We are still in the wake of the historic election and the most prominent word that seems to be on everyone’s mind is change. Now, for change to come from Washington we all can safely say, regardless of party affiliation, that it will take quite a while. In other words, don’t hold your breath unless you are ready to pass out from lack of oxygen. There is one area, however, where you can enact change and possibly have an effect on your business before the Inauguration in January. That area is your search engine optimization efforts.
To keep it simple, let’s look at some areas that you can change very quickly:
1. Change your title and meta descriptions for the main pages on your site. If you have never looked at them before, then this is even more important. Not only do the engines consider the title tag one of the last of the on-page factors that are still relevant, your marketing message might have changed and your site could be behind the times. I tell folks to review these areas on a quarterly basis and make sure that your messaging is on point relative to your business goals.
2. Change your level of involvement. If you are one of those folks who is completely on top of their Web site’s search marketing, then more power to you. I can safely say, however, that the overwhelming majority of site owners in the SMB space have not looked at their most important SEO factors in a very long time. SEO requires regular attention by someone in the know. It is not a “one and done” practice. Be sure you are ALWAYS involved in building new one-way inbound link partners. If your SEO efforts have been inconsistent, then it is likely that your reputation with the search engines has suffered.
3. Change your agency. Wow. I can’t believe I just said that but it is something that should be considered often. There are many client-agency relationships that slip into a catatonic state, sapping the essential creativity needed for SEO success. You have the right to demand that your agency do what YOU need for success and not get caught up in a monthly set of deliverables that are routinely spit out to meet lax contractual obligations. If you are paying for creativity, then demand it or tell your current provider to pack their bags and take a hike.
4. Change your clients. For you agency folks this may come as a shock but there are bad clients out there that drain your resources and turn unprofitable after some time. If that is the case, fire the client. What? Yup, you read that correctly. Fire the client. Agency relationships that are on auto pilot hurt both client and agency alike. If your client has been unresponsive, or unwilling to invest the resources for success, then guess who is at fault when the client complains about results. The agency will always be wrong. Avoid that by cleaning house of bad clients and looking to do good business with those who value your knowledge and time.
5. Change your attitude. This is the big one. We are in uncertain times but your attitude toward your SEO efforts should correlate directly to the level of success you have. Search engine optimization is extremely attractive in an economic downturn. Efficiency and measurability make for very wise marketing budget spending. If you go for broke now, you stand to be in or near the front of the pack when things pick back up. Expect to win.
So it’s time for change. Take control. Make some money. Smile a little. Change can be good.
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