SEO: Getting Found By Your Customers

Getting found is a common goal of most small business bloggers and webmasters. You really want to be wherever they are already looking for you. Today, we will examine 3 techniques to be listed or found where they are looking.

Determine Where They Are Looking

First, you need to know a little about your *target market*. In fact, you really need to spend a little time on this step. Who is your ideal customer?

Are they young or old? Are they socially active or just surf when they are looking for a solution? Do they embrace technology or spurn anything that even smells geeky?

The demographics of your target market will help you isolate the best way to reach them. As I said, this is an important step so define your ideal customer in great detail.

What Language Do They Use

And no, I don’t mean English verses Spanish (although that can be a factor).

I mean what is their education level? Do they belong to groups that share common phrases or ways of speaking? Trust me, it affects they way they search for information.

Let me give you an example that I think will clarify this.

Let’s say you have the best *juice* on the market. It gives you energy, enhances athletic performance, reduces recovery times after exertion and clears and enhances memory.

If your target market is 30 – 40 something’s in the corporate environment, you will need to use a different set of words as keywords.

You will need to use the language that the white-collar higher education types will use. Examples might be enhance physical performance, reduce recovery time, achieve mental clarity.

If, on the other hand, your ideal customer is the 20 something’s that skateboard or snowboard, then you obviously need to focus on a different set of keywords.

Some examples might be play harder, ride longer, play better, heal quicker, think faster.

Now, before you write in to tell me I am stereotyping, let me beat you to the punch. I am doing it to make a point, not slam any particular group. I am using exaggerated examples to show you there is often a huge difference in the way they think and speak and that translates to how they surf.

Google Synonym Feature To The Rescue

Google tracks a lot of searches. The number of *records* in their database and the type of information they track would stagger your mind. Remember, their primary goal is to serve relevant content to their visitors, first and foremost.

They are learning a lot about how people search, what terms are related to other words (quick example of semantic relationships would be the ever popular *car* and *automobile*. As a nation, we understand them to be the same thing) and if someone searches for debt relief, they might also be interested in debt consolidation or debt elimination (another cheesy example, but you get the point).

Back to our example. You are neither the banker type, nor the skater Dude, so how do you learn the words they will use when surfing? By hanging out where they hang out and listening! Search for your market’s likely hangout spots by adding the word group or forum to a search term.

(For example, banking compliance groups or skateboard forum)

And by reviewing the alternate keywords that Google suggests when they build a keyword list with their suggestion tool.

If the words Google suggests are similar or related to the words you hear on the forums where the white collar types gather intelligence from, or the video sites where the skater dude hangs out, you have a great prospective keyword(s) to try and rank for.

Now, use the words your prospective customer is searching for. Be sure to include them in the title, description, and within the body of the blog post. Optimize your small business blog’s SEO using a good SEO plugin like Headspace2 or All in One SEO.

Be consistent. Nope, you won’t land on Google the first day, first week or maybe even the first year (though if you have been following the other SEO advice you probably will!), but consistent action, focused action using the words they are likely to search for will get you found.

Don’t Forget The Value Of Participation

Remember we talked about hanging out where your target market hangs out? You can do more than listen. Add value, ask questions, participate in the conversation. Learn their lingo and their hot buttons.

Listen to their complaints and frustrations. Want them to like and trust you? You have to be in the trenches with them.

People will do anything for those who encourage their dreams, justify their failures, allay their fears, confirm their suspicions and help them throw rocks at their enemies.

- Blair Warren : The One-Sentence Persuasion Course.

About The Author

Cenay Nailor is an Internet, Affiliate and Networking Marketing success coach with mad technical skills she loves sharing. Visit her blog and sign up for a weekly injection of Tech-Based Marketing help, sent right to your inbox. http://www.CenayNailor.com

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