Whether you’re handling SEO in-house or using an agency… how do you know if your program is delivering maximum results? This is a valid question and a difficult one to answer. Organic search success does not look the same for every company or every website. So how can you be sure you’re implementing the best SEO strategy for your business? A SEO Blueprint is a customized and prioritized plan designed to bring focus, efficiency and impact to your organic search program.
An SEO Strategic Planning Solution
When it comes to SEO, one size does not fit all. There is not a single, fool-proof formula for success. If your plan is simply to deploy all possible SEO tactics and hope for the best… you may be disappointed. A broad-based, shot-gun approach will likely lead to mediocre results in today’s competitive marketplace.
To maximize organic search results, your SEO Program must be focused on doing the right things, for your business, in the most effective order.
What you really need is a customized, prioritized and focused SEO Strategy. Not sure if you have one? Ask yourself these three questions.
Is your SEO Program:
- Focused on your most important marketing goal?
- Designed to beat your top organic search competitors?
- Prioritized to deliver maximum impact as quickly as possible?
SEO Planning
Developing a successful SEO Improvement Plan involves market research and a data-driven prioritization process. You need to analyze your market, your website, and your competition. You need to prioritize keywords, content and tactics.
At SmartSearch Marketing, we call this a SEO Blueprint. Just as a construction blueprint guides you through the required steps to build a house, a SEO Blueprint instructs you on how to implement website changes and organic search tactics to increase brand visibility, drive organic traffic, and generate results.
Benefits of a SEO Blueprint
Nearly every company is doing SEO work in some manner. Some have an in-house expert or team; some hire a SEO specialist or consultant; many rely on their web firm; and others utilize a general marketing agency.
Today’s question is not: Are you doing SEO?
Rather it’s: Are you implementing the right strategy to accelerate and maximize organic results?
Here are a few benefits of the SEO Blueprint process:
- Identify a set of the highest-priority keywords that will have the largest potential impact on your results – both short-term and long-term.
- Identify the specific SEO tactics required to outrank competitors’ webpages that are already visible for your highest priority keywords.
- Identify critical content gaps that must be filled in order to bridge the gap.
Keyword Scoring & Prioritization
Let’s take a deeper look at keywords; an important part of every SEO Plan. How do you know which keywords to focus on? Search volume, a very popular metric, is only one data point to consider when building your target keyword list.
A comprehensive keyword analysis should assess all of the following:
- Business relevance
- Strategic importance
- Market opportunity (search volume)
- Competition (difficulty to rank)
- Brand visibility (current rank)
- Conversion results (if available)
- Buyer journey / funnel phase
We have developed a keyword scoring methodology that considers all these attributes. We utilize this process to build a “short-list” of the highest priority keywords; keywords that will generate the greatest results, for your business, in the shortest amount of time.
SEO Blueprint Components
What are the main components of a SEO Strategy and Plan? Our Blueprint includes the following:
SEO Analysis and Findings
- Website Technical Audit
- Competitive Assessment
- Search Query Analysis (Keyword research)
- Keyword Scoring & Prioritization
- Website Keyword Mapping
- Content Gap Analysis
Prioritized SEO Implementation Plan
- Website Fixes
- 404 errors, page speed issues, etc.
- Site-wide optimizations
- Navigation, internal links, sitemaps, etc.
- Page-by-Page Optimizations
- Page title tags, meta descriptions, heading tags, etc.
- Content Recommendations
- Additional pages, blog posts, etc.
Gain a Competitive Advantage
A solid SEO strategy (designed specifically for your business and your organic search ecosystem) can provide a significant competitive advantage. It enables you to move beyond typical “me too” marketing and focus on the specific keywords and tactics that will deliver the greatest potential impact as quickly as possible. A SEO Blueprint is specifically designed to outsmart the competition!
Is a SEO Blueprint Right for You?
A SEO Blueprint is perfect for companies looking for assistance with research, strategy and planning, but who want to handle SEO implementation in-house. The blueprint is a short-term, cost-effective, highly-focused project designed to jump-start your organic search improvements.
A SEO Blueprint delivers the customization, prioritization and focus required for your success. Find out if this is the right next move for your SEO program.
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Patricia Hursh is the president and founder of Avid Demand. Today she leads the agency’s Client Service Department, guiding multi-functional teams to ensure bottom-line business results for Avid Demand clients. Patricia specializes in developing digital marketing strategies and full-funnel marketing solutions for B2B companies.