The following information is intended to help you understand how search engine optimization (SEO) works and why it's important. SEO is a process of improving your website's visibility in the search results pages of a search engine, such as Google or Bing. It involves writing content that ranks well with search engines, which ultimately leads to more traffic coming to your site from organic searches. Here are some basic principles of SEO.
Keyword research: Before you start any SEO campaign, you need to identify key words that people use to find things on the Internet. These keywords are called "keyword phrases." You can find these by using free tools like Google AdWords Keyword Tool or Wordtracker.com. The goal is to target an average of two keyword phrases per page. For example, if you sell dog training services, you might want to write about canine behavior for one page and dog obedience for another.
Content creation: After identifying your key word phrases, you'll have to create content around them. This means creating articles, press releases, video, podcasts, blog posts, etc., all of which should include your main keyword phrase. If you're planning on doing this yourself, consider hiring a writer or paying a professional web copywriter.
Link building: Once you've written quality content, you'll likely want to submit it to other websites. Doing so will increase its ranking in search engine results pages. To get links back to your site, you'll need to contact the owner of the website where you'd like to post your article and ask them whether they would be willing to link back to it. Sometimes there may be no way for you to directly contact the website owner. In those cases, you can try finding someone who has influence over the site or whose opinion matters to the website owner. For instance, you could email a few influential bloggers in the same industry as the website owner and ask them if they would mind linking back to your site.
Social media marketing: A great way to drive traffic to your website is through social media. There are many social networks out there, but Facebook and Twitter are two popular ones. If you plan to run a social media campaign, make sure you focus on engaging with potential customers rather than just posting random updates to your profile. You can also set up a fan page on Facebook for your business.
To learn more about SEO, visit these resources:
How Search Engines Work: An Introduction to Search Engine Optimization by Eric Enge
Google Webmaster Guidelines
Google Analytics
Google Trends
Google PageRank
Google Places
Facebook Marketing
Twitter Marketing
Pinterest Marketing
LinkedIn Marketing
YouTube Marketing
Other ways to promote your small business online
If you don't know what kind of promotion to do next, here are a few ideas:
Email marketing: Email marketing is still one of the most cost-effective methods of promoting your business online. It allows you to reach a wide audience at little expense. When you send emails to your subscribers, you can provide valuable information about your company, products, services, events, etc.
Affiliate marketing: Affiliate marketing is essentially selling someone else's product. If you have a blog dedicated to your business, you can offer affiliate programs that allow your visitors to sign up for free ebooks, reports, software, etc. Then when they purchase something, you get a commission.
Online advertising: Paid advertising on the Internet is one of the most effective forms of promoting your business. Many companies hire professionals to manage their paid advertising campaigns. However, if you're not comfortable with hiring someone to do this for you, you can advertise on your own through sites like Google AdSense.
Guest blogging: Guest blogging is a strategy that many large businesses use to generate new links to their websites. With guest blogging, you write an article about a topic related to your niche and then share it on websites owned by others. By sharing your expertise on other people's blogs, you can give them credibility and add new links to your site.
Blogging: Blogging is another powerful tool for driving traffic to your website. You can use it to build relationships with readers, engage in conversation, and gain valuable insights into your customer base. You can also use it to build authority within your niche. If you're running a blog, you can even turn it into a moneymaking business by offering subscriptions and paid ads.
Promoting your business offline: Offline marketing is often overlooked because it's seen as less effective than digital marketing. But traditional marketing strategies like networking, public speaking, brochures, billboards, etc. can be extremely helpful for getting your name out there.
These techniques can work together to improve your overall presence online and increase your business' visibility. Of course, it takes time and effort, but it's worth it if you want to grow your business. Happy internetting!