The Ever-Changing Game of SEO

Our topic this week is about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). As most of us already know, this game is changing dramatically. Google is placing a lot of emphasis  on content, social media, sharing, etc. Old ways of doing SEO are obsolete.

Enjoy the article. Hopefully it sparks some ideas for you. Feel free to contact us. We would love to hear about them, and if there’s any way we can help you, please let us know.

 

The Changing Face of SEO

Seismic changes are taking place in the world of search engine optimization (SEO). Today, algorithm updates and an emphasis on user experience mean that search engines are better able to rank a website based on the quality of its content instead of the number of keywords it contains.

If your SEO strategy consists simply of increasing your website ranking by producing subpar content that is littered with unnaturally placed keywords, it’s time to get a new strategy. And this new strategy must include producing quality content that offers insight on a particular topic or solves a problem.

Of course, the goal of search engines has always been to produce the most relevant and useful results. While in the past this was achieved almost exclusively by identifying relevant keywords, search engines have become much more sophisticated. Search engines are now pinpointing content that connects, educates, and inspires its readers. All while filtering out content that, while chock full of keywords, offers little or no value to the reader.

If you are working with an SEO company that is telling you that they can improve your SEO through keyword placement, you are working with the wrong company. Instead, increasing your online visibility involves filling your website with quality content that not only helps to generate more sales leads, it also helps you to become known as a thought leader in your industry. The best part? Your search engine rankings will increase as a result.

Like most people, you are probably wondering just how search engines are able to distinguish between high-quality content and keyword-laden content that exists only to manipulate SEO. The fact is, until very recently, search engines were unable to. That’s why so many SEO companies could promise higher search engine rankings simply by increasing the number of keywords used.

But the times are truly changing and today search engine rankings are determined almost exclusively by the amount of quality content contained on a particular website. The type of content that leads to increased user engagement and is more likely to be read and shared.

Of course, for content to be read and shared, a website must be mobile-friendly. After all, if you want people to read your content it must be easily accessed from smartphones and tablets. It also must be easy to share through the use of things like social sharing buttons. Remember, today’s Internet users have little time or patience for unresponsive sites that are hard to read or slow to load. And search engines don’t like these types of sites either.

Finally, while keywords may have fallen from grace in the world of SEO, you don’t need to do away with them completely. There is nothing wrong with placing an appropriate keyword in the title or body of an article as long as it helps people understand what they are reading. But one thing is for sure, gone are the days when keywords were the darling of the SEO world. And those days aren’t coming back anytime soon.

Why Some Small Businesses Still Haven’t Tried Email Marketing

Recent studies show that more than 70 percent of small businesses say that email marketing makes up the majority of their marketing plan. Email is everywhere these days. Whether for personal or business use, almost everyone has an email account. That’s why email marketing makes such good sense – especially for smaller businesses and companies who are unable to afford a multi-media marketing campaign.

In light of this fact, you would think that every small business would be using email to raise awareness of their brand and increase sales. However, many small businesses are under the mistaken impression that implementing an email campaign is more hassle than it’s worth. In reality, however, email marketing is one of the most cost-effective and least complicated forms of marketing you can choose for your business.

What’s more, email marketing offers a better return on investment than almost any other type of marketing strategy. That’s because the money spent on email marketing is minimal compared to other forms of marketing. Think about how much you would spend to produce and air a 30-second radio commercial and it is easy to see why an email campaign makes such good sense.

Email marketing also will boost your company’s social interaction. It allows you to post links to your social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and your customer can share your email with friends, family, and business associates.

Email marketing gives you the ability to track and better understand how your contacts are responding to your emails, as well. This allows you to tailor your emails to meet the needs of your customers in ways that traditional marketing strategies cannot.

If you need to get your message out right away email marketing is definitely the way to go. All you have to do is compose an email and press send. Traditional marketing techniques simply can’t offer that same flexibility.

Once you have begun your email marketing campaign you may be curious if it is working for your business. That’s another advantage of email marketing. The results of email campaigns are easily measured because you receive reports that tell you things like how many people saw your email and how many people clicked on the links in your email.

The more you learn about email marketing, the easier it is to understand why so many small businesses are using it.  Isn’t it time you joined the 70 percent of small businesses who are using it to grow their business?

Email Marketing isn’t Surviving, It’s Thriving

Social apps and the rise of digital and mobile marketing will be the end of email marketing. At least that’s what the experts have been telling us for some time now. One look at email marketing’s ROI and it is easy to see that the experts are wrong.

Research shows that email marketing delivers a return of almost $45 for every dollar spent. That’s the highest ROI of any other digital marketing tactic. But before we bash the so-called “experts,” it is important to realize that email marketing has surprised almost everyone with its ability to adapt to the digital marketplace.

So how is email marketing managing to stay so relevant?

  1. It is taking advantage of user engagement on other channels. The best email marketers are able to mine an individual’s data and use that to personalize their email marketing efforts.
  2. It is adaptable. The best email marketers monitor the success of each email campaign to find out what did and didn’t work. Who unsubscribed? Who responded to a call to action? Do customers respond to animation? Do they prefer video testimonials? The lessons learned are then used to shape the next email marketing blast and make it more effective.
  3. It is personalized. At the end of the day, it’s all about the customer. Specifically, the one reading the email. Email marketing, unlike many other social media and digital marketing techniques, allows you to speak to a single customer. Many social media sites blast information to all who will listen but email marketing can be tailored to one customer at a time.
  4. It is inexpensive. Small businesses on a tight budget can reach as many customers as they want without spending an outrageous amount of money.
  5. It is mobile. Everyone knows that mobile is where it is at today. In fact, with four out of five consumers using their mobile devices to shop, going mobile is essential to the success of your business. Email is easily adaptable to mobile devices so it allows you to reach customers and generate sales leads without investing a great deal of money on new technology or software.

Email marketing may not seem as flashy as some of the latest apps and other digital marketing techniques. It is, however, a tried-and-true method of marketing that continues to do a fantastic job of reaching customers.

Bigger isn’t Always Better When it Comes to Your Target Audience

If you are like most people, there is no better feeling than seeing your number of likes, follows, subscribers, and visitors increase. And the more those numbers increase, the better you feel.

Jason Zook, founder of IWearYourShirt.com, felt the same way. And for years, according to The Truth About Growing An Audience, he went to drastic methods to gain a bigger audience. Trouble was, although he gained a bigger audience, it wasn’t doing him any good in terms of sales leads or new customers.

Why? Because although he had built a huge audience, that audience wasn’t right for his business.

When it comes to building a following, you must focus on quality over quantity. Learning to tame your ego can help you sift through the numbers and find the people who give you the most value.

At GoLeads, we can help you build a strong audience that actually cares about your business. While that audience might take time to grow, it will be well worth it. That’s because you will end up with a loyal and committed audience that is interested in your company and what it has to offer.

Zook believes that growing the right type of audience requires three tactics (which are paraphrased here):

  1. Define your audience and focus on bringing that audience value.
  2. Create consistent content for your audience that inspires or helps to solve a problem.
  3. Spend time interacting with your audience.

Of course, doing all of these things requires a solid strategy, hard work, and a lot of patience. At GoLeads, we specialize in helping our clients build audiences that are interested in the products and services they have to offer.

Zook admits it may be a cliché but to build the best audience possible, you must focus on quality, not quantity.

Learning to tame your ego can help you sift through the numbers and find the people who give you the most value.

We couldn’t agree more.

Why Creating Fresh Content is Worth the Effort

Creating content is a big job. After all, it takes a lot of time and know-how to create good content and then make sure it is distributed through the right channels and reaches its intended audience.

Many business owners want to know that content creation is truly worth the time and effort needed to do it right. The answer is an emphatic, “Yes!” So why is that?

  1. Content is the most effective SEO tool when it comes to getting your website a good ranking.
  2. Content will provide your sales leads with the kind of information they want. And when you help a prospect solve a problem, you also stand a good chance of converting them into customers.
  3. Good content builds trust. When your prospects know and trust you, they will be more likely to buy from you in the future. They also will be more likely to spread the word about your products or services.

Now more than ever, businesses can’t rely on just one marketing technique to drive sales. Some prospects are best reached on social media, others by direct mail campaigns, and still others respond best by talking to someone on the phone.

Thankfully, it isn’t necessary to reinvent the wheel every time you set out to market to a different set of customers or prospects. In fact, many marketing strategies don’t just work well together, they work better together! One example of this is when you mix contenting marketing with inbound marketing.

Creating quality content for your website means making sure that it contains the necessary keywords while also connecting, educating, and inspiring customers. This builds on what you are already doing with your inbound marketing – seeking to build trust and getting your company noticed. You might even want to go to your sales team for content ideas. After all, they know better than anyone what your customers are looking for from your products or services.

In the end, it is important to remember that no matter how well content marketing works with other types of marketing tools, it remains its own unique and effective technique. To put it another way, according to the Content Marketing Institute, “Content marketing is the practice of creating relevant and compelling content in a consistent fashion to a targeted buyer, focusing on all stages of the buying process, from brand awareness through to brand evangelism.”