You May Be Blown Away by What Deep Research Shows You!

Have you ever dug deep ... I mean really, really deep ... and studied how people are searching for ideas, products or services like yours? You may be blown away by what you discover.

We’ve done some in-depth research recently for one of our clients and here’s what we found out:

Focus on the basics!

One of the things our research confirmed was that our client’s main product (let’s call them Titanium Widgets for anonimity ... TWs for short) happens to match the most-searched keyword in their category. That means they’re facing a LOT of competition, but it also suggests that they should throw their weight behind that keyword rather than trying to nibble around the edges with related but less often searched keywords. We’ll recommend:

1. Add a section to their website specifically focused on TWs, optimize it, and keep adding content that’s helpful to their visitors, month after month, without fail;
2. Post helpful content about TWs on their blog and link it back to their website’s TW section, month after month, without fail;
3. Post engaging and helpful content about TWs on their social media channels, frequently linking it back to their website’s TW section, month after month, without fail; and
4. Invest in pay-per-click ads (we’re loving Facebook’s ROMI these days) about TWs. Don’t be afraid to spend ... if you’re earning $1.25 for every $1 spent, it’s time to get out the big boy checkbook!

Go after the most important “other thing” that’s already working for you.

Our client also sells a specialty bracket for TWs. It’s made by a major manufacturer that also sells them, but our client sells them at the lowest price in the industry and still manages to make a profit.
It’s a significant portion of their overall business. Our research showed that people are searching for the TW brackets almost as often as the TWs themselves. We’ll recommend:

Invest BIG in pay-per-click ads offering specialty brackets at your fantastic prices.

This all sounds simple enough, right? But the truth is, most people don’t do it, and as a result they waste money on their digital marketing and they miss out on untold opportunity. That’s where we come in. We can help you with strategy. We can help you focus. And we can help you execute. All of that, taken together, is the key to online success.

So, What’s the Next Step?

Sign up today for our Black Belt SEO Tips & News! You’ll learn about the truth about online marketing and website design in Ann Arbor and how you can make it work for your business. Get started today!

The Birth of Michigan SEO Group

In 2016, it became clear that SEO Ann Arbor had outgrown its name.

Our client base has expanded well beyond the city of Ann Arbor to elsewhere in Michigan, the United States, and even the rest of the world!

Not only are our clients located in a variety of places — now, the customers who find our clients online are coming from all over the globe.

It's time to take the next step!

The Michigan SEO Group logo is meant to reflect both the history and the future of our company. The State of Michigan silhouette evokes our roots, where the majority of our clients still do business. The two colors pay homage to the University of Michigan, where both our founders attended college (as do many of the talented professionals we employ).

The globe points the way forward... where we expect to help our clientele improve customer relationships, thrive online, and achieve their dream of a successful growing business, starting today!

The internet breaks down barriers. Recognizing the potential of sharing your message beyond your back yard is the key to thriving online.

We absolutely love being part of a diverse, challenging business community that helps people succeed. If you have a business — new or long established — we'd love to chat about your goals and current efforts to succeed both on- and offline. We'll do what we can to suggest strategies and tactics that can improve your marketing presence, and just for taking the time to have that conversation, we'll give you a copy of our book, SEO and Beyond — How to Rocket Your Website to Page One of Google! written by Don and Nick and published by Master & Fool Press. We won't give you a hard sell. If our advice helps you, that's good for you and good for us!

We're Not for Everybody, but Then, We Don't Try to Be

Our work is not for everybody. We require a high level of client engagement and a deep commitment to success. If you're on the same page, let us know. We'll get you an analysis of your online presence along with a report of top-level recommendations to level-up your game. If all you'd like is a consultation or one-time SEO, we can do that. But if you truly want to get serious about thriving online, about dominating your niche and taking your business to the next level — or the one beyond that — ask about how we can become your online marketing team, usually for a fraction of what it would cost you to hire someone to sit in your office and try to do what we do day in and day out.

Success is such a fantastic bonding experience. We love hearing the stories from our clients when they land a new customer because of our work. The joy in their voices along with the satisfaction of knowing that we're helping their businesses grow is a great reward. Imagine what it would mean for you to be able to say what some of our other customers have said:

"Michigan SEO Group is an important part of my business!"

"Michigan SEO Group has assisted our Global Sales Team by increasing our number of customer inquiries, leads, and sales."

"Great people and the results are clear!"

"This is truly one of the best business decisions I have ever made to have them update our SEO."

If you'd like to learn more about how to get your online presence to grow, and how to get more awareness, leads and sales, contact us today!

SEO and the Art of Abundance

At Michigan SEO Group, we try to run our business based on principles. In fact, every week at our staff meeting we ask each of our team members to name a principle that we’ve talked about and how they’ve put it into play over the previous week. Two of the principles that we frequently talk about are “abundance” and “helping people out.”

To some, abundance means having more than you need, but to us it means giving more than is required. Principles are fine and dandy, but the real test is how they show up in the real world. One of the ways we try to be abundant is in the information we provide to our audience.  There’s a lot of great information on SEO and online marketing available on our web sites (www.michiganseogroup.com and www.seoannarbor.com).  When people contact us with questions, we try to provide them with a lot of good information, often free of charge.

There are a lot of different ways to help people out.  Sometimes a kind word or a smile is all you need to brighten someone’s day.  But typically the way that we help people is by advising them with some aspect of their website, social media, search engine results, or other forms of online marketing.  That’s our mission, and when we can combine the practice of being abundant with helping people out, that’s when we feel our best.

So how does this show up in the real world?  Here’s an example:

Someone contacted us through our website and had a question about why certain parts of their website weren’t being indexed in Google.  We responded with a few initial suggestions and later received a follow up email with some more information that helped narrow the problem down, along with a note that she would be happy to pay for some help.

The problem seemed technical in nature, so we had one of our SEO wizards take a deeper look to see if this was something we could help her with.  While looking into it, we found that her Wordpress based website was using a certain plug-in that was notorious for causing the problem she was experiencing.  We responded with the information we found, along with a few suggestions and told her to let us know if she needed any further assistance.

It turns out our suggestion worked, and she was able to resolve her problem with the information that we provided.  We didn’t charge her anything, but it made us feel good that we were able to help, and I’m confident that it made her feel good about us and what we do.  Maybe we’ll get some future business or a referral, but the important thing to us is we were able to help.

And while we are on the subject of principles, one more principle that we talk a lot about is that if you don’t A-S-K, you don’t G-E-T.  You can apply this principle to a wide range of things, but typically we talk about it in conjunction with online reviews.

Online reviews are a great way to get the word out about your business and the great work that you do, and a lot of good reviews can help boost your search engine rankings.  But for some reason, a lot of businesses don’t actively seek out online reviews.  Sure, if you do good work, someone will eventually leave you a review, but sometimes people just need to be reminded.  Don’t be shy – ask them to leave you a review.  You won’t believe what a difference it will make.

We went back to the lady who we helped for free and said “we were delighted we were able to help you out.  If you like what we did, please leave us an online review, as that would really help us out.”  We received an enthusiastic response and a great review was posted later that day.

Abundance is a wonderful thing!

Want to learn more about how to offer your customers the best experience possible? Our team is ready to answer any questions you might have. Contact us today to get started and find out how you can step up your game with regards to your online marketing!

Are You Taking Enough Risks When It Comes to Your Ad Spending?

Are you paying attention to the statistics? Search keeps evolving ... you fall behind at your own peril!

Here are three important numbers you should pay attention to:

1. About 1/3 of all searches on a mobile device are local searches.
2. Google and Facebook account for 64% of paid online ads.
3. The average cost of a Google search network ad is between $1 - $2, while the average cost of a Facebook ad is only .35 cents.
   

So what does that mean for you?

It means you should check to be sure that – if there is a local component to your business – that your online presence is strong. Check with your SEO team. Are your business listings, maps listings, and local event listings up to date and compelling?!

It means that if you spend money online ads, make sure a healthy portion is spent on Google and Facebook. Google can give you very valuable information about what keywords people are using to find you, and how those keywords turn into engagement on your website. Facebook can let you drill down in geography and in the interests of your potential visitors. Both are powerful tools when used the right ways!

How Do You Get Started?

Google Adwords and Facebook paid ads are both easy to start. You just visit their signup pages and follow the instructions. Their systems guide you through the process and prompt you to create your first ad or ads, select your target audience, and input payment information. Don't worry if you don't understand how to manage your campaign over the long term ... a lot of the learning process can be done by trial and error. Pay attention to what works and what doesn't. If it works, do more of it. If it doesn't work, try something else. Remember to keep most of your keywords and ads within the "sweet spot" of what you do very, very well, and what the world wants!

Want to learn more about Pay Per Click and successful website design? Call the experts in website design in the Ann Arbor area at 877-815-6974 to arrange a time to visit or get your questions answered. If you’re more comfortable with email, you can reach us at info@seoannarbor.com or just contact us here.