Article post by Shawn Byrne

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically (and drastically) changed the way people do things, including how they conduct business. It has also forced many businesses to invest in proven marketing resources to adapt, rebound, and survive. One investment that can give you the most bang for your buck is search engine optimization or SEO.

While several factors work together to make your business stand out, SEO is among the most important. With content marketing, on page SEO and other key elements covered, SEO can help businesses survive online where most consumers now start their customer journeys.

Adapting to the New Normal: SEO Strategies You Should Try

If you are looking for powerful long-term gains such as customer trust and search visibility, investing in SEO is the way to go. Below are some of the best SEO techniques and strategies to help your business adapt to the new normal.

Provide Valuable Content

The content you provide should be tailored to address the needs of your target audience. The increase in content consumption has also provided a great opportunity to reach out to more people and spread brand awareness. Since the pandemic started, Google reported that search trends have started to shift drastically.

For instance, Google noticed a sharp increase in consumers using multiple devices to go online. At least 12 hours of content is consumed daily, and many people spend 20% more time on apps than before. To connect with your audience effectively, you must provide content they find of value.

Update Your Google My Business Profile

When the pandemic started, Google My Business (GMB) introduced COVID-19-related features to help businesses inform clients about changes in their business hours, online services, and hygiene and safety policies. You can update your Google My Business profile by:

• Signing in to your GMB account
• Typing your exact business name on the search bar
• Opening the business profile, clicking on Edit Profile and Business Information, and making the required changes
• Typing save once done

You can also create posts in your GMB. After accessing your business profile, click Promote and select the type of post you want to make, like events, offers, or photos. Click Publish after you have created your post.

Use the Right SEO Tools

Manually researching audience needs and trends can be tedious and time-consuming. Fortunately, there are several free SEO tools you can look into. Google has also provided free tools for various SEO strategies, including:

• Google Search Console. It helps you optimize and monitor how Google crawls your website.
• Google Analytics. It helps you understand the user demographics and activities on your website.
• Google Trends. It helps you explore trending queries, user search interests, and related topics.
• Page Speed Insights. It helps you analyse web speed performance.

Other Short-Term SEO Strategies

Another SEO strategy you should consider is updating your profile and website with COVID-19 information and content. Targeting more local keywords would also be a good idea since more people will likely search for more local options due to certain travel restrictions.

In addition, try resetting your DNS cache files to prevent any security vulnerabilities and ensure the updated content will show up. If you notice a significant traffic spike on your website, it would be a good idea to upgrade your hosting plan so people can easily access your website.

Final Thoughts

Lastly, without extensive SEO experience, your efforts can result in trial and error. You should not take this risk as you might get penalized by Google. That said, investing in the help of a professional SEO agency would be a wise idea. Their help and expertise can help generate better results and allow you to focus more on your business.

Author Bio:

Shawn Byrne is the founder and CEO of SEOPhoenix.net. Shawn started his career in I.T. troubleshooting workstations, servers, and networks, then went on to doing SEO as a side project and quickly found success in ranking websites. It was easy for him to grasp not only the algorithms but also the technical side which most SEO strategists miss and neglect because of its complexities. SEO Phoenix then grew based on its own rankings and referrals.