SEO for Small Business Websites

BANGALORE, INDIA: Here are some SEO basics that can help you improve the organic search rankings of your small business website:

Content:

The content on the Home Page of your site matters the most, so make sure you include relevant copy that defines your business or service on the Home Page. It is important to map out the pages you want to have on the site before you start building it. Keep in mind that repetitive content on the site will affect your search engine page ranking. Include a site map on your website as it allows for quick indexing by search engines.

Adding the right keywords:

Google’s Keyword Tool is pretty simple to use. Just enter a few keyword that define your service or business and it will recommend similar keywords with a high search volume that you can include in your copy. When building your site it is also important to include these relevant keywords in your site URL.

What is a Meta Tag?

These are HTML tags that give search engines information about the page. The text in these tags is not displayed on the web page. The three most relevant meta tags are the -Title tag (it is the title of the web page and shows up at the top of the browser or tab), the Description tag (this tag provides concise explanations of the contents of web pages to the search engines) and the Keyword tag (includes 8 to 10 keywords that describe the content of the page). The Title tag is the most important tag so make sure you include a Title tag that aptly describes the page. Every page should have unique meta tags and it is recommended that you don’t repeat them on the website.

Also read: Run your SMB at low cost

Webmaster Tool Can Help!

Submit your site to Google Webmaster Tool. This will ensure that Google indexes your site and help you figure out if there are any issues detected by Google that could hinder your sites search rankings.

Analytics:

Its important to monitor what keywords are driving traffic to your site and what pages have a high Bounce Rate (the percentage of visitors who enter the site and leave rather than continue viewing other pages within the same site). This will help you optimize the content on your site further. Google Analytics, Google’s analytics platform is free. Once you have created an account get a developer to add the analytics code / GA tracking ID to your site template.

 Link Building …Submit your small business website to local search sites like Yellow Pages, City Search, Google Places for Business, Angie’s List and Yelp. If your small business is accredited with the Better Business Bureau or other similar organizations – submit the link of your small business website when creating an account on such sites. Links from these trusted sites would help your website’s search engine ranking.

Source: www.simranchandok.wordpress.com