SEO and your business

Everyone is talking about SEO. Optimizing your business for Google and other search engines is very important if you are relying on your web site to get you business. However, it is also important to remember that the like most things the web sphere shifts and constantly changes and you business needs to reflect these changes in its optimization. Some simple points are.

Use more CTAs
You can never have enough key phrases or Call to Actions on your site! Continually add new Call to Actions links to new information, products or services on your site. For example if you have a new or imporved service and wish to get some attention, place a link to a focus page on the new service with some nice designed CTA saying something along the lines of "New Business Service! Improved! Find out more..."

Blog it
Try using a blog to pull hits through to your site. You can setup your own blog easily on blogger like we have here or you can install your own fairly simply. You may even just coment on somones blog to link to your site though there is never any guarantee that the comment will be published.

Look at the numbers
Use Google analytics or similar and look at whats working and whats not. Use this to inspire new content. Try and get conversion working if you are and e-commerce site.

Go Public
Its all well and good to be amazing with SEO but digital is not the only point of contact for all businesses. If this is you then make an effort to market your self in the physical world. Visit shops, malls, museums, libraries and other public areas leaving some marketing material. You can also drop flyers, advertise in local papers and magazines or event pay for advertorial or if your lucky get some free publicity in a newspaper article. If you sell your self in the public relm more than likely this will filter back into the digital realm pulling your rank up in turn.

Try Social Media
If you haven't already, sign up to Facebook, MySpace or Twitter and start using the marvelous wonders of Social Networking. Its cheap and easy to learn plus there is a tone of information on it out there.

Use Quality Outbound Links
Using outbound links can increase your search rank dramatically so long as they are of a quality source. Its a good idea to check old links to make sure they are still active and have not fallen to link rot

Try and get some Quality Inbound Links
Inbound links are of much higher value than outbound links. This is because they are harder to get and quality again plays a big factor. This can relate back to the go public point where you need to get out there and sell your business to other sites in the public sphere so they can link to you... hunt around and try email people regarding a link swap or try and get an article in someones blog or better yet a major journal or paper.

Be Persistent and Think Lateral
These are all pretty common sense ideas to help you get more traffic. The main thing is to keep doing more and more of this. Try some thing new, review it and if it works keep doing it, if not scrap it. Try and come up with some alternative ideas and lateral thinking which might help broaden your reach. Most importantly have fun with it. If its a chore then it will become tiresome fast and you wont succeed. If you don't see the benefits instantly, stick with it, it can take a while to filter through and it can be quite rewarding!

Useful Links
Must See SEO Guide for All WordPress Bloggers
Google Ranking Factors Checklist