It’s true. Search is still the #1 activity on the Internet and will likely hold its well-earned place for years to come. As long as there are searchers, there will be search engines. And searchers are vital to your marketing strategy. After all, they are the most motivated people on the Internet and (if you’re lucky) the ones who visit your website.
So the challenge is how to engage, stimulate interest and begin a lifelong relationship with these valued searchers. How do you keep them coming back for more?
Whether they’re searching for information or a service, you can convert them into customers, even if they’re drive-by traffic — if you have strategic content.
That may sound simple. Just pepper your content with enough keywords and the search engines will do the rest. (If only it were that easy).
The fact is that the most important thing to search engine optimization is the trust and authority of your domain due to quality incoming links. Over time, this indicates that other people trust your site and find value in it.
Without quality content this will not happen. But be sure that your quality content clearly speaks to what you want it to rank for. That is, what you have to offer. Remember, it’s not just traffic you want; it’s targeted traffic.
Keywords are important to get your targeted traffic, but it must be melded with quality content that answers your searchers’ most important question: “What’s in it for me?” (WIFFM as it is known). So you have a dual mission to satisfy both the search engine and your target audience, which is not difficult if you spoon feed the search engines with keywords and key phrases, blended with a quality mix of great content that speaks directly to what you’re selling.
Think of an elevator speech, the 20-30 second monolog that identifies the cornerstone of your business or service. So, what kind of business are you in? The elevator door closes. You share your cornerstone content in 27 seconds. The elevator opens and your target audience walks away knowing exactly what you have to offer. That’s what a search engine wants to know.
Using cornerstone content – the most basic and essential foundation of your business; that indispensable something – is what people need to know to do business with you. If you do not use cornerstone content as part of your messaging strategy, you should. Encapsulate the strength, purpose and value of what your business or service does and create cornerstone content that tells your story.
By combining all of the elements discussed and focusing on the basics of achieving quality search, you will begin to see upgrades in your rankings as well as engaged searchers. Partner with the Witmer Group and discover how strategic marketing know-how will invigorate interest in your business and increase your search outcomes.