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Three Tips for Small Business to Improve Your Keyword Efforts
Keywords are super important in helping small businesses get found online.
You may not always notice them but keywords are super important in helping small businesses get found online. Ever heard that improving your SEO will help you get found online? Or, that adding keywords to the content on your website, URL and blog are important ways to raise your SEO ranking? All true. Beware though that using the wrong keywords or too many keywords can hurt your ranking just as much.
Here are a few pointers to set you on the right path with keywords.
Do your homework – that means research
Realize at the outset that this is a process that should never end. Keyword research is a constantly evolving process that requires a plan and a solid understanding of your business and your industry. Using keywords that relate to your business and your industry will help to drive the right prospects to your site instead of than just anyone. Attracting the right prospects is an important way to increase the efficiency of your online prospecting and will help to attract prospects with a higher likelihood of appreciating the value your business provides.
Picking the right type of keywords
Common, generic, short (short-tail) keywords might seem like a great idea because they’re searched more often than longer keyword phrases (long-tail). Realize though that they’re also a lot more competitive. That means you’re quite probably competing against larger companies with deeper pockets and larger budgets than you.
Long-tail keywords, might not be search for as often. Here’s an example: “Perennials” “Perennials that bloom in Summer”. Going long will help you attract more prospects who might search for any combination of those individual words.
Location is another important factor to consider when picking keywords. Location-based keywords relate to exactly what you might expect - the physical location of your business. If your business is a nursery in a popular neighborhood in Aurora, ON, you’ll want to include not only Aurora, but also the neighborhood name. Location-based keywords will help you target prospects in your area instead of ones from the other side of town who may not bother to make the trip if they have a local alternative.
What not to do - stuffing
Carefully researching and picking keywords that relate to your business is good. Keyword stuffing is the opposite of that. Stuffing is the practice of adding practically any keyword you can think of (relevant or not) and is considered a big ‘don’t’ in the world of online marketing. As with many things, quality is more important than quantity. Another version of stuffing is repeating your keywords (good ones or otherwise) over and over again just for the sake of including them as many times as you can. Use your keywords where and when they make sense. They should enhance the meaning of the content and occur naturally.
Like many other things, keywords are a valuable tool when used correctly – there are right ways to employ and wrong ways to avoid.
To find out more about using keywords to improve your SEO, contact us today.
