Staying up-to-date on SEO trends can be a time consuming dig for information, so I’ve developed a strategy that responds to Google’s recent algorithm adjustments and is easy for your business to implement. Why implement a strategy? Businesses that rank highest on search platforms are receiving the majority of organic clicks; specifically, the top 4 positions, receive 83% of first page organic clicks. The remaining organic listings only receive clicks from 8.16% of searchers. Making sure that your business obtains a top ranking will increase the potential for new customers and help to drive business.
What’s The Strategy?
Marketers have started to redefine” SEO” with the term “Content Marketing Strategy”, which brings a few things to mind: creating platforms, managing these platforms & regularly disseminating content related to your business amongst these platforms. All of these actions take time, so consider if this is a responsibility that you will be able to manage, or if you will need to assign this task to a tech savvy employee or hire an outside agency. Once the task has been assigned, decide which platforms you want to focus on and what message you want to deliver to your customers. Try to diversify the type of platforms that you optimize, by focusing on a mix of review site profiles and social media platforms.
Build Your Reputation
Creating review site profiles on the platforms that your customers are searching on, including; Google, Yelp and Yahoo! will help reaffirm your businesses validity to the search engine, in turn helping to boost your ranking and visibility. When creating review site profiles, it is important to complete all of the available fields with detailed information, select any relevant categories from available drop down menus and upload current photos of your business. Once your pages are created, begin accumulating customer reviews and respond appropriately to any reviews that are left on your pages. Customer reviews may take a while to accumulate, but these help boost your ranking and provide prospective patients with additional feedback and information.
Be Social
Engaging with your patients on a regular basis will help to build a loyal following and stay top of mind. Start by creating a Facebook page and posting a variety of engaging content 5-7 times per week to boost engagement levels. Interacting with patients on Facebook will help to “spread the word” about your business to those patients’ “Friends” and help to promote your business. Facebook also allows businesses to fill out detailed information sections and categories within the page settings, which is another way to reinforce and validate your business’ information.
What Content Is Appropriate To Post?
It’s important to post a variety of engaging and informative content on your social media platforms regularly. Be sure to post a range of content including; photos, links, articles, and posts that will encourage conversation with your patients, while also boosting your engagement levels. Platforms such as Pinterest, StumbleUpon and reputable optometry related websites can provide you with a diverse range of content to choose from. Since posting on a regular basis can be time consuming, consider utilizing a platform that allows you to pre-schedule posts throughout the week.