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Does Google My Business Help SEO?

SEM, SEO /

Stifel Marcin’s search engine optimization (SEO) plans often include Google My Business, which can be helpful with site ranking and visibility among local customers.   What is Google My Business? This free tool helps businesses create and manage their online presence within Google – the largest search engine in the world – within their search engine and maps applications. For companies with one location, or many facilities, there are many benefits of utilizing Google My Business, including helping to elevate your visibility within the vicinity of your physical locations. Move Over Yellow Pages Besides indicating where your business is located, one of the benefits of Google My Business is it gives you the ability to select five categories to affiliate with your business listing. Similar to the old yellow page listings, these categorizations aid customers in finding your products and services. Pick five phrases that describe your industry and focus, and Google will list you in that category. At least one of the categories must be an established Google classification, but the other four can be customized. For example, if we searched for “Italian Restaurant” the first three listings are for national chains. But if we search for “Italian Restaurant Hartford CT” the first listing is a site that has been optimized for that phrase, and the rest are Google My Business listings. Google Knows Where You Are Here’s the catch – note on our general “Italian Restaurant” search example, we said only the top three hits were national. After that, six listings were nearby locations in Google My Business. Google is pretty smart. First, it knows where you are. If you are using Google on Desktop, it uses an IP address, but if you are searching on mobile, it knows your longitude and latitude and can pinpoint your exact location. It’s the same technology used in driving navigation apps including Google Maps and Waze. Second, its search engine optimization algorithms identify terms Google thinks you might want localized results for. This is weighted more with terms like “restaurant” or “hospital,” but Google has begun to list anything it can easily identify as a location or business with related Google My Business listings. So, if you type in “plastic manufacturer” your search results will include local Google My Business listings alongside websites that rank highly for those keywords. Impact on SEO The above example demonstrates why Google My Business is not a substitute for a search engine optimization strategy, but a compliment to it. A properly optimized website is extremely important to ensure your business is visible when and where customers search for your products and services. When they search in Google, results include both Google My Business listings and website pages. In fact, the better your search engine optimization, the more likely your business will show up within Google My Business results because Google favors relevant, helpful and valuable search results and weighs sites with good SEO more heavily than others. Google may also rank you for phrases you don’t necessarily want. For example, we set-up an SEO package with Google My Business profiles for a large practice of eye physicians. All of the doctors were ophthalmologists. After a few weeks, the client called and asked why their doctors were also getting listed as “optometrists” – a less specialized type of eye doctor. Google had extracted a few words out of their practice’s website that referenced optometry. Then Google applied its own “understanding” of the word “optometry” and decided that those two factors made it a relevant search term. Search Engine Optimization Maintenance Search engine optimization is not an exact science. It takes ongoing maintenance and monitoring to be sure you are listing where you want, and don’t fall in the rankings. One of the benefits of Google My Business is that it’s a great tool to add to your SEO arsenal, but make sure it’s just a component of this essential marketing strategy. Looking to Optimize Your Google My Business Listing? Let our SEO experts set up or review your listing to ensure it compliments your larger search engine optimization strategy. Contact us and someone from our team will be in touch! Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. If your interested in learning more about our Google My Business optimization services, let’s talk.

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Digital Advertising in a Cookieless World: What You Need to Know

Advertising & Media, SEO /

As online consumer data protection and subsequent privacy regulations evolve, cookieless tracking will continue to impact the future of digital advertising. While browsers like Apple’s Safari® and Mozilla Firefox® have already limited third-party cookies, tracking restrictions will soon be implemented by Google Chrome®, the internet’s most widely used browser. Combine these players with other digital platforms and social media sites, and one can envision a future where our digital paths are much more guarded. In addition, with less data tracked, that means less data shared. In recent years marketers have had access to huge data houses, most often through digital marketing platforms. These houses aggregated and combined user data – sorting, storing and sharing their Big Data with marketers. While none of these big players are ready to say exactly how they will change, without question, a huge shift in digital marketing has begun. With big changes come big uncertainties, and many marketers are now closely examining how to best tackle a cookieless world. What is a Cookie? As defined by the FTC, a cookie is “information saved by your web browser. When you visit a website, the site may place a cookie on your web browser so it can recognize your device in the future. If you return to that site later on, it can read that cookie to remember you from your last visit and keep track of you over time.” Cookies allow for a more personalized online user experience, but not all tracking cookies are the same. Let’s explore in more detail:First-party cookies are created by the website that a user visits.  For example, if visiting a website requires a log-in and password, first-party cookies will allow the user to sign again without having to re-enter their information. If you’ve shopped online, you’ve likely entered items into your shopping cart, exited the site without purchasing and then come back to the site to find the items still in your cart. That’s first-party cookies at work. Unlike first-party cookies that remain only on a single domain, third-party cookies track users around the internet, usually with the intent of serving online advertising. Going back to the example above, if you’ve left a shopping site after looking at items online, only to visit another site and see ads for the items you were exploring on the previous website, you’ve been tracked by third-party cookies (in this case served with a remarketing ad). It’s these cookies that are used for audience profiling and ad customization. And its third-party cookies that are soon to be prohibited by Google Chrome. What Does a Cookieless World Mean for Advertising? In short, by the end of 2023, marketers will not have access to data provided by third-party cookies. Marketers and advertising services that rely on third-party cookies to target users will have to now rely on first-party cookie data, which remains accessible, along with newly developed tools like Google’s own “Privacy Sandbox,” ad technology designed to personalize ads while honoring user privacy. With a cookieless world near, many marketers are exploring cohort-based marketing. As explained by Google, “a cohort is a group of users that fall under common criteria.” Instead of personalized targeting to users based on third-party data, cohort advertising would target users within a common interest group. Google has also proposed a new “Topics API” designed to identify a user’s top interests during a three-week time period based on website activity. Websites could opt-in to the Topics API to serve users with personalized ads involving topics like travel, movies, auto, beauty, etc. As of now, Google plans to start with 350 topics categories. Tracking and understanding user’s online behavior and interests will no doubt be more challenging. The lack of third-party data will impact numerous tactics, from behavioral targeting to ad retargeting. Building and securing your own first-party data becomes even more crucial and scaling your tech tools and teams for the new changes does as well. The Time to Test is Now As the old saying goes, the only constant is change. Cookieless tracking may not go into effect on Google until 2023, but marketers can and should stay ahead of the curve by planning and testing cookieless strategies now. Partnering with an experienced PPC advertising agency like Stifel Marcin can help your B2B business stay abreast of the changes, while optimizing campaigns for maximum ROI. As both a Microsoft and Google Partner agency, our team works to ensure marketing goals, technical benefits and an understanding of your unique target audience is included in all PPC advertising. Since mid-2021, marketers have been warned to prepare for a cookieless world. And entities like Google and Microsoft don’t change overnight. While 2023 might be the actual final implementation that requires cookieless tracking, many expect these changes to begin sooner. Already many of us have greater ability to block tracking through our iPhones, apps, website visits and personal devices – which present prominent messages about data handling. If you’re considering how to best pivot to a cookieless tracking ad strategy, we want to talk with you. Complete the form on this page or contact us and a member of our team will be in touch. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency  Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. If you have questions about digital advertising, we’re here to help. Contact us today.

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Keyword Research Tips for Your B2B Organization

SEM, SEO /

Effective B2B keyword research helps marketers determine which “key words”, or best phrases, can be used to help you meet your marketing goals. Careful research, strategic thinking and data-driven analysis can help hone your PPC placements – and therefore your spend – to be sure your ads are in the right place with the right presentation. While keywords might seem obvious, our clients are often surprised by the results. What many companies use internally as standard terminology are often unknown to customers. From descriptive statements, to application-specific “long-tail keywords” (see terms below) to generic terms related to a product category, knowing where to place and how to bid effectively, are critical for success. Some media will present PPC advertising like a quick and easy way to increase your leads. Google even offers recommendations and tips on how to run your campaigns. But remember, Google is a for-profit company driven by revenue… their tips are not necessarily designed to maximize your ROI (return on investment). And more importantly, they are not offered with a detailed understanding of your products and services – which is vitally important when working in a B2B space. Here are a few keyword research tips so you can maximize your targeting to improve click-throughs and ROI. Of course, the best approach is an expert approach, and our Google Certified team is always ready to help your company in its digital and PPC marketing, with our expertise in manufacturing, industry, medical and technology verticals. Data-Driven. Human-Focused A plan for B2B keyword research involves analysis and interpretation – combing data with input from your sales team to identify the words and phrases that will lead customers to your site and your products/services. We want to build a bridge between your keywords – a search query typed into a search engine – and the content you have on your website. Effective B2B keyword research is not just about getting visitors to your site. It’s about getting the right visitors to your site, those who match your target customer, meet your marketing goals, and are the most likely to make a purchase. Let’s assume your marketing team already has the right input from sales and leadership and is clear on your company’s target audience and business goals. The first step is to brainstorm an extensive list of potential terms to target. Next, we use that list to determine important data points that can help us identify which B2B keyword targets will work best. We look at information like: Keyword Expansion and Refinement Now that you have key data points, we want to expand and evaluate. If some terms are too broad (or too expensive), look deeper at the opportunities. Are more specific phrases available with good search traffic volumes? Are some keywords showing lots of search traffic and relevancy, and we should explore similar phases, synonyms, etc.? One effective strategy to help determine keyword viability is to simply conduct a Google search – see the results that appear and be sure what you expected to appear is what is displayed – and appropriate for your marketing goals. If more than 50 percent of search results are not relevant – especially when using a long-tail B2B keyword phrase – this should be a signal. Either you have identified a great opportunity, or you are not using the right phrase. The more irrelevant the expected search results are, the more likely the target that you want is going to change their search query and re-check a new phrase. Getting a final keyword target list is time-consuming. It takes evaluation, review, additional research and discussion. Balancing the Right Types of B2B Keywords When evaluating your B2B keyword list, you want to be sure you have included a variety of terms. While highly-focused, long-tail keyword phrases probably are very specific, very relevant and will use your budget effectively (due to low bid estimates), you may have an extensive campaign with very little traffic. Balancing short, medium and long-tail B2B keywords can help you get good quality clicks, but also increase your website traffic. If you maintain positions in the preferred top-three search results, sometimes a simpler phrase will serve your ad to a customer who is just starting on their buying journey – you will be first to capture their click, and then can drive them into your sales funnel. When evaluating your B2B keyword mix, one should consider these keyword types: Short-Tail Phrases: Usually consisting of one or two words, and are the broadest keywords, typically with the highest search volumes. These terms can be useful for brand recognition or to increase clicks to your site, but it is sometimes difficult to discern these users’ intentions. These short terms typically have a higher bounce rate (people who only view one page of a website) or may be people who are early in their purchase journey and not ready to convert to a lead. A small selection of these terms can be useful when building out a new campaign, or when your marketing goal is to increase the number of clicks. Actively reviewing these terms is very important and can also provide other relevant data. Medium-Tail Phrases: These are keywords that typically utilize three or four words. While more specific than short-tail phrases, they will also have lower search volumes. Often these users have a clearer sense of what they’re seeking. This makes it easier to optimize your ad content, connect with the consumer, and direct them to the right content on your website. Additionally, if one manually reviews the full scope of search queries, marketers can often find new keyword opportunities. Long-Tail Phrases: Usually a long-tail phrase consists of four or more words and are highly-specific, tend to have the lowest search volume and low competition levels. Statistically, these keywords usually result in higher-quality leads because they capture people later in the sales process and/or are highly-qualified, and potentially ready to convert. Balancing your business goals – brand visibility, increasing site visitors, promoting specific products/services and increasing qualified leads – are all important

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Digital Marketing for Manufacturers: A Roadmap for Success

ABM, Advertising & Media, Content Marketing, SEO, Social Media /

Digital marketing has rapidly become a necessity to remain competitive in today’s manufacturing marketplace. With many B2B buyers turning to digital platforms to research, purchase, and engage with products and company leadership, manufacturers must take advantage of digital marketing strategies to reach potential customers and stay ahead of the competition. By utilizing the power of the web, social media, and other digital marketing tools, manufacturers can create an effective and efficient strategy that will help them reach more customers, build awareness of their products, and increase their sales. What is Digital Marketing? Digital technology is front and center in our daily lives. Digital marketing allows companies to interact with consumers in a more direct way, in real time, and where they are at – on screens. With Americans spending 10+ hours a day on a screen, savvy marketers have increased their digital marketing tactics, serving messages to prospective and current customers where they’re spending valuable time. There are many online tools available to help promote your products and services through paid campaigns, digital placements and website experiences. But knowing the right way to use these tools is critical for success. Expert digital marketers know how to create results – and typically at a lower cost than traditional marketing methods. Digital marketing tactics include: • Search engine optimization (SEO)• Pay-per-click advertising (PPC)• Remarketing• Content marketing • Email marketing• Video marketing• Social media, including Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn ads• Apps and interactive tools, and more. How Does Digital Marketing Benefit a Manufacturing Business? Excellent question! Digital marketing for manufacturers can reap many rewards, including increased brand and message awareness, more leads and conversions and improved loyalty. Perhaps the most notable benefit is that it provides a unique opportunity to customize a user’s experience. Unlike brochures or print ads, digital campaigns can be highly targeted and designed for various customer targets, ensuring a more personalized brand connection to your prospects. Digital marketing is typically more cost-effective as well. Especially beneficial for manufacturers with limited resources, digital services can be strategically combined based on business goals, targets and budget to maximize impact.  Not to be understated is the ability to measure your marketing results. With any marketing spend, being able to analyze and measure results is invaluable. As we always say, “data tells a story,” shedding light on web traffic, content performance, and more. Data sources like Google Analytics® allow marketers to make insightful decisions – showing ways to increase performance when campaigns are yielding positive results and knowing when and how to pivot when there are opportunities for improvement. Digital Marketing for Manufacturers: 8 Tips to Maximize Results and ROI Below we explore eight digital marketing best practices to help set your organization on the road to success: 1. It All Starts with a Plan To meet your marketing goals, you first must define them, and plan the strategy to help you achieve them. Establishing clear and measurable KPIs (key performance indicators) – like lead generation, brand awareness or customer engagement – can help ensure that your marketing plan is aligned with overall business goals. Important during the planning phase (and refining along the way) is the identification of your target personas. Understanding who your ideal customers are, their pain points, and best ways to reach them are key pieces of information for your action plan. Creating a strategic digital marketing plan can seem daunting. Our work in digital marketing for manufacturers can create unique opportunities tailored to your company’s needs and deliver quantifiable results. Reach out, our experts are ready to help. 2. Review Your Website for Conversion Opportunities Evaluating your website for conversion potential (or CRO – conversion rate optimization) is an important step in improving your online presence. Looking for potential barriers to conversions, such as unclear calls to action (or asking too many), slow load times or difficult navigation, can help identify areas of your site that are working optimally or those that need improvement. Your CRO ultimately should relate to those KPIs that we discussed above. For instance, digital marketing for manufacturers may include goals like achieving higher search result rankings, increasing web traffic, growing customer engagement, and improving your pipeline of qualified leads. Reviewing your website with these goals in mind can ensure that your online presence is optimized for success. Do you have clear CTAs? Are forms easy to find and fill out? Some simple website improvements can lead to more conversion opportunities. Our website design experts can help you achieve your goals and set your company apart from the competition. 3. Implement SEO to Drive the Right Traffic to Your Site SEO (search engine optimization) is a critical part of any successful digital marketing for manufacturers strategy. Not only does it help businesses reach target audiences by increasing visibility but, when smartly executed, it can lead to increased conversions, leads and sales.  An added bonus – organic SEO typically tops the list when it comes to the best long-term ROI. SEO provides your marketing team with valuable data that can help you understand: • Key search terms prospective customers are searching online.• Pain points and challenges that prospects need to solve.• Types of content that will best serve their needs.• How current and new competitors are ranking.• How to plan your website to expand your traffic, and ultimately, your sales. Eighty-nine percent of B2B buyers research information about potential purchases through online search. If you’re looking to step up your SEO efforts, check out our tips at “How to Improve Your SEO Ranking on Google: 6 Tips from Our Experts.” 4. Create Engaging Organic Feeds Today’s digital age makes social media marketing an increasingly critical component of an integrated digital marketing plan for manufacturers. With 84% of B2B leaders using social media as a source in making purchasing decisions, it’s important to craft an organic social plan that elevates your brand as knowledgeable and responsive. Engaging social media feeds help build relationships with potential customers and followers, while providing an opportunity to improve brand recognition and trust. Social media is one place where you can have direct, two-way conversation with your

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The Benefits of an SEO Audit

SEO /

A thorough search engine optimization (SEO) strategy is crucial for any business looking to achieve higher search engine results page (SERP) rankings, therefore increasing the probabilities of increased online leads, conversions and brand awareness. But once the strategy is set in motion, don’t think “we’re done!” Just like a car needs regular oil changes to help that engine to keep running smoothly, your website should undergo scheduled SEO maintenance, including planned audits. There are many benefits of an SEO audit – the task of analyzing your website’s performance to evaluate areas of the site that are performing well, and opportunities for improvement – including improved user experience (UX), increased understanding of competitor rankings, optimal keywords and more. Let’s explore more closely: Improved User Experience An audit can showcase any issues that may negatively impact the user experience, allowing you to make necessary adjustments. Is the website architecture easy to navigate? Do meta titles and descriptions lead to the correct content? Are links still viable and not leading to a 404-error page? Items such as form locations, links, CTAs, and content organization can all be evaluated for performance. It’s worth noting that while you’re working to improve UX, search engines are as well. Keeping up with changing best practice standards for code and UX, which search engines like Google and Yahoo regularly update, can ensure your site is viewed favorably by their ever-changing algorithms.   Where Do You Stand Next to Competitors? One benefit of an SEO audit that is often overlooked is competitor analysis. Examining where your competitors rank for identified keywords, especially the ones that may be higher on SERP rankings than your site, can help identify areas of improvement and give insight into what users are searching for. Over time, you’ll get a picture of how current and new competitors are ranking by comparison and how to rank above them in the SERPs. Make Sure Your Keywords are “Key” for Your Users Keyword research is critical throughout the life cycle of a website. An audit allows for review of the target phrases currently used and how they rank, as well as keywords you’d like to rank for but currently do not. Analysis and review can also evaluate the likelihood that your site will rank for specific keywords. A good keyword audit gives a clear picture of what users are searching for, giving you an optimal opportunity to provide content to help solve their problem or answer their question. And That’s Just the Beginning  There are many more benefits of an SEO audit than just listed above. Audit results can help you identify ways to improve: Our Agency is Here to Support Your SEO Efforts  If you are ready to examine your SEO, our team is here to support you. With two decades of experience, we can examine data points such as rankings, user performance, conversion optimization, competitive analysis, and an array of other data, to ensure your SEO is fully optimized and working to drive sales for your business. Contact us and experience the benefits of an SEO audit.  Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. Interested in learning more about SEO and the benefits of an audit? Our team can help. Fill out our contact form above and we will be in touch shortly.

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Experience the Benefits of an Expert B2B SEO Marketing Agency

SEO /

The next time you look up something on Google, or any other search engine, you should realize there is a lot of work, and in many cases an SEO marketing agency, behind the results you see. Achieving a coveted spot at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) takes time and resources, some of which your organization may not currently have. That’s when hiring an experienced B2B SEO marketing agency can be a smart investment.   Search Engine Optimization Process When Stifel Marcin is tapped to provide SEO for a website our general process follows these steps: SEO Maintenance Once we have your site set-up properly and fully optimized, we move into ongoing maintenance. We run monthly reports that track movement, activity, landing pages, bounce rates, and more. We look at which pages are successfully ranking for keyword phrases, and which pages we can improve. We continually tweak, modify and update your site until you are ranking number one for those target keywords and phrases. Some clients think once they have achieved a first page, or first place ranking, they no longer need a search optimization plan. This thinking is deadly because there is always a competitor ready to take your place or a shift in customer search habits. When your website goes stale, site code becomes outdated, content becomes old, and your target keywords can change. You open the door to a competing site that is ready to take your spot. Our most successful search engine optimization clients have worked with Stifel Marcin for years. Our B2B SEO marketing work is proven successful, and web leads are the highest source of new sales for our clients. Search Engine Optimization Quotes If you’d like us to review your site to discuss the ways we can improve your B2B SEO marketing, or if you’d like information on a web design and SEO package, we’re happy to help. Call us at 860-659-0777 or send an RFQ online through our contact form. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. Our B2B SEO marketing agency experts are available to answer your questions. Reach out and let’s talk.

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How to Improve Your SEO Ranking on Google: 6 Tips from Our Experts

SEO /

In our vastly evolving digital world, exceptional organic SEO (search engine optimization) and its maintenance is more critical than ever, especially as digital advertising tools and strategies prepare for the demise of third-party tracking cookies. The implications of this change in data accessibility on digital advertising remains to be seen, but as marketers prepare for a cookieless future, the conversation about how to improve SEO ranking on Google is growing. At its core, SEO helps to create positive brand visibility and traffic to your website. From a standpoint, organic SEO provides valuable data to help you understand what your target audience is searching for, what problems they are trying to solve, and what types of content will best serve their needs, while giving users quicker access to relevant information and the key data they are seeking. With 89 percent of B2B buyers researching information about possible purchases through search, good organic SEO can mean the difference between ranking on the first page of search results, or on pages two and beyond. Consider that 75 percent of searchers never go past the first page of search results, and suddenly the urgency of organic SEO becomes clearer. A particularly noteworthy statistic – 94 percent of clicks on SERPs go to organic results. While paid advertising certainly is an important part of an overall marketing strategy, organic SEO typically drives more traffic to websites and, being unpaid vs pay-per-click (PPC), has a higher ROI. If you’re asking how to improve SEO ranking on Google, explore these six actionable steps you can implement to make a positive impact: 1. Start with an Audit If you’re looking to improve your organic SEO results, the best place to start is with an SEO audit of your current website. Regularly analyzing its performance (we recommend at least every six months) can help ensure that: · Your site’s user experience remains optimized· Selected keywords are performing· You identify timely insights into what users are searching for and the terms they most frequently use· You understand how current and new competitors are ranking. Remember that regular auditing is truly necessary to ensure your organic SEO strategy is aligned with data trends and audience behaviors. Check out our article “The Benefits of an SEO Audit” for more details and tips. When you’re ready to examine your SEO, our team is here to support you. 2. Leverage Long Tail Keywords According to WordStream, 50 percent of search queries contain four or more words. And that number is only increasing as more people employ voice search using more conversational terminology (more on that below). That’s particularly important data for the B2B marketer as the type of user query can lend clues about where a potential buyer is in the purchasing cycle. Someone searching for “top SaaS software for banking” vs “SaaS software” typically knows more about what they are looking for and may be closer to the bottom of the conversion funnel. Strategic keyword research, refinement and expansion should take into consideration many variables, including your overall business objectives, sales goals, budgets, target audiences and more. We explore more about keywords in our articles “The Importance of Long Tail SEO” and “Keyword Research Tips for Your B2B Organization.” 3. Include Voice Search Not to be overlooked within your keyword strategy is the rise in voice search. With voice search gaining in popularity due to devices such as Google Home®, Amazon’s Alexa®, and Apple’s Siri®, along with a global population who has experienced remote interactions for more than two years, it’s not a surprise to see statistics that note that “71 percent of consumers prefer to conduct queries by voice instead of typing.” This is yet another reminder to craft an SEO strategy with the user at the center. In the context of voice search, your target audience is likely asking very specific questions that relate to their position within the purchasing journey, like “what are the top companies for XYZ” vs “how does product A differ from product B.” You can see in the first instance, the potential buyer may just be at the beginning of their search, whereas in the second, they have clearly done some research and have moved onto comparisons. Look carefully, and frequently, at your keyword data and devise content that best helps answer even the most specific queries. 4. Ensure Your Website is Mobile-Friendly With shortening attention spans and less patience for anything other than an ideal user experience, websites need to be well-optimized for mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets. Forty-two percent of researchers use a mobile device during the B2B purchasing process. And as noted by BCG, over 90 percent of B2B users say, “they’re likely to buy again from the same vendor if they have a superior mobile experience.” Return visitors mean more qualified leads and higher probability of conversions. A thoughtful SEO audit (see above) can help identify your site’s mobile-friendliness, examining way to improve: · Site speed· Technical issues· Ease of readability· Responsive design. Mobile-friendly should mean more than “does it work” on a phone or tablet. Simply having a responsive website – meaning that the layout responds to a user’s screen size – is not enough. Smart organic SEO evaluations consider what that mobile experience is like (where are the lead generation forms, how is the data effected, etc.). Ensuring an optimal experience in both mobile and desktop views is critical. And with Google itself prioritizing mobile-first indexing when evaluating a website’s content relevancy in relation to a users’ search, it’s a smart move to make, especially as part of your SEO maintenance plan. And speaking of maintenance… 5. Prioritize On-Going SEO Maintenance Once achieving a first page, or even the coveted first place, ranking on SERP, your organic SEO work doesn’t end. Ongoing maintenance must be integrated into an overall SEO plan for continued success.Google changes its algorithm around 500-600 times each year. While many of the changes may have only minor impacts on SEO at best, having a maintenance plan in place to ensure

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