Five Ways to Know Your SEO is Working

You spent a ton of time, maybe a ton of money, to get your SEO just right. But how do you know if you did it right? I mean, what’s the point if you can’t see any results, right?

So, how do you know if your SEO is working?

1) You’re gaining more visitors, even if that means slowly.

SEO is a waiting game. You work at it and work at it only to sit and wait. It means having the patience of slow roasting the perfect Thanksgiving turkey.

SEO results can take as long as 9 months to take effect. I know that sounds outrageous but think about it. News travels fast once it gets to the top players, but proving yourself a top player to look out for takes time.

It’s like my momma always said, “It takes a lifetime to build a reputation and seconds to ruin one.”

If you’re looking to be reputable in your field, it’s going to take a lot of time and persistence. But in the meantime, you should be keeping a close eye on your Google Analytics and Webmaster Tools. These great, free little tools come in handy to see not just how many visitors you have coming to your page but also, where they come from, where they’re going, and how long they stay giving you insight to what intrigues them about your page.

Look at this data a few times a week and then compare it over time. Is your visitor count climbing? Are your visitors hanging out longer?

Even if it’s slow, if it’s climbing, you’re doing something right.

2) You’re receiving more interaction.

Remember that phrase, “Any publicity is good publicity?” In the realm of SEO, this isn’t always true. However, the best way to get noticed isn’t by buying your way to the top but rather giving your prospects some remarkable content that they’re willing to interact with–

Whether it be a comment, a Facebook like or share, or even a simple retweet. The more interactive your prospects and consumers are to you, the more a part of your company they’re going to feel. And even if you aren’t quite the global household name, you will soon become a household name for many–who will then share their experience with others.

3) Others are linking to your website.

This may take a little time but eventually a good website will have followers or people who appreciate the hard work you’re putting into it. Using Webmaster Tools, you can see where people are linking to your website or blog. This gives you an idea again of what people are interested in.

Link building also helps with rankings.

How, you ask? Good links (as opposed to paid) tell Google that you are a reliable, trustworthy source of information. You’re doing a great job and people recognize this by sending their readers to your site.

You wouldn’t send your grandma to a bad restaurant, would you?

It’s the same premise. People will read what they trust and they’ll talk about it if they’re impressed. Once others start linking to you, you know your SEO is working.

4) You’re constantly revising to better fit your ideal client or consumer.

Your client wants the best for them. That may not mean it’s the best for everyone though, and he knows it. So when he smells the least bit of generalization, he’s going to feel let down. This is why it is important to always work on getting to know your ideal client better.

Write to them, for them. Address their problems and empathize. Then solve their problems. Give them the answers to the questions they’re looking for.

 5) Google yourself. See anything different?

I know it sounds silly but really, do it now. Go to Google and type in your company, the keywords you’re hoping to conquer, or a general keyword with your location.

See what happens.

Google determines the ranking algorithm (and thus your ranking) in their results.

Are you there? Are you moving up? Do you have a meta-description (the text under your title in a Google search query) you’re proud of? Would you click on yourself if, of course, you weren’t yourself but a potential client?

If you’re moving up or gaining more notoriety, you should be proud of yourself. Like I said before, SEO is a waiting game. It can take up to a year to really see actual steady results.

But what do you do until then? Keep building your content. Keep spreading your message. And keep being kind to your potential clients and visitors.

And, of course, if you don’t think it’s doing for you what you think it should, change up your SEO.

But keep in mind, before you begin tweaking, give your SEO at least 6 months to have a good idea of your current page. Then when you’re ready, tweak, reword, and adjust and then wait to see what happens.

Keep in mind, Google is looking for websites with fantastic content, user-friendly design, and trustworthy reputations. The more your website helps your prospect rather than merely hard selling to them, the better those rankings will be.

And be ready to change some things periodically as Google changes their algorithm to determine rankings and seniority with SEO. If you see a drastic decline after an incline, it may be time for a SEO re-haul.

As always, we would love to hear from you. What are some of your favorite SEO techniques that you’ve found really work to boost your sales and leads?

If you have any questions regarding SEO, we’d love for you to send us a message and perhaps we can get the ball rolling on a business that you love with clients you adore.