me on the phone or emailed me?
Don’t be blinded by seo scammers
No. Probably not the best choice. Do you know that these companies call EVERYONE? Yes, they do. They even call me all the time. The first word out of their mouths are “Hey we saw your website and wanted to offer you SEO services because we noticed that you don’t come up for potential keywords that you could” and I say…”oh really? Please, tell me what I’m doing wrong and I would love to learn more about how you can help me.” That’s when they actually DO pull up my website and then I hear a CLICK! They hang up on me….
If you are serious about SEO for your website, search around the web and call some local SEO’s or ones that are at least in your country. Talk with a few of them and think about the choice you make before you commit. Who you let into your website to make changes is a big deal. You don’t want to make a mistake only to have hire another SEO to fix the mistakes later down the road. This will only take your company backwards rather than forwards and cost you more money in the end.
How do I get on the first page of Google?
Great question. Answer: don’t worry about it. That’s the first thing you must understand and come to terms with. Worry about the people reading your material, NOT GOOGLE. That is the best SEO advice you will ever get. Am I crazy, no. I’m experienced and an expert in SEO. I’ve seen results in what I do and my clients do with my advice. Plain and simple, it works.
If it’s one thing SEO’s get annoyed with hearing it’s “I want to be on the first page”. Really? well, for what? There are many ways you can actually TRY to be on the first page. But it all depends on the keyword terms you are asking about. Is it “Lawyer”? or “Spokane Lawyer”? Or perhaps its “Spokane Divorce Lawyer“? These are all 3 very different keyword terms. Do you think that you would be on page one for all of them? No. One term? Maybe. Be specific to your needs when calling your SEO.
How long does it take to see SEO results?
Depends on how much time or money you devote to it. SEO is a never ending process. It isn’t something that is just done overnight. If you have more time than money, you can blog, vlog, market and socialize. If you have more money than you do time, you can hire someone to do all this for you. That is where SEO’s come in.
An Awesome spokane web design and video production company once gave me some great advice “blogging is like jogging. you only get out of it, what you put into it.” In fact, right now I am helping my own website’s SEO by writing this blog article. It creates new keywords, pages, and fresh updated content for my site. Google will see my site as active and alive, rather than dead in space. Active sites with visitors get priority.
Bottom line, if you are concerned about SEO, you cannot just let you website sit in space. It needs to stay active. Now that you understand some SEO basic FAQ’s, here is your list to follow this year.
2018 SEO Tips and Tactics List
- Install SSL.
- Make sure your website has a mobile friendly design and framework.
- Blog, as much as you possibly can. If you don’t know what you should blog about, ask friends and family. Most the time you can just blog about your expertise. Be helpful. For example: I’m an SEO expert, so it’ sonly natural I blog about SEO, WordPress, web design etc…
- Create SEO friendly Titles and Meta Tags using the free and great Yoast SEO Plugin.
- Vlog, as much as you possibly can. Youtube is not only owned by Google, it’s the second largest search engine in the world. How can you pass up video blogging? I see man companies who are doing it right. Make “how to” videos. Funny videos. Engaging videos. Be an expert in your field.
- Socialize as much as you possibly can. Use social media to connect with your audience. It’s my opinion that social media is not an option for every business. But, if you can find a way to make it work, do it.
- If your a local business, enter your site into Local listings. There are dozens of listings you can add your business details to but some of the big boys are Yelp, Yellow pages, Yahoo business listings, Google +, and Bing Business listings. When you register as a legitimate business, you will be taken more seriously in the search engines.
- Market your website. Marketing doesn’t have to cost a ton of money. It can be as simple as adding your website address to your reciepts. Creating an advertising magnet or vinyl lettering/wrap to add to your vehicle. Put a QR code in places where people can scan with a phone and get to your website.
- Redesign your website. ok, perhaps you get people to your website, buy why aren’t they calling you? Could it be because you are unaware that half the people visiting your site are coming thru mobile phones and can’t easily navigate your website? Could it be that your website is just really unorganized, or shall I just say….ugly. Yes, an ugly site can turn people away. It’s common sense that has been around for years. Pretty things get more attention. It’s a fact of life. Invest in the best web designer you can hire and they will help you reorganize and revamp your site for the 2014 user market. (Bonus, hire a web designer who implements SEO. Hint: It’s me )
- Create SEO friendly images. https://www.imore.com/how-rename-multiple-files-once-mac
- If you business is local, localize your SEO
- Scout your competition and do something different.
Sources
Forbes – Will Google My Business Kill SEO?
Moz – Beginners Guide to SEO
Stat’s To Understand SEO
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