Now it’s time for one of the most important topics when it comes to your website. Simply put, if you don’t have a specific strategy to rank highly in the search engines, you are wasting your time and money on the internet. This is the most critical aspect of your online marketing and also the most commonly overlooked. Get this right and you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.

First, a word of warning: Most web designers and web design companies have no idea how to rank well in the search engines. Some companies give it a fleeting thought and do a few things right. Others just ignore it completely. Still others screw it up completely and actually do things that are detrimental to your website’s rankings. I speak from experience; no web design company I have ever worked with has paid sufficient attention to this area. These are the companies that can create impressive looking, feature rich, and knock your socks off websites that will do absolutely nothing for your sales.

This is one of my professional focuses and an increasing number of individuals and companies are consulting in this area all the time. Your business needs to consult with a dedicated Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) consultant, preferably before you even start building your website. Once you have a website, our job becomes a lot more difficult and a lot more costly to you. So if you’re thinking about creating or redesigning your website, talk to a SEO consultant first, before your web designer. Your sales will thank you for it.

Now there is plenty of information in the free resources section about this area and more will be posted on my website as time progresses. You are quite welcome to do it yourself to save yourself some money. Just be aware of the trial and error involved and the steep learning curve you will have to face. SEO consultants make it look easy, it most definitely is not. I urge you to contact one today. Anyone, not necessarily me, talk to as many as possible. You wouldn’t just rush out and choose the first accountant you met, or the first marketing company. Do your research and make an informed decision based on your needs.

1. People need to find your website
The main way you want people to find your website is through the search engines. This means people are searching for the products you are selling and are obviously interested in this area and perhaps making a purchase. Most people never put a thought into how their website will be found using search engines and are therefore saying goodbye to hundreds of potential customers each day.

Your website can also be found by word of mouth, either being told by you, or by other satisfied customers of your business. While both have their benefits, the search engines can easily bring you the greatest number of potential customers for your website.

2. People need to buy from your website
Just like any other piece of marketing material you send out, it needs to be designed to sell. You need to know the outcome you want from a particular page and focus all your effort on leading the potential customer to that outcome. Your website is not something designed to sit their looking pretty. It has a role, just like everything in your business, and you need to make sure it is fulfilling that role at all times.