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Over the past decade, I have learned a lot about promoting small businesses. One of the foundational marketing tools has always been Search Engine Optimization (SEO). If you market your small business anywhere online, you have to be considering SEO. Bottom line, you want your business to show up in searches.
If you are using a WordPress site, I highly recommend the plugin Yoast SEO. I love that this plugin will give you red, yellow, or green light for every page and blog post, based on how well you have addressed SEO. It is very user friendly and also gives suggestions for SEO improvement.
1. SEO Keywords
The first tip, which you've undoubtedly heard of, is keywords. Which keywords are you targeting as a business? A quick google search bar will pop up with great suggestions, if you're not sure where to start. But more than likely, you already have some keywords in mind for your business. SEO is not just for your website, but anywhere you are marketing your small business. Even on social media (hello hashtags).
The importance of keywords for SEO is to use them strategically. Place them where online search engines are looking first. Be sure to use your keywords in page titles, headings, pictures, and of course content.
2. Alternative Text for Images
As a newbie blogger, I was always forgetting to add alternative text to the images and pictures I added to my website. This is another great place to put keywords relevant to your blog or website page that is searchable. When you add an image, there is always a spot in the settings to add alt text (not caption) to your image. This way it does not appear on your website, only searchable behind the scenes for search engines.
To take it a step further, you can use other words that relate to your business to "describe" the image. You have 125 characters to play with, so get creative.
3. Links for SEO
Something that also helps SEO is hyperlinks. It's good SEO practice to link not only to
your own site (internal links), but to use outside/outbound links as well (links to other webpages that are not yours). This is a great way to provide additional information for your readers, cite your sources, and build trust as well as authority on your website.
4. Meta Description
If you haven't noticed, when your page or blog post appears in a search, there is a small description below it. The default description here is the first paragraph of that page or post. However, you can change this to better draw people in and use search words more strategically. Another great way to optimize for SEO.
5. Post Tags for SEO
One of the last things that I always forget is to add tags to my posts. This is a great way to organize your posts, help your readers click more, and increase your SEO. Be sure to be thoughtful and strategic with your tags. They can be a great tool but also easily over-used. Be sure to click on the tags occasionally to see what your users experience. What's great is that you can adjust tags as you go. Keep in mind, however, that it takes time for google and other search engines to notice your changes.
If SEO overwhelms you, like it does many of us, use this printable to remind yourself of these 5 quick SEO tips.
That way you can start small and build your consistent SEO strategy over time.
Are you wanting peace of mind with your marketing? Schedule a one on one strategy session to analyze your status and put together a comprehensive plan that works!
Share this post with another #mompreneur who could use some SEO help!