SEO, or search engine optimization, is a popular business buzzword. In practice, it goes beyond lip service and can provide important new revenue streams for your company. When properly utilized, SEO can bring in new customers and solidify the good reputation of your business.
However, if SEO is neglected or outdated, customers will be turned off by clumsy and poorly thought-out efforts. Having a professional approach to SEO is one of the best ways to ensure that your business will continue to attract the customers you want to do business with.
Identity Dental Marketing explains the SEO process and helps businesses determine whether their SEO efforts are helping or hurting their brands.
Principles of SEO
Here are the basic steps to creating proper SEO for your company. These building blocks can be used together with good online marketing to create successful sales for your business.
1. Know Your Keywords
One of the best ways to enhance your SEO presence is by choosing the right keywords. You will need to have a handle on the ways in which a customer might search for your business. For example, geographic area, services, and products are all great places to start.
Use the Google search engine to help you come up with keywords. When you start typing a search, suggested search phrases will pop up. This can help you decide how you and your competitors are being targeted online. Google also has a tool called Keyword Planner which ranks certain keywords by how many searches they are receiving each month.
However, it is imperative that you avoid the ham-fisted use of keywords. In the past, search engines did not differentiate between blocks of keyword text and actual information. Today, simply listing your keywords on the page will push your page down in the search rankings. These keywords need to be properly integrated into your text to ensure success.
Have a qualified SEO writer construct your pages or study the principles of SEO on your own. Poor use of keywords will take away from the reputation of your business.
2. Use Image Tags
In order to take advantage of search engine indexing, it is important that you include image text. Using alt tags can help you label these images. That way, if they come up in a search on their own, they will be associated with your business. Not tagging images is a way to lose out on valuable clicks.
3. Create Meta Descriptions
Today, the meta description is almost as important as the information contained in your website. When customers search for information, the search engine will display the title and any meta descriptions you have assigned to the page. Many customers will not click through to the website itself unless their curiosity is piqued by the meta information. Most website builders like WordPress have a way to enter meta descriptions easily, or you can use the meta tag in HTML.
4. Use Backlinks
Your page will rise higher in the search rankings if you have proper backlinks coming from other websites. Linking to your information makes you more credible and brings in customers. In order to create backlinks, it is smart to do guest posts on other sites’ blogs and to create articles on other websites. Outgoing hyperlinks are also important. They will bring your business goodwill from other websites and will also be able to lead your customers to more detailed information about your services.
Is it Helping or Hurting?
As stated above, incomplete or outdated SEO efforts reflect very poorly upon a company. With SEO, it is not necessary to push long lists of keywords or key phrases. It is better to work this information into your website in an organic manner. Be sure to tag and label your photos and take advantage of meta descriptions. If you don’t use meta descriptions, many consumers will simply scroll past your search engine listing.
Takeaway
Companies like Identity Dental Marketing are poised to help businesses take full advantage of the power of SEO. When SEO is used properly, it will enhance your business. If it is handled poorly, your business will suffer. Using these four principles of SEO will help you get a leg up on the competition.