Even before the onset of Covid-19, e-commerce rapidly became one of the most important spheres for businesses to thrive or fail. The internet offers a myriad of opportunities for all kinds of businesses as it does not come with the restrictions that off-line businesses come with. For example, an off-line business needs to pay astronomical rent and other property costs in order to secure a location in a high-traffic prime location. Online companies don’t need to do that. Better still, they have the power to draw traffic to their websites and depending on how good they are, they can even beat larger and more monied competitors.
Understanding how to drive traffic to your website is critical, which means you have to understand how Google works. Google is important because most online purchases begin with a Google search, thus ensuring that Google search results can make or break your company. This brings us to the next important question: How does a company get Google to like their page? Read on to find out.
Understanding SEO
Search Engine Optimization or SEO is the process of ensuring that your website ranks highly on Google search results when certain keywords are entered. Given that most people rarely go to the second page of the search results (and sometimes don’t even go to the end of the first page), it is critical that your potential customers find your website right at the top of the page. Here is how to go about it.
The Right Content
When your website has updated and relevant content, it makes it easier for Google bots to find and index your page. Typically, Google looks for content that appears to be as relevant as possible to what people are looking for. This is why it pays to have content (blogs are a good example) that speaks to the latest trends as those are what people will be looking for. For example, a gift shop company can post content regarding how to get a Father’s Day gift during the COVID-19 lockdown. This is relevant content that is likely to be looked up by many people. The implications however are that you have to constantly ensure that your content is updated and aligned to what your potential customers could be looking for.
Well-Positioned Links
Google search engine bots use the amount (and quality) of links on your website to determine the quality of your content. For example, if credible websites have linked back to content on your site, Google is likely to assume that it is a sign that your content is important and worth ranking upwards. The more credible sites that link back to you, the higher Google will rank your site. There are many ways of getting such quality linkbacks. For example, you could offer content to news sites or blogs on the condition that they link back. If you are a chef running a pastry shop, you could contribute tips and suggestions on how to make pastries on a news site with linkbacks to your site.
Smart Keywords
Business owners need to be very clear as to what word potential clients are likely to use when searching for these products and services online. These keywords and phrases must then be incorporated into the website content in order to ensure that your site comes up when these words are used. Working with a clever SEO specialist, one can incorporate geographical names as well so that you only draw clients who are within your area of service. There is also the need to use long-tailed keywords that are likely to draw in a high-quality prospect rather than generic words that are likely to be used by many people. It pays for a business owner to understand what his or her competitors are doing and to always be on the lookout for new keywords to add to their SEO efforts.
