TFC#12: The Top 4 SEO Tactics You Need to Implement Now

Imagine pouring your heart and soul into your business, only to find that nobody can find it online.

Your website is buried deep in search results, and potential customers have no idea you exist. You're left watching your competitors thrive, while you struggle to get noticed.

Without a solid SEO strategy, this nightmare could become a harsh reality for any business owner. If you're not prioritizing SEO, you're missing out on a world of opportunity and potential growth.

SEO = Search Engine Optimization

In other words, SEO is the strategy you use to show up when people Google your business.

The good news is, subscribing to an SEO agency for over $500 per month is not the only way to get results.

Here are my four main tactics for getting a business to rank in Google search results based on what I have learned from the 25 websites I have built in the last couple of years.

You can start doing these today.

Google My Business

The first article I wrote for Tech-Forward Cabinetmaker on Jan 13, 2023, was on Google My Business. You can read it here.

I consider GMB to be the core piece of the SEO strategy.

Actions/Advice for GMB:

• Create a GMB profile if you don’t already have one

• Complete your profile 100% and update it regularly

• Add nice photos

• Get reviews

• Make posts once a month (optional, but very effective)

With typical SEO work, it can take a month or two to notice any differences. With Google My Business, the results are practically instant.

The other reason I like Google My Business is that it is a predictable way for customers to find information. It is always in a neat and structured box in the search results.

If I could only have one of these options as a business, I would choose Google My Business over citations, websites, and anything else.

Citations

Citations = instances of your company information on other websites

These could also be called directories, listings, or NAPs (name/address/phone).

The accuracy and consistency of this information are critical.

Some examples of the main citations can include:

• google my business

• bing places

• yelp

• facebook

• houzz

I put together a list of citations you can use. Pick and choose the ones that make sense for you.

Why is this important?

Every citation you create helps build your SEO. Google will be more likely to recommend your business if it sees all of these citations reporting your business information.

Google loves when it finds your company information on other websites.

Again, be very sure your information is correct and consistent in all of your citations.

For example, if you put your phone number as (812) 123-4567, don’t put it as 812-1234567 on the next citation. Keep them identical.

I know, it can be overwhelming to create accounts for all of these different websites.

Check out Brightlocal if you want to pay for software to automate this for you.

Basically, they allow you to enter your business information into their software, and they will synchronize your information across all of the citations you want to be listed on.

Actions/Advice for Citations:

• Get your business information formatted how you like it in Google My Business.

• Find other citations to add. See list.

• Create accounts for each of these and add your identical information.

• Fix incorrect citations. Google yourself and check for incorrect information.

• Build as many as you can for maximum results.

• Or, automate it with Brightlocal or similar software.

Social Media

Some people simply use social media as a citation instead of using it to build an audience of followers.

Having a profile is better than not having one because you at least get another citation or backlink. However, without posting and engaging with others, it will simply act as a landing page that no one wants to visit.

Actions/Advice for Social Media

• Create all of your social accounts.

• Focus on one or two social platforms to actually post from regularly.

• Engage with other people’s content if you don’t have an audience.

• Don’t post “ads”, post valuable content or real at-work photos.

Posting a generic stock image every day and saying contact us for more information will not build an audience.

We seem to think we need professional photos and well-crafted posts, but instead, people want to see the real stuff.

Here are a couple of ideas:

• Building a sloped hood this week, take a few pictures of the process, and post it. You can even describe the steps you took to build it.

• Finished a really interesting project, get permission from the owner and share pictures of the project and describe what made it interesting to you.

• Take a picture of unique wood and color combinations you like right now

People will appreciate your content and be more likely to share it with friends.

This is why social media is the hardest thing to outsource.

You can easily outsource Google My Business, citations, and your website, but it’s going to be very difficult to outsource your social media.

Why is this important?

When people like your social content, more and more people will see it and share it with their friends.

Now, instead of 1 person clicking on your website link from Facebook, you could have 10, 20, or more people clicking your website button.

Google loves to see social referral traffic.

Website

The final tactic is your website. As a website designer over the past few years, I obviously encourage people to build a website for their business.

It doesn’t even have to be a complex and expensive website. A simple one-page website is enough to build credibility with your audience and offer resources for people trying to learn more about your business.

Don’t overthink the website part of it.

There are ways to structure your website to help your SEO but I have found that optimizing Google My Business and building citations is an easier way to build SEO.

Actions/Advice for your Website

• At a minimum, have a one-page website for your business

• As you build your website, be sure to include keywords and relevant content

• Assign H1, H2, H3, and paragraph tags appropriately to help Google crawl your website.

• Always give your images good keyword-loaded titles

• Make your website schema match your citation format

• It’s not as simple as spamming keywords on your website like it was 10 years ago. Google determines how users interact with your website and your content to decide if it should recommend your website to others.

• Focus on one Call To Action (schedule a meeting, become a dealer, call us, etc)

I have used a variety of website builders over the years such as Wix, Squarespace, and other no-code tools but I always end up back on Wordpress.

Here are the exact tools I use to build websites:

• Domain Names (A2 Hosting)

  • There are cheaper places to buy domains, but I like to use A2 because that’s where all my hosting accounts are anyways so it keeps things in the same place.

• Website Hosting (A2 Hosting)

  • I bought a reseller hosting package that allows me to put all of my websites on a dedicated server instead of buying slow shared hosting for each website.

• Website Builder (Wordpress.org, NOT Wordpress.com)

  • A2 Hosting has a great tool to get Wordpress installed on a domain without too much technical knowledge.

• Page Designer (Elementor)

  • This plugin takes Wordpress to the next level. It’s easy to achieve high-quality responsive designs without knowing HTML and CSS code.

• SEO Plugin (Rank Math)

  • Rank Math allows you to customize the google results title and description instead of crawling the actual page. It also allows you to add keywords and score how well your page will work with those keywords

• Custom Content and Templates (Crocoblock)

  • Crocoblock has an entire suite of products that really expands the typical page/post format of Wordpress. It works really nicely with Elementor

• Copywriting (ChatGPT)

  • ChatGPT is my best friend when designing a website. I can get lots of header and description ideas based on a prompt I give it.

Conclusion

In today's world, having a solid SEO strategy is crucial for any business to survive and thrive.

Without it, potential customers may never find you online, leaving you to watch your competitors thrive while you struggle to get noticed.

Fortunately, there are ways to improve your online visibility without subscribing to an SEO agency for over $500 per month. By utilizing tactics like Google My Business, citations, social media, and your website, you can start ranking in Google search results and get your business noticed.

These tactics may seem overwhelming at first, but with some effort and consistency, you can improve your SEO and grow your business. Don't miss out on the opportunity to reach a wider audience and potential growth by ignoring SEO.

Take these four tactics, and level up your SEO game today.

Thanks for reading and have another great weekend,

Myron