At one time, SEO and marketing were two separate things. Search engine optimization was just a small part of an overall strategy. Today, the two are virtually inseparable. If SEO is not a part of your marketing strategy, you might as well not have a strategy at all.

In modern business, you absolutely must have an online presence. There is no question. If you’re not visible online, you simply don’t exist. The game has changed, and continues to change as technology and the Internet evolve.

So what can you do today to make sure that your marketing and search optimization strategies keep your business growing well beyond tomorrow?

Decide On Your Keywords

Keywords on a page don’t carry the same weight that they did in years past, but they are still important. Do your research and plan out material that makes use of keywords that give you the right balance of low competition and strong reach. A Hamilton SEO Specialist advises that ‘keyword intent’ needs to be the most prominent consideration when it comes to choosing the right keywords to target. Think about the intent behind the keyword search, and tailor the contents of the page towards fulfilling that intent.

Consider different ways of saying the same thing and decide which phrases your target audience is most likely to use. Making proper use of keywords will get you seen in more search results and get your marketing content in front of more people.

Market To Mobile

Mobile searches have officially surpassed desktop searches. People are doing more business and handling more tasks from mobile devices. Google has even announced that mobile-friendly sites will get a boost in search results. Mobile has become mandatory.

You’ll need to make sure your website is responsive to mobile devices. If consumers can’t read your pages on their phones, they will go to your competitors. This means you need to make sure your content is mobile-friendly too. Users aren’t going to sit and scroll through 10 pages of content on their phone. Information has to be easy to locate, and pages easy to navigate.

Speak Through Images And Video

Images and video are becoming more popular as a means of communication and marketing. Just look on any social network and it’s easy to see that people communicate with each other more through pictures and videos than with text. Releasing content that is visual gives it more shareability, which will give your SEO a great boost. A company like Safari Sydney SEO can assist with something like this, if you’re struggling for ideas.

Visual content is also more attractive to mobile users. While someone might not be able to read through a 2000 word article on their phone, they can often watch (or even listen to) a short video that explains the topic.

Keep Up With Social Media

More consumers interact with brands on social media platforms than anywhere else. Social media is a key factor in building consumer trust and loyalty.

Word-of-mouth advertising in the 21st century is social media. If you gain a faithful following on one or more social platforms, consumers will share your content with each other, which will also help your SEO, and in turn bring you more potential customers.

Tell Stories

As traditional advertising slowly dies, consumers are taken more and more with stories they can relate to. Tell your own story. Ask for stories from your clients. Relate experiences and get truly engaged with your audience.

Not only do stories invoke emotions and memories that help convert leads into customers, but they naturally lend themselves to search engine optimization. Your pages become rich with keywords and common phrases that you know your audience will relate to, especially if you include things like customer testimonials in your content.

Always Have A Plan

Today, more than ever, it’s important to have a plan for what you want to achieve with your marketing and how you are going to do it. Marketing has moved almost completely online. Traditional advertising methods continue to bring diminishing returns. Technology and consumers continue to evolve.

If you’d like help planning or creating content for your next marketing campaign – or on the flip side, are interested in learning how to start a SEO business, get in touch and I’ll be happy to help. You can also get more news and articles sent right to your inbox by signing up for my newsletter.