Search engine optimization (SEO) has one of the highest returns on investment (ROI) for the effort. But to move forward with SEO requires a plan. Here is a roadmap for your SEO efforts in 2017.

Identify Key Target Audiences

The more information you have about your visitors, the better you can target those customers. Through analytics, gathering information about Facebook followers, and any means by which you can better understand your audience’s likes and wants. Where are they from, what age group they are in, what gender, education levels or any other information you can glean can help you create content and a user experience geared toward that target audience.

Analyze Off-Page Search Signals and the Competitive Landscape

In other words, you need to spy on your competition to understand what keywords they are ranking for and how they are getting their backlinks. What forms of social media are they using and which influencers are they associate with? Armed with this knowledge, you can then create a plan to duplicate their success. You will know which influencers you need to reach out to and to try to form a relationship with them as well. Continue reading →

While organic search results are always desirable, the amount of time most companies spend on SEO is minimal. If you’re lost or confused as to what you should be doing to get those organic listings, if you spend just an hour a day, the following is a 15-day roadmap that should get you on your way.

Day 1 – Defining Goals

Benjamin Franklin said, “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail.” Those words are just as true when it comes to your marketing plans. You need to set goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and timed (S.M.A.R.T). An effective marketing plan will include short, medium, and long-term goals.

Day 2 – Verifying Goals are Achievable

While settings goals is the first step, it’s not the only one. While the goal of a business may be to increase sales, it should also be determined what part of those sales should come from organic search results and to then measure the growth.

Day 3 – Identifying Additional Keywords

It’s important to target keywords that can generate the kind of traffic that you will need to make your sales goals. But you will need to continue to monitor those keywords and search for variations that people may be looking for. Your website analytics may also reveal keywords that people are finding your website from that you may not have even considered. Continue reading →