One way to create buzz around your small business is through your Web site. But, in order to drive traffic to the site, it’s important to have a strong search engine optimization (SEO) strategy in place. By having your site ranked higher on search engine results pages, the more likely you are to increase company visibility. The big question, however, is how? Earlier this month, we gave you five tips on how to improve your SEO. Now, here are a few recommendations on getting started:
1. Submit to local search sites such as Google Local, Yahoo Local and Yelp: These sites are a great resource for consumers looking for small businesses in their local area.
2. Add an analytics program to your site: Free services like Google Analytics will allow you to track activity on your Web site and will help you identify the weaker portions of your business’s site.
3. Identify and Optimize Key Words: Search engines often examine key words in titles in order to determine relevance to the search terms. Make sure the key words you identify are relevant to your business’s offerings.
4. Enroll in free online search directories: Take advantage of free search directories to list basic information about your business.
5. Develop a sitemap and submit it: Create a map of your Web site to help search engines understand everything about your Web site. This can be built for free at XML-Sitemaps.com and submitted to Google, Yahoo and MSN.
6. Validate your HTML: By validating the HTML code, businesses can ensure that their Web site is structurally correct.