SEO basics for small businesses (Part 10)

By now, I hope, all small business operators who have been following my blog have come to understand the importance of SEO. To review it in a nutshell, SEO is important if you want to compete successfully with your niche competitors and emerge as a winner in your field. The size of your florist outlet is not important to any search engine. What actually matters is whether your florist site is relevant for a specific search phrase (keyword) hunt and if it holds good content for browsers looking for product/service/information on the same. If you take care to build this up, traffic and business are two guaranteed outcomes.

In this concluding blog part, I would like to answer some very important seo questions which usually lurk in the mind of many business operators in your niche industry.

Is SEO important for the florist industry?

Yes, if you intend to seek out your target customers. People intending to order a flower bouquet would ideally order from the top ranking results that hit the first page of a Google local florist search.

How do I find out the ideal keywords for my website?

Research, research and research – jot down phrases which you think will work, try out different combinations and above all give them a regional focus. For instance, ‘California Florist’ is going to work more in your favor if you are looking at the local market, rather than ‘best florist’. You can also take the help of a brilliant tool like Google Adwords for finding heavily searched phrases that are relevant to florists. Don’t overuse keyword phrases in an attempt to get quick results. Search Engine ‘spiders’ are smart and can easily penalize your site for using such a trick.

How to get more links?

Content is the keyword here. If you have got good content, your pages are guaranteed to attract links from bloggers. For outbound links, make them one-way and ensure that you are linking to quality sites. This way, you gain rank and elevation in Google.

How to begin optimization of my florist site?

Start optimization with the domain name that your business has. If you don’t have one determined, then create one that is relevant to the florist industry. If you already have one, modify your interior page URLs with keywords, thus endowing them with a unique domain power.

Can images be optimized on my site?

Yes, you can but do remember to describe the picture in a caption or at least a line.

When does Google ban a site?

Google bans a site when it finds it employing “black hat” seo techniques. So even if anybody promises you a quick seo fix, you must ideally avoid him. “White hat” techniques may need slightly longer but can make you win hands down at the end.

While all of you might be running for a No.1 position in Google after you finish reading this, let me tell you that a No.1 result is likely to yield value only if your traffic converts to customers. And for that, your ultimate purpose must be to create a website which satisfies your customer requirements; is user-friendly; holds necessary information and generates sales and leads.

SEO can become your magic bullet but only if you use it wisely – this is the bottom-line of my blog and remember it during all your seo campaigns. Good Luck!