ANDRAGOGY

mobile use, and other technical factors. After that, the No. 1 element of a good SEO strategy is consistently updating your website content by following best practices for SEO. Updating content lets Google know the page is still relevant and helps it to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPs).

A good exercise is to put your company name into a search engine and see where your company appears in the results. Th en, enter the top four or fi ve products or services you think people would search for when looking for a vendor like you. Th is will allow you to see how other companies are ranking and allow you to reverse-engineer it.

When a search engine crawls sites looking for information to answer a searcher’s question, such as “corrugated manufacturer near me,” it goes through a hierarchy of steps to fi nd an answer. It will look at the core site and URL structure of that site. If the URL doesn’t have the word “corrugated” in it, Google will stop looking. If it has “corrugated” in the URL, it will look at page headings, content, and pictures to ensure the content on the page is about corrugated.

Website Pages for Product, Services, and Locations Served

As your product or service off erings change (i.e., equipment, certifi cations, etc.), pages should be updated. Each product or service you want to be found through Google or other search engines should have its own page. Just mentioning it on your homepage is not enough for a search engine to deliver it as a search result. Your pages should contain information that people are looking for. If sustainability is something prospects want, have a page dedicated to sustainability.

An excellent way to determine the content and pages for your site is to look at the questions your salespeople get. Does your website answer those questions? Does each question have its own page? An FAQ page is good, but having a page that answers each question is better.

Pages for locations served are also important. When someone searches, Google’s default is to search within their area. We are familiar with this for B2C searches. If you enter the term “steakhouse” into a Google search page, your top results will be steakhouses in your area. Th e same is true for B2B. Having a Google map on your website of the area you serve helps with search results.

Th ere is no limit to the number of pages a site can have. You don’t have to put them all up at once. At a minimum, your website should have four to six pages that cover core off erings and major areas served. You can then build on those, adding more as you learn what prospects are searching for. Single-page websites are not recommended for successful SEO.

Off-Site Strategies to Drive Traffi c

Putting up blog posts around keywords (terms people search for) is a common strategy, but updating your off -site SEO, such as your Google Business Profi le, is just as important. When people conduct a search using “near me” or put in a geographical location, having a listing helps you to be found. Updating social sites, such as LinkedIn, with links to your site can help your page to appear in a SERP and encourages people to click through to your site from the post.

Backlinks also can impact your SEO. In recent years, Google’s algorithm has shifted from emphasizing backlinks to emphasizing relevant and informative content; however, they are still the foundation of Google’s original PageRank algorithm. Th is is because if other sites are linking to your site, it establishes your site’s authority. With this said, it is better to fi rst concentrate on having a good website and content.

Increasing Conversion Rates

If you have ample traffi c landing on your site but you are not getting the conversions you need (people contacting you), it is time for conversion rate optimization. Th is is achieved through the following content enhancements: • Ensure your site is user-friendly. Can users quickly get the information they need? Do you have appropriate links to other information available? Are links to case studies available that provide testimony that you can do what you say you can do? • Provide content that refl ects what people are searching for and has a high readability level. Readability is how easy it is for someone to read and understand what is written on your website. • Have a clear call to action. Tell people what you want them to do. • Minimize form fi elds. Some people are turned off by having to fi ll out a long form. You can ask for additional information when you follow up with them. • Conduct A/B testing. Th is is where you create two versions to compare against each other to see which performs better.

Inbound Marketing Is an Ongoing Process

Th e most important thing to remember is that your inbound marketing strategy should be an ongoing process. Be consistent and patient with your SEO eff orts. It takes time for pages to start ranking in Google searches. As you evaluate your site’s performance data, you may fi nd it necessary to make changes and reoptimize. 

Todd M. Zielinski is managing director and CEO at Athena SWC LLC. He can be reached at 716-250-5547 or tzielinski@athenaswc.com.

Lisa Benson is senior marketing content consultant at Athena SWC LLC. She can be reached at lbenson@athenaswc.com.