Do you have an existing website, but are unsure how to optimize it for SEO?
Onyx Digital is here to help.
Your website should be the hardest-working member of your marketing team.
If not, your website isn’t working as hard as it should.
SEO and conversions might exist in separate parts of the marketing sector, but they’re inextricably linked.
If you have good SEO, you can attract more traffic and get more opportunities to convert potential customers and a website optimized for conversions typically has better metrics, such as time on page and bounce rate, which means that Google might rank it higher.
The following tips and strategies will teach you how to optimize your website for both SEO and conversions so you get both of best worlds.
1. Make your website useful for your specific audience
Marketers sometimes feel as though they’re at odds with Google. The search engine fails to rank their best content, for instance, or they see a huge drop in traffic after an algorithmic update.
In reality, though, your goals and Google’s are the same:
- Serve up the best possible content for your audience
- Create a positive website user experience
- Prioritize content that offers significant value
You just go about it in different ways. Google’s analyzing millions of websites, while you’re analyzing your specific audience’s behaviors.
2. Grow your organic traffic
The average business spends about 1 percent of its total revenue on advertising. If your business rakes in $1 million per year, you might spend $10,000 on advertising.
While that might seem like a small percentage, it adds up. Some industries, such as retail, spend considerably more on ads.
Attracting organic traffic through SEO, however, is free. You have to pay to develop and promote the content, but that’s not nearly as expensive as pay-per-click.
3. Capitalize on existing traffic
When people visit your website, you don’t want them to poke around and leave. Instead, you want to make a lasting impression and encourage them to return.
Learning how to optimize your website for conversions requires an understanding of the user experience. Figure out how visitors navigate your site, whether they scroll down the page, and how often they click on your calls to action (CTAs).
If someone signs up for your email list, you can contact them at a later date with offers, incentives, and more. You can also encourage visitors to follow you on social, visit your product pages, and read your blog posts.
4. Force your website to work harder
Anyone can build a website — even a beautiful website — but far fewer can create a website that reliably produces conversions. After all, the average conversion rate across all industries is less than 2.5 percent.
You want your audience to convert at much higher rates. To do so, you have to study your audience closely and give them what they need and expect.
If you’ve done the research and applied the data to your site, you can expect a jump in conversion rates. The people who visit your site find what they need quickly and appreciate your brand for providing it. Brand loyalty results.
SEO always comes first, though. Without traffic, you can’t have conversions. Create a site with valuable, sticky content and plenty of opportunities for visitors to convert.
5. Give your audience what they want and expect
Imagine this scenario:
You have an e-commerce site that sells shoes. A customer needs a new pair of running shoes and conducts a Google search for the best shoes for runners. You’ve written a long, in-depth blog post about choosing running shoes, including brand recommendations and information for different types of runners.
The visitor reads the article. At the end, you have a lead magnet that offers a free sizing and fit chart for runners. All the visitor has to do is sign up for your email list.
You send the lead magnet immediately to the visitor. A few days later, you send out a coupon code for your online store along with images of running shoes. The customer realizes you have what meets his or her needs, and the discount incentivizes an immediate sale.
As you can see, SEO and conversion rate optimization work hand-in-hand. If you meet your audience’s expectations and help them find what they want, you’ll secure a customer.
If you need help with your existing website and optimizing it for SEO, hire us. We’re here to help.
