3 Tips to Refine Your Current SEO Strategy

It's a good time of the year for digital marketers to take a closer look at the success of their SEO efforts. What SEO strategy seems to have worked best? How successful have you been in attracting your core audience? Now is not the time to coast on what you are doing, even if you've hit or exceeded your goals this year. Use the last few months of the year to refine your SEO strategy and pinpoint opportunities for driving more high-converting visitors to your website. A quick audit like the one below can highlight places where these SEO tactics could yield better results. 1. Polish Your Technical SEO Components You would be surprised at how many seemingly polished websites neglect basic SEO techniques, like optimal keyword placement and appropriate headers. Keyword research is one thing that remains vital in a sea of SEO changes over the years. Of course, don't mistake an emphasis on keywords as an invitation to start using outdated keyword-stuffing tactics. Unnaturally stuffing keywords into your pages is unnecessary and reads awkwardly to your target audience. Sprinkle your focus keywords throughout your content organically, in a way that makes sense. You can also target multiple, related keywords by optimizing their placement in the headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) of your content. Meta descriptions are another SEO component many marketers neglect. Optimizing meta descriptions is a quick, easy way to help drive more clicks to your website; which, in turn, can improve your search engine rankings. Don't just let Google decide what to use as your description in its search results. Draft compelling meta descriptions that will help your business stand out to prospective customers. The biggest thing to keep in mind when it comes to SEO is the intent. How well are you matching the page titles and descriptions to what your prospective customers are searching for? 2. Upgrade Your Content You've heard it before, but it bears repeating, content is king. Google's goal is to provide the absolute best search results possible for its users, and that means you must have the best content if you want to compete in SEO. What can visitors find on your site that they cannot get anywhere else? Home contractors can create video guides for common do-it-yourself scenarios that often stump potential clients, while making it clear when they should call in a professional. Creative types can take their visitors through their process of coming up with their final product, whether it is a song or a new cake design. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Look at what is already ranking at the top of Google for your target keywords. How can you do it better? What new angle can you cover that can fulfill the needs of your visitors? The voice of experience should be evident throughout, showing customers why you should be their top choice over other competitors. 3. Improve Tracking Across Your Pages Tracking is a marketer’s best tool when it comes to finding SEO improvements. It can tell you exactly where the issues are and what changes can have the most significant impact, when properly implemented. If you haven't done so already, then I suggest installing Google Analytics across your entire website and linking it up to your account with Google Search Console. Those two tools will give you invaluable insights into your SEO efforts. You'll be able to track keyword rankings, search engine click-through rates, and SEO landing page conversions. For locally-focused businesses, I recommend BrightLocal for tracking your Google My Business rankings, over time. This will help you spot trends and continue to make improvements with your local SEO efforts. It's Time to Work on Your SEO Strategy We're in the fourth quarter, so it's time to set up your SEO for success in the next year. Review the basics and make sure you've optimized your website correctly for your target keywords. Then review your content, compared to what's already ranking in Google. How can you compete and create superior content for your target audience? Lastly, don't forget about tracking. It's never too late to get proper tracking installed so that you have the tools readily available to improve your SEO. Want more tips to help you with SEO? Click here to grab a copy of my "Ultimate SEO Checklist."

Search Engine Optimization

3 Tips to Refine Your Current SEO Strategy

Phil Frost

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Phil Frost