Start Now to Make SEO Work for Small
Business
By Matt Stefanski, contributing
editor -- Manufacturing Business
Technology,04/09/2009
How do you know if you’re visible to others if you can’t see
yourself?
That’s the
challenge for some of manufacturing’s smaller businesses in
today’s world.
Many small businesses are trying out new
marketing strategies on a daily basis. It was once considered a
significant feat to be found on the front pages of
Google
through whatever means possible. But today, companies are
diligently embracing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for
heightened Internet brand recognition.
First, a definition ...
SEO simply translates to increasing—and
more important—improving Web site traffic from search engines
through organic search results. It looks at how and why search
engines find your site, and how relevant the search term is to
your global content.
The nation’s prolonged economic scare is leading some
manufacturing companies to believe that additional expenditures
for marketing campaigns and SEO in a down economy can be a
waste. With the right tools and a lot of patience, however, SEO
can play an important role in allowing your small business to
be seen on the front pages of popular search engines just like
the big players at a cost that is reasonable, considering the
potential return.
Take, for example, KLH
Industries, a
precision manufacturing company based in Germantown, Wis. Last
summer KLH was organically listed on Google a handful of times,
depending on the search term.
While KLH does not generally have a
product to sell, its focus is on selling a service. And the
services it provides are not by any means typical. KLH makes
critical parts and components for aerospace, medical, energy,
automotive, and electronic equipment manufacturers.
With a limited budget and facing a downturn economy, SEO became
a cost-effective way for KLH to put its capabilities in front
of potential customers on a much larger scale. For KLH, this
has proven to be very effective.
One important aspect that you must understand about SEO is it
doesn’t happen overnight. If you already have a Web site,
that’s a start—but SEO primarily focuses on content. Content is
the best way to gain search engine ranking through organic
search.
When writing content for your Web site, keep your customers in
mind. Make sure the information is not too technical,
simplistic, or wordy.
Keywords play one of the largest roles in SEO, and it is up to
you to label your products or services so that search engines
can find relevance to your site rather than your
competitors.
Asking questions and evaluating answers are key measures to
find which methods work for your business type but again, don’t
expect this to happen right away. Like any business model you
have to put something into place, track it, test it, and
analyze it to determine if you have found the optimal
strategy.
KLH is constantly exploring new methods and improving on
current methods of SEO. Even through this downturn, KLH’s
marketing team has developed effective SEO strategies increase
brand recognition, lead generation, and customer retention in
all market sectors.
Final
thought:
Be sure to remain patient, determined, and open-minded while
implementing the right SEO package for your small business. Do
your research and don’t be afraid of failure. Remember to focus
on what works for your potential customers. SEO is a continuous
challenge and perfecting the strategy is only half the battle:
The true challenge is maintaining effectiveness.
| 
Idigital
SEO
