If you’re a small business owner, then you know that things in the marketing world are always changing. In fact, there have been some significant changes to how businesses rank on search engines in the past few years, meaning that SEO has become even more critical for small businesses! As you navigate shifts in small business SEO, here are four key changes to keep in mind.
Video SEO
Video content is quickly becoming an integral part of SEO. The reason for this is that video content is more engaging. People are less likely to stop watching a video than stop reading text. Plus, videos can rank higher in search engines because Google prefers sites with videos.
To take advantage of this, invest in creating video content relevant to your niche and start uploading it on YouTube, where you can optimize it with the correct tags and keywords. You’ll also want to include links back to your site in the description so that visitors who enjoy your video will click through to your site.
Site Speed and Optimization
In the past, Google has been very strict about site speed. In 2015, the organization began to consider page-load speed as a key factor in search engine ranking.
In other words, if your site is slow to load times, then it will rank lower in Google.
Aside from manual testing, numerous tools are available to help you identify and resolve page speed issues on your website. Google Page Insights is an excellent tool for this because it provides a quick overview and provides a list of recommendations for how to fix each issue that is discovered.
If you’re not sure how you’re ranking or what options you have, talk to SEO experts who can help you to implement (and keep up!) a successful SEO strategy.
Mobile SEO
One of the most significant changes that will affect SEO is the focus on mobile optimization.
Google recently announced that they are shifting to a mobile-first indexing system, meaning that their search engine rankings will now be based on how well a website ranks on mobile devices. As a result, your business must stay up-to-date with this change and make sure your site is optimized for viewing on a smaller screen.
User Search Intent
User search intent is one of the most important changes in SEO.
What this means is that not all searches are created equal. For instance, if someone types “car dealership near me” into Google, they are likely looking for a car dealership in their local area. But if someone types “best car of 2021” into Google, then they might be looking for information on the best car to buy or where to purchase it.
This means that you need to consider what your customers might be looking for when they enter specific keywords into search engines, like Google and Bing. For example, if someone searches for “Midtown Pizza,” you need to make sure that your website comes up on the first page of results because they are likely looking for your business by name. If someone searches for “Midtown Pizza menu,” you want them to find information on your menu quickly and easily, so they don’t have to click through pages and pages of results.
This means ensuring your website includes a prominent link to your menu as well as images from your recent menu items. The more relevant content you produce about what people search for, the higher you’ll rank on those search engine results pages (SERPS).
So, What Are Your Next Steps?
As overwhelming as it may feel at times to navigate small business SEO, you are in control. Your first step is to ensure that your website is optimized, targeted to the right audience, and coming up in relevant searches. To help you stay at the forefront of digital marketing, work with experts, ask for help, and take everything (including crazy changes!) one day at a time.
Featured Image Credit: Firmbee
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