Here’s something to consider: while there’s no such thing as bad publicity, if you reach the top of SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) for the wrong reason, it may not result in positive interactions between your business and target clientele.
For example, several years ago Sony had an issue when they were hacked by some politically-charged organization. This lead to a stock drop. So though this tech company was in the media, and at the top of the results from Google to Bing for a few months, it negatively affected them.
Modern marketing relies on SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, and there are some distinct strategies commonly used to bring your business to the top of SERPs, and increase the percentage of traffic which ultimately converts to the products or services you provide. In this writing, we’ll cover a few tactics that help produce such positive outcomes, including:
- Incorporation Of “Money” Keywords In Addition To Good Rankings
- Properly Structuring Websites In Terms Of User Journeys And Landing Pages
- Leveraging External Reviews And Testimonials To Expand Rates Of Conversion
Very often the money keywords don’t have huge search volume, however, they are very targeting. Let’s take a small subset of keywords for which we rank a specific landing page. These keywords don’t have a lot of average monthly search volume, but they are highly targeted to what potential prospects are searching for. Thus the conversion rate and the ROI are higher.
Incorporation Of “Money” Keywords In Addition To Good Rankings
There are a number of different “money” keywords you’ll want to take into account for best results in online marketing. For one thing, geographically-optimized keywords are very smart. Most people will type in something you would include as a keyword in content, followed by a location. So a business providing tech support options in Texas might use “IT in Austin”.
If you’ve got the “IT”, but not the Austin, then you’ll get traffic to your site, but it will be traffic located in a different municipality. Accordingly, it likely won’t result in a conversion. So geo-location in terms of keywords is a wise tip to increase conversion rankings.
Additionally, you want to continuously research popular keywords as they pertain to your business, and continuously produce new content with those keywords properly included. Just be careful not to “repeat” yourself too much, or numbers may drop owing to a phenomenon called keyword cannibalization.
Properly Structuring Websites in Terms of User Journeys and Landing Pages
Websites should be designed to gently usher visitors ever closer to conversion. You need to avoid too much clutter and optimize sites so they’re easy to interact with on mobile devices. More than 50% of users access the web through mobile devices as opposed to desktop hardware today. Accordingly, if software design doesn’t match that reality, you’re going to experience a reduction in conversion.
Keywords lead prospects to your site, but then they can’t read the relevant data there owing to desktop formatting. So you want content to have hyperlinks that lead directly to intended landing pages for given clients, but those landing pages need to be optimized for best results using mobile software design. It’s also worthwhile to “tier” keywords such that different keywords correspond to different aspects of the buyer’s journey.
One family of keywords should be designed to “reel in” your demographic, another family to educate them on your products or services, and the last family designed for their conversion. All such content should have Calls To Action (CTAs) and landing pages appropriately included pertaining to which sorts of customers you’re trying to reach.
Leveraging External Reviews and Testimonials to Expand Rates of Conversion
A little over 80% of people trust online reviews, as well as they, trust friends in terms of product recommendation. But few to none will trust a business singing its own praises. As the old adage goes, it’s a lot better to have somebody else praise you, than to praise yourself.
As a business, this is a reality you should respect. Solicit testimonials from satisfied customers, as well as reviews–you can even write a few and get authorization to publish them in the name of satisfied clients.
Whatever the case, find a way of leading prospective clients to sections of your site showing how those who use what you provide are satisfied. This will help SERP rankings more efficiently produce conversion.
Getting to the Top of SERPs and Increasing Sales Conversions Simultaneously
“Money” keywords, geographically-centered keywords, proper website structure, landing pages, and design, and external testimonies or reviews represent some key optimization points for your online marketing endeavors. Get the balance right, and you’ll likely see a marked increase in conversions. Consultation can help.
Keep in mind, the technology landscape is in continuous transition, and this trend will only compound over time. If you can’t afford a dedicated, cutting-edge internal marketing team, outsourcing to the professionals can do much to optimize the efficacy of your online presence, and produce markedly higher rates of conversion. In a phrase: you’ll have a better chance of seeing a return on investment.
