Where do most local consumers start their purchase journey? On a search engine. And when they are seeking a service or product, these searchers pay close attention to the results and what they might tell them about the quality and trustworthiness of a company. As a result, there is a significant connection between online reputation management and SEO (search engine optimization).
You want to keep your content optimized to get found in search engine results. You also want to manage your online reputation to ensure that new customers see positive ratings and reviews from existing ones.
Online reputation management and SEO are two unique marketing tactics. However, there are correlations that demonstrate their link.
The Role of SEO in Online Reputation Management
Optimizing website content has a singular goal—drive traffic to your website from organic search. You do this by aligning relevant keywords and creating content around them. SEO includes on-page components like text and formatting. There are also technical aspects related to ensuring your content is findable, indexable, and crawlable by search engines.
Online reputation management is a strategic approach to obtaining reviews, ratings, and testimonials in the digital ecosystem. The more positive reviews you have, the more credible your business appears.
So, how do they intersect? They share a similar objective. They both can improve a business’ brand authority and visibility online. For the two to work together in harmony, here are some useful tips.
SEO Strategies to Improve Your Online Reputation
These tips will help you connect the dots.
Claim Your Google My Business Profile
Your Google My Business (GMB) profile can be very valuable. It’s the “placard” of information that shows up on the right of the results. There are many benefits of leveraging your GMB profile. You’ll get found much easier by local searchers. A flushed-out GMB page can include lots of information about your business. It also is the repository for Google reviews. Since 98% of customers read reviews of local businesses, they’ll start there.
That’s why you need to claim it and keep it current. The more optimized it is, with posts and images, for example, the more likely you’ll appear in local search results and attract new customers.
Create a Presence on Relevant Review Sites
There are many review sites online. Some are general, while others are niche. Depending on your industry, you’ll want to create profiles. For example, home improvement companies often want to have high ratings on Houzz or Angi. Restaurants prefer Yelp. Determine which ones will be the most likely places where your customers would be searching.
Remember to monitor these and respond to all ratings, good or bad. The more reviews you receive and interaction on your pages, the more of an indication this is to a search engine that they should rank your content higher.
Include Optimized Content on Your Website That’s Review-Focused
Another way to use SEO for online reputation is to dedicate at least one page to customer stories and testimonials. These can be case studies, videos, quotes, or star ratings. You can use specific keywords on these pages for traction, such as:
- The “best business type” in “location”
- “High-rated business type” in “location”
- “Local favorites business type” in “location”
These could provide you with more traffic to those pages, and visitors will experience this as the first interaction with your brand. That could be very influential in winning their business.
Let Us Manage Online Reputation Management and SEO
Local businesses have a lot on their plate. Online reputation management and SEO are two of many marketing aspects you can outsource to a trusted partner like AQ Marketing. We know local business marketing! Contact us today to learn more.
