There are many free and paid/premium solutions
available – do a little digging to see what fits you
best. Some solutions include:
Ÿ SEOmoz (free trial available)
Ÿ Google Trends
Ÿ Google and Bing search engines and
Webmaster Tools
Ÿ SEMrush
Ÿ Keywordtool.io (provides variations of
keywords and traffic)
Ÿ Web browser rank tools
Referencing more that one tool helps provide a
more complete picture of optimization across
various search engines.
Website framework
Title Tags: Similar to the title of a report or
article, these should include the main
keyword/phrase for each page, as well as your
business name at the end. Note: this is not a
place to simply list your keywords. Title tags are
the text you see on a browser tab, and tell search
engines what the main topic for each page is. Be
consistent with your naming strategy, to ensure
that any future web developers and content
editors follow the same framework.
Meta Descriptions: These aren’t as important as
they used to be, but still carry some weight with
some search engines. Use this space for a 1-2
sentence description of the content on each page
– you can include your keywords in the
sentences, but this is not a place to list your
keywords.
Naming Conventions for Photos: This is an area
many people forget about – you’ll want to make
sure to create a naming convention for the photos
you include on your site, utilizing your goal
keywords, instead of uploading them using the
default file names previously assigned to them.
Other considerations:
Don’t use redundant content on your site. Search
engines find identical/duplicate (or very close to
being identical) content, and won’t know which
page to index, rank and serve, thus bringing you
lower rankings and site traffic.
Avoid link farms/directories: these carry very
little to no SEO value, as well as little to no value
to people looking for what your site has to offer.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t include your URL
in an industry-specific directory; just don’t focus
your energy in this area.
You’ll want to develop a content marketing
strategy that utilizes your goal keywords, in a
way that provides useful information to visitors
that will lead to repeat visitors and brand loyalty,
as well as other sites to share your content and
link back to your site. Focus on page content, as
well as shareable content such as blog posts,
white papers, case studies, infographics, and
more – and don’t forget to utilize social media.
Aim to be a valuable, expert resource (for both
SEO and to convert those site visitors into actual
sales). “If you build it, they will come” – SEO will
bring those leads in, while your content strategy
will help convert them to paying customers.
Geraldine Convento. MeetGeraldine is a business
strategy, marketing and design firm located in
Oakland, CA. Offering a full-range of services include
brand development, business strategy, SEO, marketing
and design, as well as workshops, classes, and speaking
engagements to provide insight in these areas. Visit
their website at www.meetgeraldine.com.
Strictly Marketing Magazine March/April 2016
13