Small businesses may benefit the most by implementing proper search engine optimization (SEO) strategies and in the world of the internet, it is essential in order to survive. Having an SEO strategy can get you to the top of the search results if done right and considering 67% of all clicks go to the first five organic results, you want your business to be as high ranking on a search engine result page as possible. If you are a small business, you may be making these following mistakes and righting them will give you a leg up on your competition.
What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
Common mistakes in SEO that small businesses make may stem from not fully understanding what this great business strategy is. Search engine optimization is constantly changing and evolving, so it’s understandable to feel you never fully have a grasp on it. SEO is gaining traffic on your website from organic search engine results. Meaning, when people search for a relevant term to your business, your website comes up at the top of the list. This can be done through many different strategies such as keywords, optimizing images, outbound links, and many more. With 75% of users not scrolling past the first page of search engine results, it’s a no brainer that you want your business website to be optimized for higher search engine results in order to have a chance.
If you’ve never heard of SEO before now, we recommend watching the video below to get an idea of how search engines work and how you can use that information for SEO.
Avoid Jargon
If you are someone who is searching for a service or good and may not be too familiar with terminology, your search query may not be too specific. Many people use more descriptive terms in their searches since they are not themselves part of that industry. If your website is full of jargon, or specific industry terms, you may not show up as high as you want on the potential client’s search. Try generalizing and using terms and phrases that most people will understand and potentially use in their search.
Keep Up to Date with SEO
The internet and its features are ever evolving and knowing how to adapt to the times in the form of updating your knowledge in SEO is a must. You don’t want to be left in the dust by your competition who may stay knowledgeable in the spontaneous world of search engine optimization. It’s important to dedicate time to continuous research of keywords and search engine algorithms in order to understand how your business fits into a search engine results page.
Be Mobile Friendly
It’s no surprise that many people rely on the little computers in their pockets to search up anything quickly and conveniently. With so many people using their mobile devices, it’s a common mistake that small businesses make by not developing their website to have a combined counterpart. You risk losing sustained traffic from people who have trouble navigating your site and battling with long loading times. With constant developments in technology and new versions of devices coming out evermore frequently, it’s important to make sure that your website stays up to date to provide a great user experience on any platform that a user may choose to find you on.
Mastering Meta Descriptions
A meta description may be the first thing a potential client sees when they go over their search results. A meta description is the brief summary under the title of your website. If your meta description is attractive, click rates will go up. There are many ways to improve your meta descriptions such as following these general tips
- Optimal length is between 50–160 characters
- Read intelligently
- Grab the reader’s attention with keywords
- Directly relevant to the page its describing
Have high quality, unique content
Researching and utilizing keywords is a great way to draw in potential customers but none of that will matter if the content your customers see is low quality. Make sure you have high quality content on your site that will give users the information they need and lend credibility to your company. The increased amount of time a user spends on your site will also help improve your search engine rankings. It is also important to avoid duplicating content on your website to avoid issues with Google or other search engines excluding your content from the results pages.
Don’t Give Up
SEO is intimidating and it’s a lot of work for results that are not immediate. This is something you develop over time and watch as traffic increases over intervals. You have to be consistent with your effort and analyze any changes to see if what you are doing is effective. This can take a few months, but the changes some time out from when you start are invaluable.
Hire a professional
SEO is an ever-changing specialty and it can truly be a full-time job if you want to do it correctly. Hiring a professional will ensure that your website will be able to keep up with the latest trends. You’ll also be able to focus on the other aspects of your business that require your constant attention as a small business owner.
Websults | SEO Agency Located in Clearwater, FL
The team at Websults can help in deciding which method would work best for your needs and would be happy to set up the integration for you! As an experienced web development, social marketing, and eCommerce agency, Websults will listen diligently to your needs, ask questions to help identify any other needs or future needs, and will work hard to give you a competitive advantage in your industry. Contact Websults for a free consultation.
