5 SEO Tips and Tricks You Need for 2018

seo tips and tricks

With the average small business now spending more than $75,000 a year on digital marketing, it’s important for you to find ways to cut corners.

When you cut back on your budget, you need to still maintain a competitive edge against the other brands in your industry. With a few simple SEO tips and tricks, you can maintain a strong presence organically.

Try these 5 tips to stay ahead of your competitors in 2018.

1. Start a Blog

One of the biggest secrets to SEO is for your site to have a constant and steady stream of content coming from your URL. While other people are trying to optimize this or that aspect of their site, they often skip over the importance of having a blog.

When users are on a search engine, they’re usually either looking for a specific product or the answer to a specific question. With a blog, you can capture the attention of both audiences by answering common questions about things in your industry with your products as the solution.

A blog also means that there will be a steady stream of new content on your blog. Take the time to update it regularly and you’ll get a coveted response from search engines of appearing multiple times for a single search. The more you’re willing to share, the higher your brand reputation will climb.

When users see that you’ve got a lot to say about things in your industry, you’ll get brand authority that search engines will factor into your ranking. The more often people are clicking your links when asking questions related to your industry, the higher you’ll climb in search results.

2. Go Mobile and Integrate

As mobile browsing has definitively surpassed desktop browsing, more of your users will be finding you via mobile devices and tablets. When they find you in their search results, they’ll want a mobile experience to match the device they’re using.

If you have to stretch or scale your site on a device to see what’s going on, you’ve already lost the war.

For sites that are going through a redesign or are being built for the first time, take a “mobile first” approach. This means that you’ll prioritize your mobile design, future proofing your site for changes to come with a professional look. It’s much easier to make a mobile-ready site display on a desktop or laptop screen than to shrink a desktop site down to a mobile device.

Once you’ve built a strong site, make sure you’re integrated with other mobile apps. If you have your own app, make the experience of switching from your site to your app a seamless one. Connect your site to other apps like social media or productivity apps that you know your clientele relies on.

3. Reviews Matter

As more than 80% of internet users now trust reviews from strangers online with as much credence as recommendations from friends, you need to get good reviews. Make sure every email, every correspondence, and every social media channel you use is directing your clientele to review you.

Before you start asking for reviews, you need to claim listings on sites like Yelp, Google My Business, and Yahoo! Local. If there are already listings, it’s because users generated a listing for you to write a review in the past. Despite their good intentions, they might have left out important information like hours, exact location, and services.

One piece of bad information moves like wildfire through the internet. Rather than let your users call the wrong phone number or try to buy from the wrong URL, take control by making the info match on every listing.

4. Use Local SEO Terms

Local SEO is the newest trend in search engine optimization.

When you type “pizza” into a search engine, you’re likely to get listings for local pizzerias, near where you’re searching from. That’s because search engines know that when users are looking for a product, they want the closest one to their location. When someone is searching for an ATM, they want one that’s nearby and available now, not one for a trip they’re taking out of town next March.

To figure out where your products and services are located, add lots of local terms to your website. Whenever it feels relevant, add your city, state, nearby highways, and landmarks.

This will help search engines to locate you and make sure that you’re matched up with users who are close to where you’re at.

Use lots of keyword phrases in your metadata. Instead of “pediatric orthodontist”, use “pediatric orthodontist Los Feliz Los Angeles” to get better matches.

5. Update Your Keywords Annually

You need to be researching your keywords constantly. Even if you’re in the slowest moving industry around, there will be changes to terminology or new brands that become popular. If you’re a tissue maker who is getting lapped by a new kind of tissues advertised on TV, you need to check out what keywords they’re using.

Do some searches for products like yours without using your brand name. Notice which of your competitors come up higher than you do for keywords you are and aren’t using. If they’re a step ahead of you on keywords, they’ll be a step ahead of you in sales.

SEO Tips and Tricks Can Save You Money

To remain competitive with larger brands, you need to make your small budget stretch. SEO tips and tricks are meant to keep you competitive, no matter the size of your budget. If you can gain a loyal following with the customers closest to where you’re located, you’ll always have a strong foundation for the growth of your business.

To see what SEO experts are saying about how to stay competitive, check out our latest report.