Local businesses are often approached by "web consultants" who say, "Hire us, we'll boost your SEO..." Yes, they probably can boost your Search Engine Optimization, but did you really need to pay someone to do that?
What's the big deal abut SEO? It's about the first two words, "search engine." When a potential customer for your business, say a family thinking about going out for a nice dinner this weekend. They want to go someplace other than their usual spots, so they turn to the web. Where your restaurant shows up on the results those folks see in their Google search makes all the difference in the world. If you're not on the screen, you're not in their minds.
The trick is to write content for your website that makes the search engine respond.
Huh?
OK, it's like this. Say you're a New Orleans restaurant owner. You've got a website design that, if done correctly, has your locations, hours of operation, and your menu, easily available to New Orleans tourists and others interested in dining at your restaurant. In addition to those basics, you should have a blog interface or other way to post new and interesting tidbits about your restaurant.
You could pay that SEO consultant to write content for you, but that person, even if they are a New Orleans website developer, isn't part of your staff. They're not you. They don't have the passion for your restaurant that you do. They can focus on the keywords you need to add to your content to make your search engine results rocket to the top three, but when a New Orleans restaurant diner actually reads what they wrote, it's flat and has no soul.
Give your website content that can still be picked up with high rankings by search engines by writing it yourself! This article offers some good suggestions for getting started.
What about the "expert" that says you should hire them? You still may want to, but you'll want them for other reasons.
Keywords - Notice above, I said "New Orleans,' "New Orleans restaurant," and "website development" several times? Those are keywords that a search engine will pick up on. When someone googles "New Orleans website development," sites that consistently mention those keywords will rank higher than those which done.
Adwords - in addition to optimizing content, the consultant can help you choose specific "adwords" to apply to your company's website when buying ad placements with Google. The adwords show up in searches and your advertisement appears in the side column of the search. That's how Google makes their money, and how you can use their service to bring in customers.
Facebook Ads - Facebook is all about advertisements, too, but the procedures and structure are quite different from search engine advertising. Your consultant should be able to work with Facebook as well.
Hire the geek to give you the SEO lowdown. You do the writing!
