Aloha, Nick Ponte here! I own a Maui advertising agency, and I love helping local businesses build knowledge and skills about current digital marketing strategies. Last week, I shared about the slow and steady journey toward successful SEO (search engine optimization) on your website. Today, we talk about how you can optimize your website using branded and non-branded keywords.
Non-branded marketing uses generic keywords unrelated to your business’s name, services, or products. A broad audience can be reached with generic keywords related to industry, services, or products. If a luggage company website is optimized for non-branded searches, users can find them by searching keywords like “travel essentials” and “overnight bags.” But what if a user already knows about this company and wants to check out their specialty overnight bag? They search for that specific brand’s product. That’s where branded marketing becomes crucial to reach that customer who’s already familiar with the company.
Do you know how to implement both types of marketing and keywords for your company to get the best results?
Also Read: 3 Things Maui Businesses Need to Create Brand Awareness Ads on Social Media
Why Optimize for Both Non-Branded and Branded Searches?
A non-branded search allows customers to find you through broader search terms. If they type in keywords related to your business’s offers, and you pop up at the top of a search engine results page (SERP), that customer can discover your business. You can attract new customers to your business because of their interest in related products or services.
You may already know that non-branded marketing is essential for successful advertising. But you may not realize the necessity of branded marketing for your business. It allows you to reach users who search for specific terms or keywords related to your company. Maybe they’re interested in a product based on a recommendation from a friend, or they’ve purchased from you before and want to know about other offers you have. They might be comparing prices, quality, or benefits of several competing businesses.
Another reason you want to include branded marketing in your optimization strategy is that you need to establish your company as an authority resource in your industry. When you provide trustworthy information and quality products or services, word gets out. Media pays attention and mentions you as a source of information. That draws more traffic to your website and boosts your credibility.
While non-branded marketing seeks to expand the customer base through broader searches, branded marketing targets an audience including previous or current customers, media, and others who either prefer your brand or have familiarity with it.
So, how do you successfully optimize your website for both types of audiences?
Also Read: SEO On-Page Optimization: Make Your Website a Powerful Marketing Platform
Optimize Your Website for Branded & Non-Branded Searches
Here’s how to implement these strategies and reach both types of audiences:
- Optimize Keywords in Your Website’s Content
Use an SEO tool, like Ahrefs or Google Keyword Planner, to get reports on ranking and non-ranking keywords directly related to your brand. Export them and create a spreadsheet. Now you have a list of keywords to integrate into your content. A good SEO tool, like the ones mentioned above, should tell you which keywords underperform and help you discover new keywords. It will also tell you where you rank with each of them.
This information will help you know how to use the keywords to optimize your website’s content for search engines. You may need to update current content or create new pages to get the most out of these keywords. You don’t want to just throw new keywords into existing content if they don’t fit, but it’s not always necessary to create entire new pages for the sake of adding new keywords.
- Connect Your Webpages with Links
Not only do internal site links help you get faster search engine indexing and improve rankings, but they also help enhance branded searches. They also help establish brand authority, relevance, and reputation with search engines. You can implement them by using backlinks to previous blog posts, header and footer navigation links, and links on landing pages or others that get the most traffic.
By doing this, you connect users to your most valuable content, as well as help them to navigate your site.
Don’t forget to regularly check internal links for any errors. If you want good user retention, you need to avoid that dreaded “404” message popping up because pages can’t be found from your own links.
- Get a Professional Audit
Sometimes businesses get bogged down with the overwhelming details of website optimization. Professionals can help. With so many possibilities of underutilized keywords and pages that need to be created, it can be beneficial to find some experienced guidance from professionals who work with businesses across industries.
A professional advertising agency can help you take the guesswork out of these processes. They can help you build an optimized website that meets all of your needs and help you maintain it through the ever-changing market and constantly updating methods.
Our Maui advertising agency offers a free audit and consultation that we’d love you to take advantage of. Our services are top-notch—we don’t mess around with being second-best. We’d love to help you create an exceptional website. Check out some of these companies who now rank at the top of search results and have seen incredible growth since working with us.
If you want to learn more or want help, reach out to us today!
Further Reading: 3 Essentials for Small Business Owners’ SEO Strategies
Photo Courtesy of Subtle Cinematics