How to Compete With Big Brands in SEO: 3 Tricks for Small Business
Want to rank your business higher on search engines but not sure how you can compete with established brands? You can still give big businesses a good run for their money. Learn how to compete with big brands in SEO by doing these 3 tricks for small business:
Amplify for Local Search
If your business focuses on serving within a certain area, limit your geographic targeting. It is useless to rank for keywords on a national level when your targeted customers are within a specific city or state. You just need to be certain that your chosen narrowly-defined geography has a decent amount of search volume.
What to Do:
Optimize your Google My Business account. Write as many details as possible: business name, address, contact details, description, category, images, and videos. Ask customers to post reviews of your store or services. Register your business in local online business directories.
Use Long-Tail Keywords
Keywords are the lifeline of your digital marketing. One way for small business to compete with big brands in SEO is to target longer, more specific search terms.
Why long-tail? You don’t stand a chance with popular keywords because your big-time competitors have already “latched” on them. Choosing long-tail keywords will give you more opportunities to rank high on search engines. Though they bring in less traffic, the traffic you’ll get will bring in more web conversions.
What to Do:
List down specific details about your company that people search for. These include locations, benefits, and services unique to your business. Compile all the data as part of your keyword research strategy.
Use Google Adwords to look for popular keywords in your specific niche, and its related keywords and phrases. Feature these keywords on your website, blogs, ads, and other content marketing materials.
Optimize Content Marketing
Though big businesses have more money and resources to fund big marketing campaigns, it usually takes weeks for them to implement and get approval from different stakeholders.
On the other hand, the process can be easier and more effective for smaller companies. As an example, writing a blog will not cost much. However, if your blog contains useful information, it shows your target market that you know what you are doing. By showcasing your expertise, your audience will regard you as an authority. The respect will affirm your own brand as recognizable and trustworthy in your niche.
In addition to getting viewership from your content, you will also increase your chances of ranking high on search engines. Google rewards useful and original content. The takeaway here is to produce useful content on a regular basis. The more quality content you create, the higher the chances that your prospects will find you.
What to Do:
Create content around the latest trends to stay relevant with your customers. Dig deep into your target audience. Use the insights to write blogs and articles that address their specific needs and wants.
Build a content plan. Providing daily or weekly content gives your prospects a reason to always visit your website.
You can also collaborate with other small businesses that complement your own. You can do this by guest blogging and linking to useful external content for your customers.