When many businesses hear the term “marketing”, they are instantly troubled by thoughts of costly marketing tactics. However, marketing doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, with the right SEO services strategies, it can cost you nothing at all. If your budget is already running on fumes as it is, it’s good to note that there are many ways you can promote your business online without having to spend a dime. I’ll show you just how, with insider tips straight from an experienced digital marketing agency. Times may be tough, but these simple and free strategies for SEO marketing are sure to give your business a lift:
- Create an SEO-friendly blog
Content marketing and blogging are very inexpensive ways for your business to grow its presence online. You can take up the responsibility to create content for your business, thus negating the need to outsource your content needs.
But, once your blog gains momentum, you may need help with your content marketing. Still, if your website has sufficient traffic, you may be able to get content for free by way of guest post contributions.
Many bloggers are often on the hunt for these opportunities, typically in exchange for backlinks that will direct some of that traffic back to their own sites.
Blogging for SEO: Quick tips to get you started
If you’re going to be doing all the heavy lifting with your content marketing, be sure to keep the following blog SEO best practices in mind:
- Go for low-competition keywords to create topics around
- Include internal links to improve the visibility of your other content
- Add SEO-friendly visuals- alt-text tags and all
The other upside of blogging is that it can also increase the financial streams for your business by way of selling ad space.
- Pitch for backlinks
Would you like to get your business on the first page of Google without having to pay for it? Who wouldn’t? The first page of search results monopolizes 92% of all traffic, leaving the rest scrambling for scraps.
You can get your business to the top of Google without paying by seeking out backlinks to your content. Remember how I said you can get content for free with the promise of a backlink? Well, it goes both ways. Your business can also offer guest blog contributions in return for a high-traffic backlink from an authoritative source.
If you’re a new business or relatively unknown, Google and other search engines use backlinks to determine if they can trust you. These links are essentially votes of confidence from third parties and can help push your business higher up the SERP list.
- The secret to getting your pitches noticed
The top websites receive thousands of pitches a month, which means it’s easy for your application to get lost in the noise. Here are a few pointers that will make your pitch stand out:
- Don’t put all your eggs in one basket; Pitch to many websites. According to a ReferralRock survey, the most successful guest bloggers reach out to 100 or more blogs a month
- Show your diligence: Demonstrate your knowledge – and appreciation- of the website you’re pitching to and what they do. Preferably, do so right at the top of your pitch.
- Follow in the right footsteps: Get some idea about what content most resonates with their readers, and pitch ideas around that area.
Moreover, ensure an organic alignment between your brand and the websites you pitch to. In other words, find websites that essentially target similar types of audiences who are also likely to show interest in your business or brand so you’re reeling in the right kind of traffic.
- Craft a GMB profile
A market share of 93% makes Google the most dominant search engine on the planet. It is for this reason that I highly advise you to create a Google Business profile for your business. Doing so costs nothing, yet the rewards could be beyond tremendous.
The other great part about a Google My Business Profile is that it’s fairly easy to manage and takes you no more than a couple of minutes to set up. Additionally, a local business listing is also a superb option if your brand doesn’t have a website just yet. It also displays important contact information without leads having to click through.
- Dominate local SEO with these GMB hacks
A WordStream report finds that just 5% of the total views a GMB profile receives translates into actions in terms of click-throughs, calls, and the likes. That points to a huge optimization problem but here’s how to get your profile on track:
- Don’t leave blanks- Fill your GMB account and leave no sections empty
- Check both secondary and primary categories
- Be responsive – Gather reviews and, more importantly, respond to them
- Keep your GMB photos fresh – Most SEO services update images for their clients weekly. I recommend the same
Also, take some time to fill out the “from the business” description as well. When done right, your Google My Business profile can be the only gateway you need to your online success, more so as far as local rankings go.
These SEO marketing tips are priceless- but laborious
They sure are and in more ways than one. You can achieve SEO marketing success without the need for a digital marketing agency or professional SEO services. But I’ll be honest with you. Just because these marketing strategies are free doesn’t mean they’re easy. When you do take this route, be ready to put in quite a lot of effort. Marketing agencies usually have multiple teams working on a single campaign at a time. If you’ll go at it all, you have to be prepared to constantly trudge the extra mile. While SEO marketing can be effort-intensive, it can lead to tremendous growth for your business if you are consistent and prioritize quality over quantity.
