Top 4 Tips for Improving Your SEO
If you’ve looked into ways to promote your business online, it’s likely you’ve come across the term “SEO” quite a bit. But what exactly does Search Engine Optimization (SEO) mean, and even more importantly, what does SEO mean for your business?
Generally speaking, SEO is the process of setting up your website so it properly targets the specific keywords that matter most to your business. The goal of SEO is to improve your ranking in key search results, so when a potential customer searches for your services online you are more likely to appear in the top results.
While developing a complete SEO strategy can be a very complex process, there are many simple things you can do to improve your SEO. To help your business stand out in key search results, start with these four steps:
1. Track More Than Just Traffic
If you’re only monitoring the volume of traffic to your site, you’re missing out on some incredibly valuable information. To create the most effective SEO strategy possible, you need to know what people are doing after they land on your site. With Google Analytics, it’s surprisingly easy to monitor your website’s performance. Once you’ve created an Analytics account and set up an Analytics Property for the site you want to track, the remaining setup steps are relatively simple.
To track your website traffic, you will need to install a short piece of Javascript tracking code on your site. This code should be added to all pages of your site. You can also modify the code to track specific events on your site, such as clicking on a button or playing a video. If you are not sure how to add the code, your developer can help you with this step.
With the code added to your site, you can start using Analytics to understand how visitors are finding and interacting with your site. In Analytics, you can also set up goal tracking, which enables you to track specific actions on your site, such as making a purchase or signing up for emails. You can also assign a monetary value to each goal based on what that action is worth to you, so you can more accurately measure your website’s ROI.
Need Help? Google offers a variety of online resources to help guide new users through the setup process.
2. Focus on “Buying Indicator” Keywords
Rather than focus on keywords that simply drive a large volume of traffic to your site, you need to focus on keywords that indicate the intent to take action. These “buying indicator” search terms are typically used by people who are ready to make a purchase or contact your business, versus someone who is simply browsing for general information about a product or service.
While there is no foolproof way to determine every user’s intent when they perform an online search, identifying keywords that are relevant and most likely to be “high intent” is relatively simple.
As a real-world example, imagine you are a local mover who provides moving services for homeowners. You might think your customers would use the search term “house movers,” but this keyword could also apply to searches for companies who provide structural moving services. A more specific search term, like “moving company,” is more likely to match relevant, high-intent searches.
| Informational Search Terms | Buying Indicator Search Terms |
| The visitor is looking for information about a product or service but may not be ready to take action just yet. For Example: “signs of water damage,” “how do casement windows work,” or “benefits of siding” | The visitor is seeking out websites where they can request a quote, make a purchase, or complete some other activity. For Example: “carpet cleaner rental,” “window repair quote,” or “buy car parts online” |
3. Share Fresh, Valuable Content
Providing website visitors with rich content and a quality experience will increase the likelihood that they will become customers, but it can also improve your SEO. One of the simplest ways to add valuable content to your site is by building out individual pages for each of the services you offer. These pages should include at least 800 words of relevant, informative content.
As a supplement to the SEO value provided by the copy on your web pages, you should publish new blog content on a consistent basis. Sharing a few blogs each month is beneficial to your SEO and also provides you with additional opportunities to draw new visitors to your website.
4. Include Strong Calls-To-Action
Now that you have a plan for driving high-quality, high-intent traffic to your website, you need to make sure your site is set up to help that traffic convert. Through clear, compelling calls-to-action on your website, you can convert more visitors into customers. Need help crafting your calls-to-action? Check out other blogs we've written for tips on creating and using CTAs to improve your website’s conversion rate.
Your SEO strategy and website reporting should focus on the results that matter most to your business. If you’re working with an agency that sends traffic reports and doesn’t include conversion reports, you’re wasting your money.
Need help with your SEO? Be sure to check out the short Tips From Triton video included in this blog to learn from Triton Commerce's CEO Corey Kelly reasons why your SEO strategy is failing. Then, contact the team at Triton Commerce for your free Digital Marketing Plan. We can take a look at your current digital presence and provide you with a custom plan designed specifically for your business needs.