Gail Eddy, Nederland.

The first few days of March saw me in San Diego at the annual Social Media Marketing World hosted by Social Media Examiner. I learned so much and hope to pass some of that information on to you. If you have a website or blog that you want people to find, read on!

Search Engine Optimization:

Probably the most important thing I learned is that your website must be optimized so that search engines, primarily Google, can find you. It doesn’t really matter how much you’re posting on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Unless you already have major name recognition and a huge fan base, people will find and follow you on Social Media via your website.

Key word development:

Finding your best keywords is an art. And “Key Word” is a bit of a misnomer. Your “Key Word” is actually a phrase that people would use to find you. Some tools to get you started include Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, and SemRush. Another thing to know about is Long Tail Keywords, which are much, much longer phrases and not just a word or two. Think about it. Do you want someone coming to your site because they typed “hiking boots” into the search box? Or would you rather have someone who types in “Scarpa Terra GTX size 42”? The first person is browsing; the second is ready to buy. A good tool here is the LongTailPro and the KWFinder websites.

Are you listed?

It’s important that your business can be found on different directories. This is especially important for a local business. Moz can help you see which directories have you listed, where you have incomplete or inconsistent info, and gives you links to help correct any errors. I like Moz because they basically show you what you need to do yourself (for free!) to get listed. But they also have a (reasonably priced) service to do all the leg work for you.

Back Links:

Another thing that helps your site rank higher with Google’s analytics is to have plenty of back links. Many of the presenters at Social Media Marketing World expressed the importance of back links. A back link is a link on another webpage that links back to your site. This does need to be done carefully and strategically however. The site that is linking back to you has to have a good reputation. A site that only lists back links, usually for a price, will actually make your site rank lower as a result. Backlinko helps you strategically make a plan to get quality back links.

General Resources:

The presenters at Social Media Marketing World were so generous in sharing their material. Here are just a few of their websites to learn more about SEO and Social Media:

* ProBlogger

* Social Media Examiner

* AskPat

* Actionable Marketing Guide

Remember: If you can’t be found, you don’t exist!

Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has been providing computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PC’s for the past fifteen years. His company is highly rated by both the BBB (Better Business Bureau) and by Angie’s List. You can find more on our website, or give us a call 303-618-0154. Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area as well as remote service throughout North America. Check out our website for all the links in this article: https://geekforhireinc.com/what-i-learned-at-social-media-marketing-world/