We help small business owners be found all over the United States. In providing foundational online marketing services we create and manage websites, lead paid advertising, nurture customer segments in email and manage organic rankings with Search Engine Optimization techniques.
We’re especially privileged to help our customers grow affordably year after year. These business owners and independent franchise owners are understandably confused by the deluge of conflicting news reports regarding SEO: “I read somewhere that SEO was on the way out and that keywords are dead. I am confused…”
Just like Mark Twain, the rumors of SEO’s death have been greatly exaggerated. What was true years ago is no longer — a decade or more ago it was quite easy to ‘game the Google system’ with techniques like keyword stuffing and fraudulent back links. If you knew how to stuff your competitors names into the meta tags on your site, or so the legend goes, presto! You would leap above those competitors in your rankings (until the next week when they did the same thing to you.) But those days are long over, the Google algorithms have been too smart for shady tricks like these for several years now.
So SEO is most certainly not dead. But it is constantly changing and the software algorithms are getting smarter. Here’s our advice, based on years of hard work and ongoing analysis of hundreds of websites: start by creating a terrific experience for your customers. Give them what they want. So what do they want? Clear, consistent information? The ability to reach you easily and quickly on any device? And for the all-important first time buyers searching for you now — substantial proof to support your marketing claims — proof like a professional mobile site, customer testimonials, great reviews, case studies, industry awards and accreditations? Almost everyone on the planet wants these things. So start here.
Ranking your site high in Google search results depends on how relevant you are to the searcher’s input when compared to your competitors. Your website ranking is never static, but constantly being influenced by what your business and everyone else’s is doing online. Backend meta tags, site technology and history, depth and breadth of content, the number of positive reviews on your Google Plus page and yes even the keywords you deploy to ‘talk’ to the search algorithms all help influence Google rankings.
Creating excellent content and a terrific user experience for your customers was and still is the best strategy; it’s also why our bundled service for small business owners does exactly this.
Last note, a little lagniappe for all you technophiles who have kindly read this far. Here are a few more links you may enjoy:
http://backlinko.com/google-ranking-factors
May you always be found!
