MassNet Marketing Blog

I’ve posted on this topic previously, but this dilemma is one that absolutely deserves more attention as it continues to be one of the most frequently asked questions that we receive from clients who currently have websites created by others.

It is an unfortunate reality that many small business owners do have websites that simply have not pulled in leads as expected. And, it’s even worse that many of those websites were never optimized correctly to begin with – which will automatically eliminate the possibility of search engines being able to give your site the rankings that you want.

However, with that being said; it’s also important to realize that your website is not a “magic bullet” - it is only one part of many tools that you should be using within your marketing arsenal.

But, let’s get back on topic and discuss some things that need to be realized when it comes to search engine optimization:

Have you ever heard the old saying “a watch pot never boils?” It basically means the more you hover over the pot waiting for it to boil; the longer it seems to take to boil. How does the ‘watch pot’ compare with search engine optimization?

The basic point is, that your website is probably not going to shoot to the top of the search engines over night. Each search engine has its own methods of listing and ranking websites – which can vary drastically from one search engine to the next. If you have a ‘new’ website it is imperative that you give your site time to be indexed by the search engines, but beyond that, it is even more important that you continue to update and feed your site new content. A dull, outdated and static website is not going to be rewarded with high search engine rankings.

Today’s search engines tend to give higher rankings to sites that have the most new, as well as unique, content. You may have heard the web saying that ‘content is king’ and it’s absolutely true!

A few things you can do to help your search engine rankings:

1. Don’t let your website become an outdated ‘bulletin board.’  Update your website regularly or pay someone to do it for you.

2. Optimize your website with the correct meta tags and keywords for your industry.

3. Consider integrating social media into your marketing mix.

4. Advertise your website everywhere – the importance of well placed ‘back links’ to your website cannot be overstated.

5. Ask for help from experienced online marketers. (Kentucky small business owners can contact us for a free no obligation website blueprint.)

It’s important to learn as much as you can about search engine optimization, but you don’t have to become an expert on it yourself (and you probably don’t want to!) As my father always said; “smart people put smart people around them” and it still holds true – even in today’s techie world!