3 Tips for Search Engine Optimization on a Budget

You do not have to break the bank to get quality SEO results. But you do need to figure out the metrics that matter when it comes to delivering a return on your investment. It is also important to temper expectations, when it comes to results. Search engine optimization typically takes longer to drive leads and sales, when compared to PPC advertising campaigns. Getting the Most for Your Money Let’s go over some ways that companies can make their sites SEO-friendly, without breaking the bank. 1. Get the Architecture Right If you are going to spend money anywhere, make sure some of it goes toward building a quality website. It should have a clean design, an intuitive navigation experience, and be accessible to search engines. Menus, content, and other information should be organized in a way that makes sense and is easy to find. There are plenty of SEO-savvy developers capable of providing a new website or revamping your existing one for a reasonable price. Google and Bing both offer free webmaster guidelines that businesses can use as a guide to creating search-friendly websites. They are an excellent resource for businesses, even if they are unfamiliar with the ins and outs of technical SEO. 2. Small Details Matter With SEO, small details can make all of the difference in your rankings. Here are some cost-effective ways of upgrading your website’s SEO. Page Titles — Google uses the page title (aka, Title tag, or in HTML) as a shortcut to know what the page is about. Think of it like the chapter name in a textbook. Include the most relevant keyword(s) you're trying to rank for in the title so that Google knows the page is 100% relevant to those search phrases. Meta Descriptions — Take the time to fill in the meta descriptions for your website content. Search engines like Google will use this as the excerpt below the hyperlink to your website. A clean, precise description can be the difference-maker in getting a visitor to click through to your site. Header Tags — No one likes reading big walls of text. You could have the most amazing, enlightening content on your web pages, but no one is going to read it without proper formatting. Headers and subheaders are vital in making content easier to read and absorb. Search engines also use the headers to better understand what the page is about, so make sure to include variations of your target keywords in your page headers. 3. Use Free SEO Tools What better way to understand how Google views SEO than by using the tools it provides? Google Search Console (formerly known as Webmaster Tools) gives you incredible insight into your SEO, all for free! Use Google's PageSpeed Insights tool to evaluate your website speed and identify opportunities to improve. Plus, with Google's move to a mobile-first Index, you'll want to take the Mobile-Friendly Test and fix any issues right away. For a more advanced analysis, I highly recommend the Screaming Frog SEO Spider. You'll be able to quickly review all the pages on your website to identify issues with your page titles, descriptions, headers, and even broken links. Final Thoughts on SEO on a Budget Businesses can use a variety of resources to improve their SEO without breaking their budget. Improving the architecture of a website is a great place to start, because a poorly structured site will be very difficult to rank high in Google. And pay attention to the details. Make sure your page titles, descriptions, and headers are all optimized for search engines. Lastly, take advantage of the free tools and resources available online. Just because they are free, doesn't mean they aren't valuable. In fact, many of the tools mentioned above are as good or even better than the paid options. Want more tips to improve your SEO? Click here to grab a copy of the "Ultimate SEO Checklist."

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3 Tips for Search Engine Optimization on a Budget

Getting the Most for Your Money

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Phil Frost

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