Is your website to blame for poor SEO and lead generation? The overall success of your marketing efforts may hinge on these factors.
SEO (of course) is the process of optimizing your website and content to rank higher on search engine results pages. Lead generation, on the other hand, involves capturing and converting website visitors into leads and ultimately sales.
Why audit? You can uncover opportunities to make the most of your existing content and web presence without the need for a total revamp. Try these ideas to get started:
#1: Analyze your website content — all of it
Why do it?
Is your content incorporating the keywords that your target audience is searching for? Are your pages and blog posts well-organized with clear headings, sub-headings and solid flow? Does your content offer value, engage your readers and address their pain points?
Together, these tactics get you found, keep prospects on your site longer and get them to take whatever next step to engage with you.
How to do it
Start by creating a spreadsheet to track all your existing content — blog posts, landing pages, product pages and any other content on your site. Categorize content based on analytics such as its relevance, engagement and conversion rates. Identify high-performing content that is driving traffic and leads, as well as low-performing content that may need to be updated or removed.
Pay close attention to keywords, meta tags and internal linking structures to ensure that your content is optimized for search engines.
#2: Evaluate your website’s technical performance
Why do it?
How much traffic is your website getting from search engines like Google? Is it structured and coded in a way that search engines can easily crawl and index? What percentage of visitors are taking your desired actions, such as filling out a form or making a purchase?
How to do it
Review your website’s design and user experience, checking for broken links, missing images and overall user friendliness. Be sure to track key performance indicators such as traffic sources, bounce rates and conversion rates to best understand how effectively your website converts customers into leads.
Try tools like Semrush to identify any technical issues that may be impacting your SEO rankings.
#3: Sharpen your lead gen tactics
Why do it?
How is your website converting visitors into leads? Are you using a mix of tactics to meet your goals? It takes a strong foundation of optimized content and technical SEO to consistently deliver new business opportunities.
How to do it
Review existing site forms and optimize them for maximum conversions. For example, make sure you’re offering high-value gated content assets, such as e-books or webinars, that visitors can access in exchange for their contact information.
Consider implementing conversational tools like chatbots to engage visitors in real-time. Or use advertising platforms to re-engage visitors who have previously interacted with your site.
#4: Monitor and improve
Why do it?
Are you consistently auditing and optimizing your website to test new ideas? Are you gathering customer feedback to best understand their preferences and pain points, and incorporating their recommendations?
How to do it
Remember, website optimization is an ongoing process, not a one-time project. Regularly monitor your performance metrics, test new ideas and make improvements to your content, technical SEO and lead generation efforts. Reach out to existing customers and leads to understand their overall experience with your website.
By making data-driven decisions based on real user input, you can maximize the impact of your SEO and lead generation initiatives.
Looking back and moving forward
Small incremental changes can often lead to significant results over time. By taking the time to audit your website, you can ditch the digital clutter and make sure your website is a lead generation powerhouse.