For marketers in higher education, getting your site optimized in time for admissions season should be a priority.
An effective way to achieve this is through SEO – Search Engine Optimization. This is the process that most marketers will be familiar with, but perhaps not as proficient as they could be with it, to best improve and promote their website. The overriding goal is to generate more visitors via search engines.
The benefits presented by SEO to institutions…
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It makes it easier to track the pages and topics that are most popular during a given period.
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Reduce advertising costs, as SEO can replace more expensive outbound marketing strategies.
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Easier for your target audience to find your website and therefore increase online traffic.
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Gain an advantage over competitors who appear further down in search results.
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SEO tips when writing your online content
- It is important to write original content. Refrain from copy and pasting from an existing article or page, as search engines may be likely to penalize your site if your content is a duplicate.
- Make sure that your keywords match your content. Use keyword research processes to find out what is interesting to your readers. This can be achieved by using common keyword research tools such as Google AdWords, Analytics, Search Console or Moz to name a few. Creating meaningful and engaging keywords to match your content is essential in this process.
- It is important to use conversational language and questions. One of Google’s latest search algorithms, for example, Hummingbird, is designed for voice search and prioritizes conversational content, particularly Q&A styled content.
- Using bulleted lists can help search engines scan your content, meaning it’ll have the same effect on your readers. This could even lead to featured snippets on Google if you have provided a summary of an answer to a user’s query.
Take the next step to optimizing your online content
Once you have put together a plan for what you want to achieve through SEO, you can look at your options and decide what course of action to take. Initial planning may include training your existing team or could even entail seeking assistance from an external agency.
What is a near certainty, is that SEO is crucial not only to help your target audience find you online but also to ensure your online content matches their needs and priorities. Effective SEO is not just boosting traffic to your website, it’s about understanding your target audiences’ user habits and informational demands.
