Since the world of marketing has become digitized, there are more ways than ever before to reach potential customers. Digital marketing has opened up a whole new world of possibilities. One of the most effective marketing methods is called SEO (search engine optimization). This marketing method is a fantastic resource on its own, but it is also a big part of many other digital marketing methods. If you have never had any experience with SEO before, it seems like a difficult or confusing task, but that is not necessarily the case.

While a great SEO campaign takes a great amount of time and effort, it is not an inherently difficult task. To have a fantastic SEO campaign, you will need an equally fantastic web design. It is important to ensure that your website is designed in such as way as to be compatible with SEO features. In this article, you will find information and tips to help you build the best possible website for SEO.

 

The first steps you need to take are entirely dependent on if you already have a website or need to build a new one. First, let’s talk about what to do if you already have a website. If your website has already been built and established, you will begin this journey by editing and improving your site. Any edits or improvements are not what you are going for here. You need to focus on very specific changes and improvements. Your basic information is the first place you will need an update. Look at the business name, address, phone number, email, catalog links, business description, and mission statement. Ensure that all information is current and that no links have expired. If even the smallest detail needs to be updated, it can throw off your entire marketing campaign. It is incredibly vital to keep this information updated at all times, not just when you are starting out. Maintaining your site is just as important as designing it. Once you have checked and double checked all of the aforementioned information it is time to move on to the next step.

The second step is to make sure all of your photographs are up to date. You should have a current photo of your business location as well as photos of the interior and products. Another thing that is often overlooked is to place short bios of your highest ranked employees such as managers, CEO’s, assistant managers, etc. There should be a professional photo of the person accompanying the bio.

After ensuring that all of your information and photos are up to date, it is time to start working on your keywords. If you do not already have set keywords, you will need to begin by deciding on the keywords that you will use. You will need several keywords for a full SEO campaign. Keep in mind that you will need to complete this step regardless of whether you are updating an existing website or creating a brand new one. Your keywords need to reflect your business, they should be directly related to your industry as well as location, product or service, and business name. There are many possibilities and the goal is to determine the best possible choices. If you are unsure where to begin when it comes to choosing keywords, it is best to begin by writing down any possibility that comes to mind. Once you have done this you will go over your list and choose a handful that you feel are good choices and search them on your favorite search engine. This will give you an idea of the competition for the keyword and how relevant it truly is. As you are choosing which keywords to use, look for one that will serve as your primary keyword and then have a list of secondary ones. After you have a list of keywords it is time to incorporate them into your site. Be strategic in their placement and look for that fine line between using a given keyword too many times and not enough.

If you do not already have a website, your first step will be to create one. The most ideal situation would be to either have the skills yourself or have an employee that has the skill set to build a website from scratch. If you do not have the knowledge base of skill set, it is best to move on from this option. Barring this, the next best option is to hire a professional. This will ensure having a quality website that meets your exact specifications. However, this is not always possible to do this due to budget restraints. If neither of these options is viable for you and your situation, you are left with option number three, use a web hosting service. This is a very cheap and easy way to build a great website. Depending on your budget, most web hosting services offer plans starting with no cost and then going up in small increments. When you use one of these services, everything is pre-made and laid out in a very easy to understand way. After setting up your account, you will have on-screen prompts showing you what you need to do to build the different aspects of your new site. You will be presented with various color schemes and themes as well as a series of layout possibilities. Once you have completed the necessary steps to build your site, you will need to fill it out with all of your information and photographs and keyword infused content.

If you feel overwhelmed or do not feel ready to take on an SEO campaign on your own, it is best to hire a professional. If you have decided to take this route, here are a few tips to make the process a bit easier. The first thing you will want to do is make a list of your expectations and determine what you will require of the professional that you hire. Once that step is complete, you will need to begin amassing a list of professionals that are available to hire. You will need to determine if you want to hire a local professional or a telecommuting professional. If you want to hire a local, you will begin your search with an internet search based off of your location. For example, you may use search terms such as “Arlington SEO“, “Austin SEO“, “SEO professionals near me”, or “SEO professionals in *insert city name here*”. This will present you with the web listings for all local professionals. Once you have a list, simply compare each one to the list of requirements that you made and make eliminations until you find your perfect match.