How Everyone in Your Company Can Fall in LOVE With S.E.O.

I came across a really cool presentation the other day from one of our Industry's leading minds, Will Critchlow. The title of the presentation was as brilliant as it was simplistic: "Why You Should LOVE S.E.O." Now, if you are new to this blog, first of all let me say welcome, but  also allow me to briefly explain S.E.O.

S.E.O. stands for Search Engine Optimization, and it is the practice of helping a website rank as high as possible, organically,  in S.E.R.P's, or Search Engine Result Pages. So, when you type in the keyword phrase "gainesville internet marketing," our website is going to come up in the SERP ranking number one. Here's a free tip: You want your website to rank number one for your keyword term too. If you want us to help you achieve that goal, go ahead and visit this page for a free S.E.O Analysis.

But going back to the presentation. There are a TON of creative ideas and ways to help you win the never-ending game that is S.E.O. The main takeaway from the presentation, and the number one thing that I want you to gain from this post, is that EVERYONE in your company can participate in and contribute to your organization's S.E.O strategy.  That's right, that means everyone from the C.E.O on down, because the importance of ranking organically for keyword terms relevant to your industry, brand, and/or services should be a company wide initiative. It is something that I assure you will impact your bottom-line (probably sooner than later, if it has not done so already).

Digging a little deeper now, we come to the "how to" portion of the presentation. Let's do just that and break-down a couple roles in the company that can help with S.E.O. strategies:

The C.E.O.

If you are a small business owner, and we work with lots of them, then you already know that you play many roles and wear a lot of hats in your company, more so than "just" the C.E.O. Still, that does not mean that you can't contribute to your company's S.E.O strategy. You are the tip of the sword for your company. You need to "get out there" and make appearances in public. People will get to know you, and they will in turn get to know your company. They will look to you as a leader in your industry and market, and as they are looking to you as that authority, make sure to ask for those links to your site from theirs.

Link building with other local and regional companies is a strong link-building tactic, and Google is placing a premium on that as well. Ask other C.E.O's (in non-competitive markets, of course) what they are doing with content production, what their Internet Marketing strategy looks like, and see if you can ally yourself with those that "get it." Do this, and you are playing out your role in your company's S.E.O. initiatives.  Oh, and know what kind of a link your company really wants to target too.

Public Relations Department

Your P.R. department can assist with some pretty creative things in your organization's S.E.O. strategy. Here are but a couple proven examples:

• Always perform "Research," never "Surveys" - People are not going to be that interested in the survey that you are conducting near as much as the value perceived from the "research" you are conducting to better your industry, market, or services. People want to belong to something, not be bothered or annoyed with something they perceive as a waste of their time.
• Hold "Off-Line" events - This is not a new concept, but no one said that you needed to reinvent the wheel either. Holding an off-line event gives you the opportunity to promote it, discuss it, and monitor it -wait for it- all on-line. It will also give you an opportunity to link-build, and a great topic for your C.E.O. to discuss while he/she is shaking hands and making those valuable connections.

Like I said, I want you to take away something from this post. Personally, I hope that you have come to the realization that S.E.O can be fun, get your creative juices flowing, and be viewed in a way that motivates an entire organization to participate in the overall strategey of a company's S.E.O objective.

What are some creative initiatives you and your organization are planning this coming year? Feel free to leave a comment below and discuss.