On-Page SEO & Content Creation Services for Small Business Owners
Hi there, I’m glad you’re here! I’m a small business owner just like you, I live in Upstate SC, & I’m using my decades of business ownership & SEO expertise to provide a useful service to both of us – rankable, interesting content for you & an income for me!
With all of the changes that have happened over the years in web design, it can be a real challenge to understand what’s important & let me tell you – content is still king for small business websites. A small business doesn’t have the luxury of household names that allows them to have a crummy website with scant information. I specialize in content optimized using specialty SEO software & engagement with you, my dear customer, on tracking your SEO campaign & keeping your rankings on track to dominate search.
SEO in Spartanburg, SC
Where? You might not have expected to find much in the way of search engine optimization in little old Spartanburg, South Carolina. And indeed, we’re not overrun with SEO experts. But our existence is proof that it’s not necessary to live in Metropolis in order to practice our craft. Location is not a deal breaker, and working remotely is exceedingly eco-friendly. Here at Barbara Williams SEO we’re very laid back, yet able to focus and get your job done with excellence. You don’t have to know that most of the time I work in a tee shirt and the ugliest leggings you ever saw.
The fact that you have a website means you have something to say, or something to sell. Whether your focus is Business to Business (B2B) or Business to Consumer (B2C), you still need exposure. That would be you, and about a billion of your closest friends and relatives, all clamoring for attention. So how can you increase the odds for your website to get found in all of that mishmash?
Optimizing for Anaheim, Charleston, Atlanta, or Chicago
Overcome the challenge of anonymity by investing in search engine optimization (SEO). Via the basic structure of your website, placement of keywords or keyword synonyms, and various links, plus a good site map, your chances of discovery by Google, Bing or any of the other engines, are enhanced. But initial SEO of your website, while almost mandatory, isn’t the only ingredient in your pizza. It is the crust, however, and everything else is piled on top.
Geolocation for your business is usually very important. This is different from local SEO, which we’ll discuss in the next section. Rather, we use geographic keywords to point a searcher to your area. And don’t discount the importance of a business setup on Yelp as well. Consider, for instance, the distance between Spartanburg and Anaheim, CA. According to Check-Distance, driving distance is 2359 miles (3796 km), so a face to face consult won’t happen often. But I don’t have to live next to Disneyland in order to do business with you. Let me know the keywords that are important to you, and I’ll do the rest.
Some of My Local Scenery
Local SEO is good business
Search methods are changing quickly, and now over half the time searchers use their handy little phones, or as the British say, mobiles. The reason for this is that it’s much easier to carry around a phone than it is to tote your laptop or, God forbid, a desktop. Here are some shopping observations compiled by quoracreative:
- 82% of customers use their phones to find a brick and mortar store that stocks what they want to buy
- 80% of buyers consulted their phones inside a store for product reviews, price comparisons and alternative options, and other store locations
- 46% read reviews of all purchases on their phones
- 62% do price shopping on their phones, before they visit a store
Now, here are some numbers that must be considered before dismissing the option for a mobile friendly website. You do need to go ‘mobile first’. Really you do. I can’t stress this enough.
- 61% of people surveyed by Hubspot said that a good mobile experience improved their opinion of a brand
- However, 52% of consumers were put off with a business after a bad mobile experience.
- VERY IMPORTANT: 40% of potential customers went to a competitor after a bad mobile experience.
- EVEN MORE IMPORTANT: A slow page almost always results in a mobile shopping cart abandonment, to the tune of 97%! What!?
Make sure your website is mobile friendly and loads fast, or you’ll be missing out on a bunch of sales. In 2018, mobile commerce sales were over $626 billion. And mobile search results yielded offline sales of over $1 Trillion! I’d be calling my webmaster and my SEO specialist to ensure that I had the best chance for a shot at those numbers, wouldn’t you?
Competitor Research
Speaking of your competitors, it’s just good practice to stay current with what they’re up to. Especially concerning a rival who outranks you, we’ll take a look at his website, his search rankings, his keywords, his day to day business strategy. What is he doing that you don’t? What do you do that he doesn’t? How can you use this to your advantage?
I’ll compare your 5 top competitors, then compile a comprehensive report for your records. If your own website has a keyword track record, I’ll use it as the basis. Should it be too new for rankings, I’ll choose your strongest rival. If you opt for monthly monitoring, you can have ongoing progress reports.
Neighborhood Visibility
Another emerging method of getting found is local citations, namely Google Business, Yelp, et cetera. These platforms are becoming increasingly important, in tandem with the tendency to use phones to search for products. When you maintain an active presence on GMB and the others, your chances of welcoming a new customer zoom up in the odds. Did you know that 78% of people who click on your search link will visit your business within 48 hours?
We’ll set up your business listings on several locally-focused sites, and send you a questionnaire for info that can be used on all of them, to save time. And don’t worry, we’ll keep up with the updates so you won’t have to. It’s our business to make life easier for you.
SEO for YOUR WordPress website
Do It Yourself? Of course, you ‘can’ do your own SEO. But it can take about the same time and attention as learning how to do your own trading on the stock market, without losing your house in the process. Let’s not get bogged down in all the details here. But I must tell you, optimization and content marketing are changing daily. Google plays with new algorithms all the time and they never tell anyone until after the fact. Sometimes, way after the fact. Luckily, I get emails from some very reliable and knowledgeable techie tattletales determined to hold Google responsible.
Experienced in Creative Content
These days, writing content for B2B is the coming thing. Look for new products here, such as Case Studies, Press Releases and White Papers. Announcements will be made via my SEO Blog. When you sign up to receive email updates, you’ll be among the first to know!
I’m not new to content creation, by any means. During my days as a typesetting/copywriting/graphic design studio owner, I worked with advertising agencies in Upstate SC. I’ve written employee handbooks, press releases, ad copy and even ghost-wrote my Grandma Jensen’s hardbound book (The Middle Daughter). For 20 years I described racing action for Cycle News, mostly motocross. The largest promoter in the Southeast got that way partly because of those weekly articles. Ahem.
Now, instead of structured ads and cold emails, we’re seeing a technique called ‘content marketing’. Basically, it’s a strategy that tells a story, of a company, a product, an event, whatever you want to be promoted. Instead of being bashed over the head with 5 or 6 calls to action in each piece, we use 1 and a button. It’s a lot more friendly, and we find that it has a better chance of a decent CTR (click through rate).
It’s all about the Benjamins. Right?
In business, the object is to make a profit, hopefully doing what you love. For instance, I’m mad about words, always have been. I find myself mentally editing nearly everything, correcting spelling, grammar and usage even on Facebook. An exercise in futility, to be sure, and fairly compulsive, but when I tell myself I can stop at any time, my self just laughs and laughs.
So that’s a bit about me. What about you? Visit me in Spartanburg, either in reality or vicariously. Let’s have a cup of coffee and get acquainted. Tell me what you want for your business to be more visible, and we’ll map out a plan to make that happen.