The time and effort it seemingly takes to establish worthy search
engine relevance when compared to a competitor who already has the
lead is a central concern for those focused on their enterprise
SEO. But DIY search engine optimization is easier than you think.
Most of it just has to do with protecting your reputation and
encouraging searches. The following are the five steps to improving
small business SEO almost over night:
Buy YourBusinessName.com
The single smartest (and most obvious) move you ought to make from the get-go is acquiring the rights to your company name's .com domain. By buying FranksLumber.com, Frank can start his lumber business without worrying about someone else causing confusion and diminishing SEO. If someone already owns it, see how much they're willing to sell it for. This makes your business name an even more important decision than it already was.
Social Network Establishment
The next thing you need to do is get your business registered on every social network possible. Facebook and Twitter should be your top priority, followed by Google+. This helps keep the top search results for your business name under your control, since these extremely popular sites will consistently rise to the top of search rankings. It makes it easier to find you and cuts down on confusion.
Blog
Even if all Frank does is sell lumber, writing a blog with a personal touch can be a great way for Frank to make a lasting impression on his customers. If the content can stay fresh and meaningful, there's nothing better that a small business leader can do than blog. It increases the amount of relative content about your company on the web, which without a doubt leads people directly to you.
Make Your Website Mobile Friendly
One of the biggest upcoming transitions nobody seems to be taking seriously is the increase in mobile traffic. Mobile web browsers such as those found on the iPhone and Android devices do not behave the same as desktop computer browsers. It's imperative that you take the proper steps to ensure that your site will function properly on mobile browsers. Otherwise you could be missing out on whole swaths of traffic.
Be Translucent
The absence of your side of the story will always increase the believability of whatever nonsensical thing an upset customer or shady competitor is trying to stir online. While no company can afford to be completely transparent about what happens behind closed doors, it pays off to always have content online that provides your side of a story if negative information is ever disseminated on the Internet. Inviting customers to ask questions, and more importantly to personally answer them, is key to building trust.
Small businesses can easily perceive SEO as being a much tougher
nut to crack than it actually is. There's plenty that small business
leaders can do themselves to ensure successful search engine results.
The important thing is to actually do it and do it right. If the fate
of your business is at stake, then it won't be a problem at all.
About
Maggie Durango is a free lance writer that loves new technology and fiddles with every new gadget on the market.
