We often see advice columns that list five or 10 SEO steps you need to take for your website to enjoy top rankings in search results. The steps usually are all good and can help make your website ready for the long journey, but they along won’t get you to your destination.
Think of it like your car. Before taking a trip, it’s common to make sure the vehicle is in good shape so you’re confident you’ll reach your destination. But you still have to plan the trip, feed yourself and the car along the way, and adjust the route when you encounter obstacles.
Like an auto tune-up, some of the steps in readying a website for high online visibility are easy, especially if you are taking a strategic approach, with a destination in mind.
Like the road trip, the first thing to consider is your destination. What’s your goal for the website as it relates to your business goals?
Do you have an e-commerce site and expect to sell products?
Do you expect to generate leads on the website?
Do you expect the website to primarily serve as a “validator” that confirms your business stature to potential customers who have heard about your business through other marketing or public relations?
The purpose of your website will help determine your search engine optimization approach.
If you expect to sell items or generate leads, the intensity of ongoing search engine optimization can be far greater than needed for validator websites. You’ll need to make sure the site is set up properly and has content that satisfies a searcher’s intent. You’ll need to add and update content on a regular basis. You’ll need to increase visibility of the site elsewhere on the web. And you’ll need to engage marketing and PR activities that drive people to the website.
Even with all that, you might be frustrated with the results. We’ve seen plenty of situations where website pages that follow SEO best practices rank lower than sites that barely comply with the basics. Sometimes, that comes down to intent – what Google and Bing perceive to be the intent of someone doing a search. That’s why keyword research is essential. That research should include internal discussions – especially asking your sales team about the words people use to describe your products or services. It also involves using potential keywords in searches and seeing what Google or Bing serve up. If the results don’t match what you sell, focus SEO efforts on different keywords.
Search engine optimization isn’t a one-time action. Yes, it’s important to get your website in good shape, but you also need to feed it and adjust it in the longterm if you want to reach your destination. We’re ready to help you reach your destination via strategic SEO.