81% of consumers conduct online research before making a purchase. What does that mean? It means that to succeed in today’s business climate, you need to develop a sound online marketing strategy. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

Give Your Website a Facelift

Does your website have a clean, modern design? Is it easy to navigate? Is it optimized for mobile? If you answered “no” to any of these questions, it’s probably time to update your site. Don’t worry, there are a ton of web designers and templates out there you can turn to for help.

Make Your Website’s Content Sharable

One easy way to help spread the word about your business is to allow visitors to your website to do it for you. Focus on creating relevant, sharable content. Then, add “share” buttons that allow people to post your content on social media sites.

Get Analytical

Want to see where your website visitors come from? How about which of your website’s pages they visit most often, and how long they stay there? With Google Analytics, you can get free access to a mountain of data you can use to streamline your site and jumpstart your sales.

List Your Business in Local Directories

Want to increase traffic to your store? Make sure your business can be found quickly and easily via local searches. There are a number of online local directories that you can list your business on for free.

Write a Blog or Host a Podcast

Looking for a way to attract more visitors to your site? Position yourself as an expert in your industry by writing a blog or hosting a podcast. The more relevant, unique, and sharable content you create, the better your search engine rankings will be, and the more website visitors you’re likely to attract.

Keep an Eye on Your Competitors

Not sure where to start as far as fine-tuning your website or creating other online content? Take a look around to see what your competitors are doing. You’ll undoubtedly find some ideas you can “borrow” and then make your own.

Create Video Content

The popularity of online videos is higher than ever before. Furthermore, creating online videos is easier than ever. Leverage these facts by creating original video content you can post on social media sites. Just be sure to keep your videos short and relevant to increase their shareability.

Review Social Content Before Sharing

Remember, we’re in the age of screenshots. That means, for all intents and purposes, once you post something on the internet, it’s there forever. So take a moment to review your social content before you post it to make sure you aren’t putting your foot in your mouth.

Focus On Search Engine Optimization

Make sure you are including appropriate keywords in all of your online marketing efforts to boost your search ranking results. Also, include location specific keywords on your website like your neighborhood, city and zip code to help with local search when applicable.

Monitor Your Online Reviews

Online reviews can be a huge driver for your business. Have positive reviews? Share them on your website and social media sites to help spread the word and encourage other customers to provide their own. Just note that different review sites have different rules regarding the soliciting of reviews from customers so tread carefully.

Put Yourself On the Map

Make sure your business is not only listed on apps like Google Maps and Apple Maps but that the information within those apps is correct (address, phone number, hours of operation, etc.)

Create Backlinks

Another really effective way to increase both your credibility and your website’s ranking in search is to create high-quality backlinks to your content from other sites. Click here for tips on how to get started.

Maximizing the effectiveness of your online marketing efforts is one of the most powerful ways to help your business stay relevant in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace. So be sure to stay abreast of technological advances that can help bolster your online presence and boost your sales.