It is easy for real people to sniff out when someone is being disingenuous. Whether it’s the lack of inflection in their laugh, the way their story doesn’t match up with the last, or a lack of eye contact, people catch it. They might not be able to pinpoint what it is, but they know.
Photo courtesy of Kelsie Ervin.
It hasn‘t always been that easy for search engines to mimic these human realizations. Brands could easily fool Google into thinking that their company was an authority on a subject. There was once a time where a businesses could (and WOULD) stuff keywords into otherwise thin content, use link exchanging with another business, or various other old SEO tactics to increase ranking on a search engine. They could do this and look important to Google without actually being relevant.
GOOGLE REWARDS AUTHENTICITY
Fortunately for business owners who don’t use these inauthentic means of reaching a bigger audience, Google has been working day after day to weed out content that is irrelevant, unnecessary, thin, and lacking in value in the first pages of keyword searches. Each subsequent update has made it easier for Google to sniff out tricks and tactics that are gaming the system and has given honest brands who disseminate helpful information a better chance at ranking on the first page.
Though there’s always been importance in building an authentic brand, the Hummingbird Google update within this past year was pivotal. It’s more important than ever to be authentic, and our role is to help companies navigate this road, regardless of its ever-changing algorithms. We know that great content and solid branding will always be the way to please keyword search.
THE MISSING PIECE
Our clients are masters in their craft—whether it be business coaching, cloud solutions providers, or hockey—and they’ve found a business model that suits that expertise and brings them profit and they know their customers. Regardless, it’s difficult for a business owner to navigate their web presence, know where to begin, what to prioritize, what they should and should not do, if they don’t have prior knowledge and experience with online marketing. Keeping up with search engines and their ever-changing algorithms is a difficult task that becomes more daunting than a small business owner would like keep up with. That’s where we come in.
Most business owners don’t just want to be told what they should do about their web presence. They need a lot of advice and guidance in the process. We’ve got three different aspects of how we help our clients, and we refer to ourselves as being either a lamp, a lifeboat, or a ladder.
HOW MARKETING REFRESH HELPS NAVIGATE
As a lamp, we shed light upon a new path for our clients and guide them in how to be authentic and educate people by sharing information.
Sometimes the client has already gone down a path that is disingenuous because they have put some tactics in place that search engines frowns upon. In this case, we have to be their lifeboat and get them ashore.
Other clients just need to be elevated- be it from nothing or to the next level. Whether they are a startup starting from scratch, need a challenge, want expand their business or new territories, we’ll be the ladder they need to reach their goals online.
