You've put your website out there for everyone to see, it's showing up in searches, and all is well. But have you ever considered which position it is showing? Is it a good position for your business?
If you search "Estate agents in South Wales" in Google, there are over 27,000,000 results. While someone looking for a new marketing agency will probably check out the results on the first page, it's unlikely they'll venture much further than that.
So what can you do to make sure your website stands out from the competition and gets you found in searches such as this?
Make sure your website is optimised for organic traffic
Organic traffic is classed as the visitors that find your website on search engines without you needing to pay to advertise on them.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of improving aspects of your website so that you can move up the results. But remember, this is a process, not an overnight fix.
Some of the reasons you should be using SEO are:
- It does work as long as you put the time and the effort into it.
- It's cost-effective compared to the likes of Pay Per Click advertising.
- Your customers will always be able to find you (unlike Pay Per Click, where you disappear the moment you stop paying).
There is a big downside though, you need to put in the effort for it, and the results don't happen overnight. You need to make sure your website loads quickly and provides your visitors with an experience they want to share with others.
For more tips on keeping on top of Search Engine Optimisation, we posted a 7 point checklist to help you stay on top of SEO to help you out.
Make sure you're showing up in local searches
Most small businesses find their success in having local customers. While you might like to see that you're reaching visitors from across the globe, sit back and think whether these will turn into paying customers.
So, it sounds like a good plan to optimise your site for local searches, but how do you actually achieve it?
- Find out which phrases people are using to search for businesses such as yours. A quick and straightforward way of doing this is to search for a product or service which you are offering and look at the related searches, for example:
- These are the keywords people are using to find businesses such as yours, so make sure your site is targeting these words and phrases.
- Make sure you're creating content that your local audience is interested in. This could be showing your support for local charities, blogging about local events, or interviewing other local business owners. Just make sure that whatever you're doing is authentic.
Leverage the power of Google Maps
When you conduct searches on Google, they give you a handy map for where local results are based. It can be a good idea to try and get your business to show on this map.
Being on this map allows the individuals searching for services such as yours to be able to not only find you but also find out exactly where you are.
So how do you get your business to show on this map? You'll need to sign up for Google My Business, add your business information and verify your identity with Google.
Finally, Use Pay Per Click to move higher through the rankings
All of the suggestions until now have been free to do, but Pay Per Click (PPC) is paid for.
How does PPC work? In very simple terms, you create the Ad, someone searches for a term your Ad is targeting, someone clicks on your Ad, you pay Google for the click. In other words, you pay per click.
However, while PPC can get you fast results, it can be complicated to use. But if you wanted to give it a go yourself, we have a beginners guide to PPC which can help you get started.
Summing Up
While this post has covered some of the basics that you can do to be found as a small business, it can be a minefield learning all the different ways that you can be found. But fear not, we're here to help you navigate and find your path through.
