I WANT TO BE ON PAGE ONE OF GOOGLE!
Don’t we all?!?
How do you get there? What’s the secret sauce that you need to get ranked on page one (and in the number one spot?!)
Just like life, there are no guarantees with Google. But, we’ve got five ways you can make Google love you and want you to be number 1* in their results.
1. Produce Content
Surely, you’ve heard this already. Content is King. It has been for a while and will continue to be. Are you producing unique, valuable content on a regular basis? In 2014, 86% of manufacturers were using content marketing, producing unique and valuable content. So, if you’re not producing content you are definitely in the minority among your competitors.
The good news is only 30% of manufacturers said they were effective at content marketing. So, even if you’re not producing content, it’s OK, because most of the guys who are producing content kind of suck at it. (By their own admission.)
Why does content matter? Google LOVES unique and valuable content. The quality and freshness of your content is one of the highest ranking factors. Why do so many companies blog? It’s the best way to keep fresh content running through their website. It provides a place to draw people in day after day, week after week. Google notices this traffic. Google notices the new content. Google likes that and in turn, likes you.
2. Don’t Suck at Your Content
Thirty percent of manufacturers said they were good at content, but only 21% had a documented content strategy. (This tells me that 9% were completely delusional about their level of suckitude with their content.) To have a good content strategy that Google loves means you need to have a well-planned, documented content strategy.
3. Create Lots of Content
Want Google to think you’re the bomb-diggity? Write, write, and then write some more. Provide quality, in-depth, unique information around each topic you write on and your rankings will shoot through the roof!
Google (as well as the other search engines) LOVES in-depth, unique content. Write content that will contribute to the knowledge base in the field and produce a lot of this content. Google will love your content and rank your pages high for your desired keywords.
4. Know Your Keywords
But, don’t get hung up on any specific words. The search engines are really smart these days. They can essentially read your web pages and figure out what you’re talking about. Use lots of keywords that are focused around your topic. Write in a way that your primary user would understand. The search engine will get it too and understand what you’re talking about. They’ll rank you for the various keywords around your topic.
5. Don’t Forget the Technical Details
The primary driver of great search engine optimization is content, but there are a few pesky technical details that you can’t afford to ignore if you want to climb your way up the rankings.
ALT TEXT – Be sure to provide descriptive alt text for your images. Use keywords when possible (but remember the primary purpose of the alt text is for screen readers to “read the image out loud” to the visually impaired.)
IMAGE FILE NAMES – Yes, the file name of your image has an impact on your search engine rankings. Rename your images. Don’t use DSC374.jpg as your file name. Use something like welder-manufacturing.jpg or whatever words would describe the image. Notice, I used all lowercase with hyphens. That is the best practice for getting Google to see and rank your website based on your image file names.
TITLE TAGS – Write descriptive title tags that include your keywords (towards the beginning of the tag, when possible)
META DESCRIPTIONS – While not a direct influence on the search engines, meta descriptions are important for getting users to click through to your site and click-through-rate is an important ranking factor. Be sure to include a good description of the page/post and a direct call to action within your meta description.
Time to Beat the Competition
70% of manufacturers produced more content in 2014 than they did in 2013, and 46% say they increased their budget for content marketing in 2015. If you aren’t producing content, you’re falling behind your competition and your website is going to tank in the search engine rankings. Google is going to choose your competitors over you if they are producing better content.
The big question for many of you, “Who the hell is writing all this content?!”
You may be surprised to know that 55% of your colleagues are outsourcing content production. That’s right. No one in their plant or office is writing their content. Most of them have partnered with an agency to drive their marketing strategy and produce content. More and more manufacturers are finding this is the only way to stay on top of the game.
Many manufacturers don’t have anyone in-house that can develop and maintain a marketing strategy, much less produce quality, in-depth content for the web. It may be time for you to consider the cost of not keeping up with the competition.
Maybe it’s Time for a Partner
Need help establishing a content strategy or producing great content? We can help! Call Marketing Essentials today to schedule an appointment with a manufacturing content specialist. We’ll get you on the right path for more web traffic, new business and increased ROI!
*Our lawyers want to be sure we tell you that we’re not guaranteeing you’ll be number one in anything with Google. Sadly, we don’t run the Google. If we did, we would totally put you in the number one spot (and sell our 2004 Ford.)
All Stats – Content Marketing Institute report on Content Marketing in the Manufacturing vertical.
