There is a common digital marketing problem among small businesses.
The problem is that small and even medium businesses are getting pushed out in the digital world.
Do an online search for the biggest term in your industry. Pick a term you would expect to rank highly for on Google.
Are you there?
Google and the other engines have been making some drastic changes over the last few years. It’s no longer possible to rank well if you don’t have a site that meets a few standards. What’s happened is that most small and medium businesses haven’t been able to keep up with the change.
It’s resulted in a loss of traffic and a loss of sales.
Here is how you can fix this digital marketing problem so you get back to your rightful place at the top of the search results.
Step 1 – Write Fresh Content
When was the last time you updated the content on your website?
Those service description are probably a few years old. The about page probably has a copyright date of 2010 (or even older).
You don’t have to raise your hand if the content on your site hasn’t been updated in a while. You just have to get back to work to make some updates to your site.
If you’re not writing fresh content on your website you’re telling the search engines that there is no reason for them to send their magic robots back to your site. They know they’re going to find the same thing that they found last mont hand last year and maybe even five years ago.
That’s why we promote blogging so much. Blogging is another natural way to keep your site fresh and updated. You don’t have to do it all the time. You could do it every week, every couple weeks or even every month.
This will give the search engines a reason to visit and a reason to send people to your site. Those people want to see new information. They want to see signs of life.
Update the static content on your site so it’s relevant and implement a strategy to keep fresh content on your site.
We like blogging, but there are other ways.
Step 2 – Get Involved In Multimedia
Content in the form of blog posts are one step, but the next step is looking at multimedia.
People are consuming more than just text on the Internet.
Video, for example, is exploding in popularity online. People are watching all kinds of shows, how-to videos and everything in between.
The search engines are paying attention too. They’re looking at videos, images and all types of content and ranking it right along with text. If you search for something like “How to fix a flat tire” you’re probably going to see a video of someone explaining it to you right along with a text-based blog post or maybe a slideshow with images.
Make video and images part of your ongoing content strategy. It will help keep your site up-to-date, which will lead to more traffic from search and social.
Step 3 – Invest In The Most Important Social Media Channel
We’ve been talking about how social media can have advantages for companies. We also realize that for small businesses it can be difficult to keep up with all of the social media channels out there.
Take a step back and write down the description of your ideal customer. Look at your list of clients and circle the one that is the best. They’re easy to work with and they love what you do. They’re also the most profitable for your business.
Now reach out to them and ask them what social media they use most. It might be Facebook or it might be Twitter or even LinkedIn.
Their answer will give you the information you need to start your social media campaign.
Start sharing content on that channel. Make fans, followers or connections on those channels.
That’s how to start a social media strategy if you’re just a small business. Focus on the most important channel.
These steps will help you fix your digital marketing problem.
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Image: François Péladeau