We’re going to let you in on a little secret: any so-called internet marketing expert who claims they can make an SEO strategy appear out of thin air is straight up lying. SEO is pretty boring stuff if you’re doing it right. No one will admit that, though, because smoke and mirrors look way more impressive and mysterious.
Not that there aren’t some tricks to planning a cohesive SEO strategy for any business. That’s why, even if you could not care less about what’s happening on the SEO side of things, you should at the very least understand the most important elements of a viable SEO strategy.
Know that SEO Isn’t a Static Thing
Back in the early days of search engine optimization, things like keyword stuffing actually worked. Today, Google will tar and feather you for that kind of silliness.
Reminder: SEO stands for ‘search engine optimization’—the goal here is to optimize your website for search engines. And since search engines constantly tweak their algorithms, SEO strategies need to be constantly tweaked in response.
SEO is a “find what works today and do that a bunch, then find what works tomorrow and start doing that instead” kind of deal. If that’s not your scene, we suggest firing up your DeLorean and letting Doc Brown steer you back to simpler times.
Stay Flexible
Staying flexible is another important part of making sure your search engine marketing tactics deliver. And by ‘flexible,’ we do mean bendy to a yoga-pretzel level of degree.
There’s probably nothing that’ll kill your momentum faster than rigidly sticking to that one thing that worked that one time and NEVER CHANGING EVER AGAIN. Guys, this is a really bad idea. If you can name a single thing that you’ve never changed and will never have to change, we will happily eat our shoes. Adaptability is one of the universal qualities that defines any company’s success.
Create High-Quality Content
Don’t forget, your human audience wants something beyond algorithms and keywords to grab onto. We want engaging content, and we want it now. Blogs that are too clever for their own good! Social posts that just beg to be shared! And cat videos! Endless, endless cat videos!
If you’re not consistently creating and delivering content that’s above and beyond, your SEO will suffer. Do not treat high-quality content as an afterthought. Fantastic content is the cornerstone of any decent SEO strategy, and don’t you forget it.
Get Active on Social
Oscar Wilde said the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about, and that’s never been truer than in the age of social media. Search engines aren’t just looking at your site; they’re looking at how other people view your site. And if there’s noticeable social media silence where your business is concerned… well, Google notices that, too.
Without some online buzz about your business, Google thinks no one cares. Next thing you know, you’ll find yourself sitting at the internet equivalent of the cafeteria outcast table eating sad tater tots with the other losers. Harsh.
Putting It All Together
When taken separately, we know these tips sound (as we warned earlier) boring. But trust us, when you put them all together, you’re looking at a well-rounded SEO strategy.
SEO success is very much of the slow-and-steady-wins-the-race variety. Keep plugging away using the proven efforts we know absolutely work, and see your results pay off over the long haul. There are no exciting plot twists in the middle, but the gradual increase in rankings and traffic that mean you’re headed in the right direction for a happily ever after ending.