The Five Things You Should Be Doing to Help Your SEO Strategy
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)… more like Search Engine Overwhelming! But it really doesn’t have to be this way! I’m here to take the bewilderment out of SEO, but to do that; I also need to explain some of the things that you can do to ensure that your Account Driver here at Get More Traffic can perform SEO wonders for your business. The fact that you are reading this tells me that you are either, 1) already using SEO for your business, or 2) you are interested in doing so. You really couldn’t be investing in a smarter long-term investment for your business performance online. However, embarking on your SEO with us here at Get More Traffic is a two-way street. Confused? Don’t worry, I’ll explain.
- In the early days of your account with us, we really need you to keep the lines of communication open. In order for our Account Drivers to achieve your SEO business goals, they need to frequently talk with you to learn exactly what you want to execute. The SEO campaigns our Account Drivers enforce requires heavy involvement from their clients (that’s you!) but particularly at the beginning of your working relationship, which is why they need to be able to get in touch with you easily.
- In saying the above, our Account Drivers are already researching and working away on your account even before their first conversation with you. We realise time is precious, so we want to know what we’re talking about and show we’ve done our homework before we get you on the phone. So don’t stress if you don’t hear from them straight away. In order to perform thorough research and background checks on your business and industry, they need one to two days to carry this off to our high standards.
- This one is super important – please have all of your login details handy when your Account Drivers contact you. This includes login details such as: File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Content Management System (CMS), Google My Business and Google Analytics access.
- Get More Traffic prides itself on employing the brightest and most passionate experts in their field, and it is no different with our SEO specialists. This encompasses all that they are, and more. Our SEO staff members are experts in their field, just as you as a business owner are an expert in your industry. The best outcome for your SEO strategy can only be achieved through working together. The combination of your expertise with ours will be a win-win scenario for all.
- Patience, my love, patience (Lord of The Rings, anyone?). Give us time to provide you with all of the information that comes with running your SEO campaigns. While you may at times feel as though the information is not relevant to you, we want you to know what we are working on with your account. It’s important because at the end of the day, you are paying for a service we are providing, and we are proud of the work that we do, so let us showcase this to you. It will bring you a greater understanding of SEO and help your working relationship with your SEO Account Driver.
So there you have it folks. If you ever have any questions about any of the above, you guessed it, you can get in touch with your SEO Account Driver here at Get More Traffic on 1300 332 256 at any time and they will be more than happy to help you out. Or, you could visit our website for even more resources and information.
For those who aren’t designers, and let’s face it, a lot of us aren’t, there are some amazing internet programs which anyone can sign up to for free, which enable users to create highly appealing images for a range of platforms. Whether it be for email, social media posts, blogs, newsletters, company reports and virtually any type of marketing collateral your business distributes, there is no reason why you can’t engage your audience with appealing visuals.
We are finding that more and more, users are much more likely to be engaged with content, of any type if it is visually appealing and that it complements the purpose of the content. This part is key, so you will do well to remember it – your visuals must have a purpose. They must be connected to the message you are attempting to portray. Don’t do it for the sake of doing it, and make sure that it aligns with your business branding too.
You will have heard the saying, ‘a picture tells a thousands words’, or at least some variation of this. What this saying tells us is that users are able to make a connection with an image in a way they just can’t with the written word. It’s why social media platforms such as Facebook are tweaking their algorithms to allow visuals and video content greater organic access to followers. YouTube as a platform is growing exponentially.
Now having brought up the topic of video content, I cannot escape talking about how costly it can be to produce. If you’re looking into creating video content with a film crew, actors, proper lighting equipment, and location; then be prepared to pay big bucks for it. Let’s be realistic; there are not many SMEs who can afford this luxury. So how can you create video content at a fraction of the cost?
Believe it or not, a half-decent camera with recording capabilities, a small wireless microphone, which can be purchased at a minimum cost, and a room with good lighting, practically anyone can create video content. You could create a weekly video blog and post it to your website and social media accounts. You could create easy-to-understand ‘How To’ video content for your website, or even as an after-care service once a customer has purchased a specific product.
There is so much more to visual storytelling than video content. If you begin to think along the lines of image-heavy blogs, infographics, and social media posts, then soon a world of visual content opportunity opens up. Programs such as Canva.com and Infogr.am are just two examples of easy-to-use, free to sign up, online platforms, which allow you to create appealing visuals to suit your needs.
You needn’t create brand new visuals for each and every piece of content you want to create, either. Repurpose it! Yep, we all do it, and there is no reason why you can’t do the same with your visuals. Imagine if you create a series of social media posts which all relate to a competition you run for your followers; you would use the same image across these posts to create a sense of continuity and recognition. Once your followers have been exposed to the image associated with the competition, they will instantly recognise the image and make the connection to the competition, without even having to read the content that accompanies it.
What about the visual-rich platform of Instagram? If you own a restaurant or café, do your research and find online influencers in your industry. Yes, I am talking about those people who take photos of their food and post them to their Instagram accounts. If you find the right people within your city or town, you will be amazed at the number of followers these people attract. There is often a very little cost involved too, apart from the free meal businesses will offer influencers in order to have their business name mentioned, and, therefore, recommended.
Visual content is changing the face of the web. Don’t get me wrong, the written word is still, and always will be, highly relevant and important, especially when it comes to your website and your SEO strategy, for example. But the way in which users can absorb the written word can be made so much more engaging with the right use of visual content. So why don’t you give it a go? If you’re looking for advice, you know you can always chat to your Account Driver here at Get More Traffic; we’re always willing to help drive your business. Call us today on 1300 332 256 or visit our website.
Keep It Real with Social Media
Are your social media interactions feeling a bit stale? Probably because they are! Social media is where users have an opportunity to be social with each other. They are not there with the intention of purchasing anything, so you must remember that your business is there almost as a side thought, but it doesn’t mean your interactions with them are! It means that your interactions with your target audience must reflect the social nature of the platform. If you are only pushing promotions and e-commerce specials, then your target audience will soon ignore you, because you are not fitting the criteria of the platform you are on.
Incorporating your USP in Ad Copy
If you want to stand out from your competitor’s you need to be able to communicate why. Are your products or services cheaper? Do you provide 24/7 technical support? Do you have free shipping? You must be able to succinctly say why a consumer should choose you over the competition. If you can’t articulate this, why should anyone listen to you?
Any successful business will possess a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) whether that is a product or service which has the greatest potential or profit power. So that you can align your USP with your advertising efforts, you must learn to incorporate it in the vast majority of your ad copy.
Why You Need to Stop Searching Google for your Ad Now!
Offline marketing is notoriously difficult to measure and track which is why online marketing methods such as Google AdWords are growing more and more in popularity.
When you first sign up to traditional advertising methods, such as television, radio, and print, there is always a certain amount of satisfaction you feel when you see your ad. A smile spreads across your face as you see the result of the money you spent for the advertising as you imagine how many other people will be exposed to your ad as well (see what I did there?!). How do you measure the success of your ad beyond seeing it yourself?
With online marketing methods, you can measure and track the effectiveness of each ad, and each campaign. But what happens when you go to Google your ad and you don’t see it? A frown appears across your brow and you wonder why you can’t see it. Where is it? You search again and still you can’t find it; what is going on?! I’m here to tell you exactly why this might be the case and what you could be doing to actually hurt the intentions of your AdWords campaign.
Your Road to Mobile Optimisation
How important is your smartphone to you? If you’re anything like me, I think losing my smartphone would stress me out a whole lot more than losing my wallet! If you had asked me the same question ten years ago though, the answer would have been very different. The point I’m trying to make is our smartphones are arguably the most important devices we carry around with us. We put so much information in them. We heavily rely on them to communicate with others via text, phone, email and social media and, to keep up with news within our social circles to international events. We have become so accustomed to getting the information we need and desire now.
Top Ten Tips on How to Stay Competitive in an ever increasing Digital Market
Remember that kid at school who was always fiercely competitive in everything they did? Regardless of if it was a spelling bee or the athletics carnival, they wanted to win it all. You know what? You can learn a lesson or two from that kid you remember at school, because in all likelihood they possess a few characteristics which are vital to successful business in the digital market.
I’m a great observer. I can pick out personality traits in people and determine what types of scenarios and situations they’ll overcome or fail. The same goes for business owners (yes, I mean you). Because you know what, your customers can sense it too. Your employees can sense it. If you’re competitive, it probably means you’re fairly determined as well, and people will naturally be drawn to you. But just being a competitive person doesn’t equal success. I’ve roamed and wandered the world wide web, listened to people like you, observed and watched and as a result, I’ve come up with ten tips you need in order to stay competitive online.
- Don’t always keep it the same
Mix it up! Run several online campaigns at once and see which one works best. Don’t just stick to one and sit on your hands (gross by the way)! If it’s one thing you have to be aware of, the only constant in the online marketplace is change. Like the ocean, the current pulls this way and that, the tide goes in and goes out. Online is never stagnant, so neither should you.
- Determine what you want to achieve
Do you have a specific ROI you need to hit? Have you got a specific goal in place which you know you need to reach before the financial year is up? If your only goal sounds like, ‘to make a profit’ then yes, you’re on the right playing field, but you’re playing in the wrong position. Get specific! What steps must you take in order to make a profit? These are goals too. Recognise them as such.
- Make Progress.
Tackle your goal with small steps to help you feel like you’re making progress. This intrinsically ties in with the point above. If you have a goal set for June, every morning in March is going to feel so far away and you will inevitably lose your competitive edge. Ever heard that productivity is helped with positive encouragement? If you do this for yourself through setting small goals to reach your ultimate one, you’ll be so more aware of the progress you’re making (duh).
- Put in the time and effort
Don’t be afraid if this means money, if necessary. You reap what you sow. Putting in the time and effort to your strategic marketing initiatives will help you to track and collect data so you can make better, informed decisions.
- Don’t go it alone
Use the expertise you have access to. Can I let you in on a secret? Nothing irritates me more than someone who won’t take smart and intelligent advice. Yes, you are your own boss, but, if you don’t listen to the specialty knowledge of those you pay, whether that be a contractor or an employee, why have them there?
- De-stress
You can’t be competitive if you’re making yourself sick with stress. Try to schedule in time over your weekend, or whenever you get a chance away from your business, to totally chill. Turn off your phone. Look after your health. Your business will thank you for it.
- Embrace the lows to get to the highs.
There are going to be bad days. Use them and learn from them. To actually stay competitive, you have to know how to learn from mistakes. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if the mistake is your, or not. No one got to the top without starting somewhere near the bottom.
- Educate yourself
If you commit to be constant learning, you’ll equip yourself with up-to-date knowledge and information. Consumers make judgements in the space of mere seconds, and seemingly irrelevant things, such as how quick your website loads, can either equal a new conversion for you, or your competitor. If you educate yourself, you’ll know that sometimes you just have to sweat the small stuff. Also, if consumers are purchasing something from you, they want to feel safe about it. Project yourself as an expert and you stomp down any buyer’s remorse.
- Listen to your consumers.
An amazing example is the idea of the ‘mountain bike’, or as they were originally called, ‘clunkers’. Mountain bikes were created by the consumer. If you’re listening to your consumers, your chances of being privy to a new idea, a new USP dramatically increases. If you’re listening to your customers, you’re likely to stay competitive.
- A great predictor of true success?
It’s not social intelligence, or your IQ score, as you might think. It’s determined grit. You need to treat your endeavours as a marathon, not a sprint.
Yes, I can picture you nodding your head in agreement with me now (even as I’m nodding my head as I type this sentence). Implement these and you’ll wish you had that competitive kid’s number from school, just so you can ask for a re-match in that class quiz. Well we can’t give you that number, but we can certainly give you ours (which is way better FYI). Give us a buzz on 1300 332 256, or visit our site and we’ll work on a competitive online business plan with you.