Search: Get Found, Be First in Line
Search engine marketing, optimization and pay per click should be on your radar if you want to stand out online and attract new customers. Research shows that 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine. Currently, 57% of all banks and 55% of the top 20 credit unions in the U.S. utilize Google AdWords campaigns. Are you among them?
21. Have you checked Google lately to see where your bank or credit union ranks?
You should have at least a simple search strategy. Find out what keyword phrases are important for your site traffic. Know where they rank in Google and Bing. But don’t stop there. It’s a common mistake to focus on keyword rankings but it means nothing to rank #1 for keywords that nobody uses. Determine how many visitors those keywords brought to your site. Optimize for the best keywords. Learn how or hire an expert.
22. Did you know that the recently released Google Hummingbird update could torpedo search rankings for banks?
The dependence on “keywords” has been reduced and compelling content is now king. So, if you were high in the rankings before, you might not be now. Preference will be given to sites that are not platform dependent – i.e. responsive designs. Furthermore, bank web sites that serve different content to different devices may virtually disappear from the search results.
23. Are you advertising on Google?
You should be running a continuous campaign in Google AdWords for your bank, even if it’s a low budget buy. Organize a set of ads for your mass consumer products like checking, set a small daily budget and then tweak it over time for efficiency. Then plan search ads as companions for seasonal promotions and traditional ad campaigns. The continuous exposure and experience gained will pay off through an increasing ROI.
For the online advertising trifecta, combine a smart SEO plan for organic results with a paid combination of AdWords alongside an online ad schedule on a dominant local media site (TV news, newspaper, sports, etc.). Brand awareness gains from the media site helps to boost the click through rate when you appear in the search results, attracting new visitors to your web site.
Gain significant traction in mobile ad targeting on Facebook and Google and you can be ready to ride the new wave.
24. Do you know which of your competitors are advertising on Google?
There are dozens of tools and services currently available that can show you what keywords and what pay-per-click text ads your competitors are buying. Look at competitive ads for clues on what’s working. Ads that change frequently may not be pulling well and weekly or monthly changes indicate some level of experimentation. Those ads that repeat unchanged for months at a time are likely successful and working well. Analyze the headline and body copy for ideas and adjust your strategy accordingly.
25. Are you actively driving new traffic to your site via search engines or online ads?
A “set-it-and-forget-it” strategy will no longer pay off. Make sure you have someone with the right experience to tightly manage and optimize your SEO and SEM campaigns. Experiment with Google AdWords’ (and Bing’s) enhanced features. Text ads can be enhanced with a local address, promotional offers, site links and even custom Google phone numbers. It is worth the effort to set it up. Also give the Google Display network a try. We have found in many cases that graphic ads have less competition, lower cost per click and a higher click through rate than AdWords text ads.
26. Do you know how many banking-related searches are being done in your local market?
There are 304,667 daily searches in the US for the keyword mortgage. You should learn how many of those (and other important keywords) are searched in your market. You can get local search information from Google’s AdWords tools. Then review your site’s analytics report. What share of the keywords in your market are you currently getting? 10%? 50%? Create a plan to increase your market share of important search phrases and watch your market share of customers follow along.
27. Are you creating or updating your content strategy for your web site and your social media platforms?
This cannot be over emphasized: content is still king. In fact, Google’s Hummingbird update makes it imperative to have the content your customers are looking for, in the right form. Businesses now need to think like publishers and for banks, that’s a far cry from the traditional product listings marketers are accustomed to. Content needs to be informational (beyond product details), contextual, helpful and constantly updated. Some leading banks are adopting a pseudo-blog style that is more story telling and practical advice, but not as casual or frequent as an actual blog. The content for social media needs to advance your bank’s brand message while also being helpful and engaging.
28. Are you optimizing your videos properly so they show up prominently in search engine results?
Video content is like a magnet for traffic. If you are not utilizing video as a marketing tool, then 2014 is the year to get started. Before you post your videos make sure that you have optimized the file to be search engine friendly. Begin by using successful keywords in your file name and video title. Your description should be keyword rich (but not stuffed) and include a clear idea of what the video is about. Choose your category and tags carefully so they make sense and fit naturally. Finally don’t forget to set the visibility or privacy to public or your audience will be restricted.
29. Are you expanding your social media reach to include additional social networks, especially those indexed by Google and Bing?
Google, Bing and other search engines are indexing more social content than ever. If it has an individual URL the search engines will index it. That applies for a Tweet, Google+ post or Facebook page (not your status updates) because it is considered an individual website. Individual indexed pages do not increase your web site or blog rankings in search. However you can boost your page rankings by getting others to share your pages or blog posts using Twitter and Google+. Popular posts can help get a higher page ranking. Registering for Google Author will help others find the other content you have authored. It’s also worth noting that Google+ posts are crawled and indexed in search immediately in Google. Google will even index your Tumblr content if you set a custom URL in the Tumblr settings. Explore each social network you participate on to see if you can optimize the content for search.
30. Are you and your staff leaving comments on the blog posts you read?
Leave a comment on relevant blogs. This one is low hanging fruit. It’s the easiest tactic to implement and if you are not doing this already may I suggest you take the time to do so at the end of this article. If you read a blog post, take a moment at the end to write something. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering insight, just say something relevant (no blatant spam – you’ve seen those before). In the process of leaving a comment, you’ll be asked to input your URL. This is easiest back link you’ll ever get to your site or blog. It may not seem like much but over the course of time this practice can lead to thousands of links to you. On occasion, if it is interesting to the blog’s audience, you could also offer a useful idea or a link to a web page. And just like that you have a double backlink.