Posted by Cameron Francis
on
30 Sep , 2015
in
News Uncategorized
If you have ever been involved in an SEO campaign, then you probably already know it is not an exact science. Reading a how-to guide and following its instructions to the letter is all very well, but the bottom line is that you are trying to appeal to real people.
Tweaking is usually required to get the SEO campaign completely right.
But the trick is recognising when and why an online marketing campaign is not working, and what tweaks need to be made. Get that right, and the chances of turning things around are improved greatly.
There are several reasons an SEO marketing campaign might be failing. In this post, we highlight 5 of the most significant ones. More importantly, we offer proven tips on how best to set things right.
5 Key Reasons
1. Setting Unrealistic Targets
There is always a temptation to aim high. A bit of ambition is fine, of course, but if you aim too high then your SEO campaign will be doomed to fail. What are the chances of topping the Google page rankings after a few weeks? Close to miraculous. Looking for 1 million visits by Christmas? Think again. Google looks at about 200 individual ‘signals’ when ranking pages. So, thinking too ambitiously guarantees you frustrating times.
Solution – Keeping things real is an important part of marketing. When developing a campaign plan, consider progress in steady increments. With each increment, you can pat yourself on the back, but just keep the campaign moving forward. This is especially true when you are trying to optimise for numerous products.
2. Poor Choice of Keywords
The significance of keyword phrases in an SEO campaign is no secret, and yet it remains one of the most common stumbling points. This is where careful analysis can be of real benefit to a campaign. It’s a huge mistake to assume you know the keywords that people are searching – the truth may surprise you! It is essential that the chosen phrases and words are verified via keyword data supplied by a trustworthy keyword tool. The tool should be able to identify the keywords your competitors are enjoying the most success with.
Solution – Use Google’s own Keyword Planner to learn what keywords people are using in their searches. You should also look at Google Analytics (‘Acquisitions’) to measure organic traffic, and see how many came via search engine results, as opposed to referrals and social media. Check the numbers every week or so, and react to how the numbers are moving. What is working well this month, may not be effective next month so be on top of keyword trends.
3. Poorly Researched Campaign Strategy
Planning an effective SEO campaign is not a simple task. But many campaign strategies fall way short of their targets because they were never properly structured in the first place. In our experience, poor structure can come down to only a couple of aspects:
- Assumptions Over Facts – Facts never lie. Once you know what you are looking at, and understand how to interpret the facts, then they can point you in the right direction. Assumptions, on the other hand, are riddled with ifs and maybes.
- Believing All Sectors are the Same – clothing stores are not the same as restaurants, and camping equipment has nothing to do with solar panels. So why should their respective SEO campaigns be the same? Each campaign needs to focus on aspects that are specific to the site and tailored to the customers most likely to be interested. Keep in mind too that sectors have differing degrees of competitiveness. More people are likely to search for clothes brands than for solar panels.
Solution – You need to take enough time to research fully before committing to any plan. This means time and effort. After all, there are 8-10 different areas, from SEO auditing to On-Page Optimisation to Competitor Analysis, that have to come together to make a campaign bear fruit. It’s probably best to leave an SEO campaign to the experts – through accountable, proven experts. You should contact the eTraffic team to learn more.
4. Website & Content Below Par
We have always stressed the importance of having a website that both attracts and engages visitors. It’s like going on a date. You have to dress to impress (be attractive) and be witty, humorous and interesting (engaging) at the same time if you want a second night out. New website visitors look for the same things your date would, so it’s foolish to ignore the impact your website has visually or the quality of the written content. Professionally designed websites are going to get a higher conversion rate, and that’s the whole purpose of the SEO campaign – isn’t it?
Solution – Have a quick look at the site, and ask yourself:
- Does it look good?
- Is it easy to navigate?
- Is it user-friendly, and in particular mobile-friendly?
- Does the content answer customer questions?
- Be honest, is it informative or just marketing fluff?
- On blog posts, what exactly are visitors commenting?
5. Forgetting Your Customers
As we mentioned earlier, SEO marketing campaigns are all about people and convincing them to visit a website and buy products. Conversions depend greatly on building a relationship with visitors as soon as possible. This cannot be done if you don’t know your customers or their expectations. Remember, you need them to report positively when they take to social media.
Solution – identify the demographic your customers occupy, like age-group, location and interests. Learn how social media can benefit your SEO campaign, check out their reviews and comments, and observe the words they commonly use when referring to your site, service or products – there may be useful keywords. You should also find out how they navigate to your site, as it could reveal important information when it comes to creating a link building strategy.
Consult The Experts At eTraffic
Of course, considering the complexity of an SEO campaign, the likelihood of an amateur enjoying success is pretty low. Turning to proven online marketing experts is a more logical option. You can always call us too, on 1300-887-151, if you have questions.
