When we talk about SEO strategies a lot of focus goes in to on-page optimization, link building, and key performance indicators. As search engines are continuing to evolve in an effort to provide relevance to user searches, small business owners and marketers have to stay one step ahead of the pack to keep up with the changes.
This is all a good thing, because there’s a lot of value in knowing the latest trends and best practices. On the other hand, trying to keep up with every latest update can be overwhelming, to say the least, and very time consuming. What’s even more important than keeping up with SEO trends is creating quality content for people, rather than for search engines. This isn’t to say that you should toss keyword research and on-page optimization out the window. When you focus your SEO efforts on creating content that your audience needs and wants, you’ll be on the right track with your SEO, because Google’s goals have always been aligned with providing the most relevant information.
So forget about stuffing your content with keywords for a number one ranking and focus on what really matters. You need to create great content. While it’s important that your site is well optimized for search engines, your main focus should be paying attention to your target audiences and what they want. Think about their questions and how you can fill their needs, and then create content that speaks to those needs. Start thinking about link building in terms of building long-term relationships with a few key people, rather than having one-night-stands with tons of people. How would you interact with someone at an in-person event? You’d share high quality, relevant information. That’s where your focus should be with your SEO. Your goal is to build a positive brand image, create authority, and then build relationships to find people who will consume your content based upon relevance.
Create that content on some regular schedule that you can commit to with consistency. Then rinse, lather, and repeat.