In all industries, you will find some companies that are genuine, and some that may be in it for the sale and… that’s it. The Web Marketing industry is no different, unfortunately. There are 'The Bad Actors' who will take advantage of their non-techie customers. Alas, it really can be difficult to sniff out 'The Good Guys'.

Forward-thinking businesses had it easy a decade ago… If they chose to run an SEO campaign, the lack of competition when it came to Web Marketing made it easy to show up on Page One and get their phones ringing. 2020 presents a different story. An unprecedented amount of small businesses are running Search Engine Optimization campaigns, meaning you can’t just run an SEO campaign – you have to run an effective SEO campaign using the Web’s latest best practices.

If the New Year isn’t enough to spark interest in setting lofty goals for the months ahead, a change in the decade surely will. As we welcome 2020 and all of the potential opportunities that lie before us, it’s important to understand what the objectives for your business are and how you plan to achieve them.

Web Marketing is a common solution to many business problems. Customers don’t know what you offer? Build a good services menu. Need to build relevance in your target markets? Run an SEO campaign.

But, there’s another solution that Web Marketing can provide, and it’s for an increasingly common business problem... finding new employees.

Remember when just having a Website for your company was enough to drive more business? It’s a different story nowadays, considering most – if not all - of your competition has a presence on the Web. To drive repeat business, your site needs to be more than just visually appealing and easy to navigate; it needs to give potential customers the answers that they’re looking for...

Do you remember using the Internet 15-20 years ago? There were dial up modems, pages loading an inch at a time, and certainly no exchange of credit card information online. Nowadays, our mobile devices are able to recognize our faces!

When the playing ground has changed as much as it has, there’s no use in approaching the Web the same way you did years ago. This same logic should also apply to your company’s Web Marketing strategy...

While someone may have a gourmet kitchen with fancy equipment, that doesn’t make them a professional chef. The same can be said for business tools. Having premium tools means nothing if you aren’t using them effectively. This is often the case with how small companies choose to use their Social Media... an indispensable marketing tool that happens to touch on most aspects of our daily lives

There’s something to be said about the fact that “Google” is most people’s go-to word to describe searching for something online. “Google It” has become the new way to suggest looking something up. According to search experts, 88% of consumers who search for local businesses online either call or visit the business within 24 hours. It begs the question: If customers search for your services online, will they be able to find your business?

The journey to the number one ranking on Google differs across cities, towns and industries. But generally speaking, it’s safe to say that proper keyword placement, quick page load speed and quality content are the best bets for SEO growth. These strategies make it easy for Google to match searchers with results that are most relevant to them.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are a few strategies you need to avoid if your goal is to improve your ranking.

When building your Website, it’s important to accurately represent your company’s identity. Your Website is your #1 Marketing resource, after all. While branding and credibility are important, don’t forget the primary goal of your Website: to turn people searching for a service into customers. User experience is the key to a successful Website, which is why it needs to be revisited on a consistent basis.