How to Use SEO to Attract Customers to Your Business

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When used properly, SEO can drive traffic to your website, boost sales, and attract more customers to your business. Whether you’re a one (wo)man show or you have an entire team at your disposal, your company will benefit by increasing your knowledge and use of SEO.

WHAT DOES SEO MEAN?

SEO is short for Search Engine Optimization. It’s the practice of driving traffic to a webpage by boosting your organic search results on search engines such as Google, Bing, or Yahoo. Search engines utilize all sorts of complex algorithms to determine which results land where on the search page. You use SEO to shift the results in your favor, so your website or product appears higher (and thus more likely to be clicked) than your competitors.

HOW DOES IT BENEFIT MY BUSINESS?

The more visible you company is on Google and other search engines, the more traffic you’re going to get, plain and simple. Imagine your customer is searching for dog beds to purchase. Most people will click on one of the top five search results that come up. Which means if your dog bed company is on the second or third page of search results, you’re in trouble. The beauty of SEO is it’s all free marketing! This is one key way it differs from SEM (Search Engine Marketing). (An example of SEM can be seen in those paid ads that appear at the top of search engine results pages. )

WHERE SHOULD YOU USE IT?

It’s a good idea for everyone in your company to have at least a basic grasp of SEO’s best practices, even if you have a dedicated SEO team. You’ll use SEO in blog posts, articles, product pages, and landing pages. You’ll also use it in places that aren’t necessarily visible to the consumer, such as URLs and meta tags.

WHAT ARE SEO BEST PRACTICES?

  • Use a lot of keywords and phrases that your customer might search for. Think of synonyms and phrases associated with your product or service.
    • For example, a law firm would want to use SEO keywords like the following when promoting their business: best law practice, affordable lawyer, attorney, courtroom, legal counsel.
  • But don’t overuse keywords. At the same time, your page should sound natural. Most search engines will penalize pages that sound robotic, even if you use a lot of keywords. This robotic content also doesn’t create a good experience for your customers.
    • This dog bed is the best dog bed. This dog bed is a great gift. Your dog will love this fluffy dog bed. TOO ROBOTIC!
  • And don’t repeat content. If you sell products, every product page should have a unique description.
  • Your customers or clients should remain the priority. Answer their questions, address their concerns, and explain why you’re the best. Business will follow.

As your company grows, you may even want to consider hiring on a staff person who is an SEO specialist. But even if you don’t, by arming yourself with the basic tools and knowledge above, you’re in much better shape to succeed! For more success tips, contact me here.