What to Expect in the First 90 Days of SEO

Starting an SEO strategy can feel a lot like planting a garden. You stare at the seeds you’ve planted and wonder, “Is this even working? Where is my fruit!?”

A lot of the work happens below the surface before anything blossoms. After some time, results tend to follow. 

Weeks 1-2: The Groundwork

Early on, the focus is on technical fixes, keyword research, and optimizing your website, Google Business Profile, and socials. These changes don't produce visible ranking shifts yet, but they lay a solid foundation for everything to build on. 

Weeks 3–6: Search Engines Start Crawling 

In this stage, new content is published, and existing pages are optimized, leading search engines to crawl more frequently. Small movements in rankings, especially for lower-competition terms, can start to appear.

Weeks 7–12: Early Signals Build

This time is marked by consistent publishing, reviewed activity, and profile updates that send a clear signal that a business is active and worth trusting. 

Why Do Some Businesses See Results Faster Than Others?

A business with pre-existing content and reviews will often see movement sooner than one starting from scratch. 

Your local competition can make a difference as well. Businesses pursuing SEO in a competitive category might not see results for a few months, compared to those in a niche market.

The Biggest Mistake in the First 90 Days

Many businesses stop investing in SEO too soon because they don’t see immediate results. 

Cutting efforts right as search engines start recognizing consistency costs businesses the trust signals that search engines look for when ranking. 

Curious Where Your Timeline Stands?

Every business starts from a different point, which means every timeline looks different. If you're ready for an assessment of what to expect, our team can help you understand what's realistic and how to plan to get the best results. 

We provide SEO in Brighton, Ann Arbor, Detroit, surrounding Southeast Michigan areas, and beyond. Contact us today for a free website evaluation.

Read more on how long SEO takes to show results in our latest article. 

Beyond the Traditional Search Engine

Trying to find tips on how to make your company visible? 

Online users are increasingly leaning towards AI search engines like ChatGPT or Gemini, in addition to traditional search engines like Google. Does this put SEO on the back burner? No way. With AI in the picture, this makes the search game more important than ever. 

Real-Time Reach: the AI Search

SEO extends into the AI ecosystem. This means when it is used as a framework for digital marketing, your business can be more discoverable, but also understood by AI when prospective clients look for you. When you have an infrastructure that not only has the tools, but also is built for the support of your customers, you will be more visible to customers through AI search, as well.  

Bridging the Gap: Sales and Marketing

If you partner with SEO experts at an Internet marketing company in Ann Arbor, Michigan, you can boost your visibility, meet customer demand, and increase sales!

Here’s are specific ways that strong SEO can help your brand: 

Establishes consistency through content to build trust and credibility

Uses targeted strategies to turn visitors into customers

Tracks traffic, engagement, and ROI to refine your approach over time

With the right SEO strategy in place, your brand doesn’t just get found — it grows stronger, smarter, and more sustainable with every click.

Want to leverage your marketing? 

Get in touch with our team today and find out how we turn creativity and strategy into real results for your business. We can craft a custom marketing plan that fits your goals and drives lasting growth.

Are Your Keywords Helping or Hindering Your SEO?

 

Are you feeling frustrated that about your website’s Google rankings?

Have you been struggling to figure out how to properly use keywords in your content?

Keeping pace with Google’s ever-changing algorithms amid a surge of technological advancements is a challenging task. As Google refines its criteria, many established website owners are witnessing fluctuations in their traffic. While this can be disheartening, it’s important to recognize that improvements can be made by consistently evaluating your content and adapting to Google’s evolving standards.

If you’re currently experiencing a drop in traffic, know that you’re not alone. Here are some factors to consider when evaluating the effectiveness of your keywords:

Are You Consistently Monitoring Your Metrics?

When experiencing a ranking decline, it’s important to regularly monitor your website metrics using programs like Google Console and Google Analytics. These tools help identify any potential issues and changes in traffic and performance. If your keywords aren’t performing well, maybe it’s time to incorporate new ones, or shift focus to optimization.

Are Your Keywords Optimized Effectively?

Do your keywords appear in your titles and headings? Are they sprinkled throughout your content? It’s vital to find the right balance of optimizing your keywords in a natural way so they gain enough traction, yet avoid appearing like a sales pitch.

If it appears that your keywords are in fact still ranking high and being optimized effectively, your keywords and SEO may not be the problem. It could be Google’s changing criteria that is deeming other content to be more useful at the present time.

Boost Your Content with an Ann Arbor SEO Company

If you’re seeking a competitive edge that will aid in improving your website’s standing on Google, consider seeking professional guidance and research the services of Ann Arbor SEO Companies.

Michigan SEO Group offers online marketing in Ann Arbor, MI and the surrounding communities. We perform search engine optimization, write digital content, and manage social media campaigns. Contact us today so we can begin creating a plan of attack for your SEO!

How to Evaluate Your Content When SEO Ranking Declines

Are you stumped as to why your content isn’t ranking highly on Google?

Would you like to learn how to refresh your content?

Keeping pace with Google’s ever-changing algorithms amid a surge of technological advancements is a challenging task. As Google refines its criteria, many established website owners are witnessing fluctuations in their traffic. While this can be disheartening, it’s important to recognize that improvements can be made by consistently evaluating your content and adapting to Google’s evolving standards. 

If you’re currently experiencing a drop in traffic, know that you’re not alone. Here are some factors to consider when evaluating the quality of your content: 

Is Your Content Original, Relevant, and Valuable?

When creating content, emphasize originality and relevance to stand out in the digital crowded landscape. Move beyond generic product listings and service descriptions and instead put focus on sharing experiences. 

Center your content around user experiences by writing about how consumers will feel when using your product or service, and shift to highlighting customer reviews and testimonials. This will humanize your content which is great for SEO and makes your material more appealing and engaging to your target audience. 

Boost Your Content with an Ann Arbor SEO Company 

If you’re seeking a competitive edge that will aid in improving your website’s standing on Google, consider seeking professional guidance and research the services of Ann Arbor SEO Companies. 

Michigan SEO Group offers online marketing in Ann Arbor, MI and the surrounding communities. We perform search engine optimization, write digital content, and manage social media campaigns. Contact us today so we can begin creating a plan of attack for your SEO! 

Hire a Marketing Agency to Run Your YouTube Ads

Looking for a marketing agency that can manage YouTube ads for you?

It’s possible for you to run YouTube ads on your own, but hiring a marketing agency will get you the most bang for your buck. 

YouTube ads are directly connected to Google Ads, so if you aren’t familiar with Google Ads, they can be intimidating. It can also be overwhelming to check on your ads daily and continuously work to optimize them when you’re already busy running your business. It’s a full-time job to market your business, and advertising can easily double your workload. 

Read more about running YouTube ads.

Ask SEO Companies in Ann Arbor, Michigan About Ads

Did you know that Michigan SEO Group specializes in Google Ads and YouTube ads?

Our Internet Marketing Directors work with you directly to manage ads that are in your budget, so you can focus on doing what your business does best. Michigan SEO Group is proud to be one of the best SEO Companies in Ann Arbor, Michigan, but don’t take it from us! Take a look at our Google reviews. 

To ask about our services, call (877) 815-6974 or submit a contact form here.

YouTube Ads for Your Small Business

Does your business run YouTube ads?

YouTube is second only to Google as the most popular search engine. If you’re not taking advantage of YouTube ads, you could be missing out on opportunities for your business!

YouTube ads are small-business friendly because they aren’t expensive, and you don’t need a whole production team to make them. There are several options, including skippable in-stream ads, non-skippable in-stream ads, bumper ads, in-feed ads, and more. This gives you the freedom to choose which ad style best suits your business’s style and budget. You can learn more about the different types of YouTube ads here.

Read more about running YouTube ads.

Work with SEO Companies in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Did you know that Michigan SEO Group specializes in Google Ads and YouTube ads?

Our Internet Marketing Directors work with you directly to manage ads that are in your budget, so you can focus on doing what your business does best. Michigan SEO Group is proud to be one of the best SEO Companies in Ann Arbor, Michigan, but don’t take it from us! Take a look at our Google reviews. 

To ask
about our services, call (877) 815-6974 or submit a contact form here.

SEO Tactics to Try in 2022

Is your website not getting enough engagement?

Want to gain an edge on your competitors?

Search Engine Optimization is vital for businesses trying to attract new customers to their websites. Good SEO will put your site in front of more consumers and can drastically improve the number of leads you receive. The following trends are what we see dominating SEO in 2022. Understanding these and acting accordingly may prove to be very beneficial for your business:

• Long-form content – written content over 2,000 words gets more visibility than shorter content

• Mobile-friendliness – don’t deter customers with a poorly designed mobile site

• Video – a fresh way to reach consumers
  

Best SEO Techniques Michigan

Proper SEO is a marathon – not a sprint. It takes time to do correctly and to see lasting results. Good SEO starts with the website – if it’s not built correctly, if the linking structure is off, if plugins break and aren’t maintained, your website’s Google search rankings can be downgraded and you may not even know it! If you’re tired of being on Page 2 – we can help get you to Page 1. With our website design team and internet marketing experts, we’ll create and execute a plan designed to improve your business’ online presence and move you up in search results. Contact us today for the Best SEO in Ann Arbor!

Taking the Best Photos for Instagram

If you have your business on Instagram, your posts have to look good! Check out these quick and easy tips for professional-looking Instagram photos:

-Use contrast! Contrasting colors create a strong impression.

-Use negative space. Remember that the space around the subject of your photo is often as important as the subject itself! Using negative space properly can make an otherwise simple image pop!

-Keep it clean and focus on one object. Keep in mind how people view Instagram: on mobile devices. The screen is tiny, and your post shouldn’t be cluttered with detail.

-Follow the rule of thirds. Imagine your picture is a 3 x 3 grid. Try to place objects of interest at the intersections of that grid. It might be unintuitive, but placing something right in the middle doesn’t quite catch the eye like these “power points” do.

Find out more about how social media can grow your Michigan business!

Dark Mode and Your SEO

Does Dark Mode Affect Your SEO Ranking? - Not yet, but it could hurt your bounce rate!

Mueller coyly mentioned that Dark Mode isn’t a ranking factor but jokingly said that if it becomes popular – it might be:

“I don’t think dark mode would be a ranking factor. So, maybe, at some point in the future if dark mode is really, really popular then maybe we would need to highlight dark mode sites in search when people have their phone set to dark mode. But I don’t know if that would actually happen, or if it will really go that far.”

Click Here to learn more about Dark Mode and SEO 



Michigan SEO Group
Best SEO Practices for Ann Arbor, MI Businesses

Can't Get Approval For Your Google Ads? Try SEO!

Google Ads are cracking down on content for certain industries. If your business has been affected by Google's new rules - best SEO techniques can fill that gap! 

What Google is effectively doing is self-regulating. Since there are no laws on the books to prevent predatory loan providers or shady medication dispensaries, Google is protecting its brand. We love Google Ads. For a number of our clients, it can be a massive help to get some movement for a client while our SEO team moves them up the ranks organically.

A strong SEO effort could be a cost and time-effective solution.

CLICK HERE to learn more 

Michigan SEO Group
Best SEO Techniques for Ann Arbor, MI Area Businesses

Use Your Reviews for Smart Social Media Management

It’s one thing to be doing a good job and satisfying customers – it’s another thing to be getting positive reviews. A smart strategy in social media management for Michigan businesses is to leverage your positive reviews. Facebook, GoogleMyBusiness – if people are giving you a good review on those platforms, use them in your social media management plan! Pop It into a Tweet, find a good picture and add it to your Pinterest profile – the more people see positive reviews, the more likely they’re going to purchase your products or services.

CLICKHERE to learn how to leverage positive reviews in your social media management plan!  

Are You an A Lister?

What are the “A-lists”? They’re those annoying services like Yelp!, Zillow, Angie’s List, homeadvisor.com, and so many others that fill up the top slots on your search results when you just want a local company to help you out!

What are the “A-listers?” They’re those wonderful businesses who recognize that some part of their business comes from referrals from the A-lists. They realize that part of a robust online presence is making sure you’re included on the A-lists, and that your listings are as current and correct as possible!

Organic is Good, Ubiquitous is Better!

We work very, very hard to get our clients on page one of Google search results for their target keywords. When our clients are engaged in the process and help us create useful, compelling content, they always get there. And every single one of those clients tell us that they’ve seen increases in their business ... a little, a lot, or a massive, overwhelming increase. That is a truly wonderful phone call to have!

But it’s critical to understand which listing services (1) show up near the top of page one for your target keywords; and (2) provide good referral opportunities for potential customers looking for businesses like yours.

Go Ahead, Take a Look!

Take a quick look at Google results for your market. If you offer custom hand-made jewelry, type that in and see what shows up. If you’re a great plumber, type in something like “plumber near me” and see which A-lists show up. Whatever your business, you should know who occupies that precious territory on the top half of page one.

You should also reflect on what kinds of referrals you get. Are you part of an organization that gives you specific email or text referrals? We’ve worked with therapists who get a lot of their referrals from Psychology Today online. We’ve worked with trades people who get referrals from Angie’s List. We’ve worked with disaster restoration companies that get referrals not just from their corporate franchise website, but also from specific restoration sites that have found a way to show up high in Google results.

If you find a few A-lists that fulfill both criteria listed above, make sure you sign up with them right away! That will help make sure people can find you if they first click on the A-list player on the top half of a Google search results page. But don't stop there. In addition to making sure you're an A-lister, be sure your site is optimized for search results, make sure your blog is helpful and healthy, your social media is active and engaging, and your business listings are all up to date.

Want the Job Done Right the First Time? Contact the Best SEO Company in Ann Arbor!

Want to learn more about internet marketing and how to optimize your website using SEO? Call the best SEO Company in Ann Arbor at 877-815-6974 to arrange a time to visit or get your questions answered by our experts! If you’re more comfortable with email, you can reach us at info@seoannarbor.com or just contact us.

You can even sign up for our Black Belt SEO Tips & News! We report on the latest in SEO news and research findings.

SEO and Giving Back!

We’ve talked about this before, but at Network Services Group (NSG) and Michigan SEO Group (MSG) we try to run our business based on principles.  One of the most powerful principles that we’ve found is that consistent effort performed over the long term produces amazing results.  Consistency pays dividends.

Nick Sunio, NuStepping to end Alzheimer's on The Longest Day.

This is especially true for the work we do for our customers, but it’s also true in many other areas, and with life in general.  Want to lose weight?  We all know what we need to do – eat healthy and exercise.  That’s not the hard part.  What’s hard is doing it consistently.

One thing that we’d like to do more of is giving back.  We feel blessed to be able to help our clients doing work that we love, but we also love supporting other worthy causes and doing our little part to make the world a better place.  Giving back.


In the past we’ve supported many worthy causes.  We’ve participated in the ALS ice water challenge.  The 22 push-up challenge to support veterans who suffer from PTSD.  Habitat for Humanity.  We’ve also worked with, and made donations to other non-profit organizations such as the Brain Injury Association of Michigan, Partners in Personal Assistance, and the Humane Society of Livingston County.

Our Internet Marketing Directors working on Habitat for Humanity.

We will continue to participate in, and make donations to support charitable causes that are near and dear to our hearts.  While we can’t say yes to everything, we do want to step up and make giving less of something we do on an ad-hoc basis, and more of something we do on a regular basis.

To that end, and applying the principle of consistency pays dividends, we are going to be making regular monthly donations to worthwhile causes.  We are going to start off by giving $200 per month to causes that we hold near and dear to our hearts.  We realize that this isn’t a huge amount of money, but it’s a start.  It’s something we feel we can do every month on a consistent basis, and we can always look for additional opportunities to donate when we have the additional time and resources to do so.

We’ll be picking causes that our principles hold near and dear.  We’ll also ask for input from our team members, so we can support causes that they love.  It’s just one more reason for them to feel good about the work they do here. 

Who knows?  Maybe we’ll get some publicity.  Maybe some of the people we know will see us doing our bit, and it will encourage them to do theirs.  But more importantly, we want to feel good about supporting these causes, and hopefully our humble donations can help make a difference.

A wise man once said that making a difference in the world means that other people need to know what you did.  That’s why we’re putting this out there.  We’re going to do it.  We’re going to feel good about it.  We hope that you will join us.

Why It’s Important to Communicate with Your Best Customers!

How do I know what to write about in my blog?
 
How do I communicate with the right people ... those who are great to do business with?
 
I can create a plan for my online content, but how do I frame the content for best results?

Even among our clients who are most engaged in creating online content, some say: “I know the topics I should write about, but I’m not sure exactly what to say about them.” It's true that your topics should relate to your target customers’ key pains and problems. If you focus on those and write from their points of view instead of your own (don’t “we” all over yourself), you’ll be ahead of most of the other businesses out there who create their own content. Most are stuck in the world of “we have great stuff and you should buy it!”

But merely being ahead of the mediocre isn’t our goal and it shouldn’t be yours. If you’re going to put the effort into marketing your business online, you can work a bit smarter by:

1. Getting more engagement from prospective customers
2. Getting those customers primed to do business the way you want them to

A bit of extra work at the start can pay huge dividends if you understand this and get it into the majority of your online content.

For more in depth news on how to stay on top, sign up today for our Black Belt SEO Tips & News! You’ll learn about the truth about how to stay on top and website design in Ann Arbor.

Want to learn more about internet marketing and successful website design? Call our experts 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.

How to Attract the Right Kinds of Customers

We all know how important customer service is. There are others who sell what we sell, others who make what we make, others who provide similar services to those we provide. So almost every business is forced to compete. Some compete on price, some on quality, some on convenience, some on speed, but almost no matter which of these aspects you focus on, you still need to provide great customer service or risk two big negatives: (1) loss of prospects and existing customers; and (2) reputation losses. In today’s world of social media and global connectedness, reputation losses can be swift and brutal.

If you take the time to identify not only what kinds of customers are likely to buy what you sell, but also what kind of customers you really want to do business with and what the relationship will look like over time, then make sure those aspects are clear in your marketing, you can not only build your business, but “tune” what kinds of people you do business with and their expectations.

How Do You Do This You May Ask?

Here are some real action items for your marketing team to work on, including:
So what are some things you can do to attract the right kinds of customers for the long term?

1. Tell them what to expect. “Our process includes 7 critical steps each month that require your input.”
2. Tell them success stories. “Hey, the customers we serve best look like this ...”

Want to find out the next three action items? Learn more here.

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!

Challenge: Talk About Your Benefits, Not Features.

If you’re up to the challenge, we invite you to try a trick for online marketing and website design that many don’t know about: Talk about benefits, not features!

What’s the difference? We thought you’d never ask!

Features are characteristics of what you offer. Benefits are what the customers gets from those characteristics. For some reason, it’s a lot harder for most of us to think of benefits, so you can start by making a list of features, then determine the benefit the customer will get from them. Here are some examples:
Feature - Highly trained, professional crew       
Benefit - You don’t have to worry about a mess in your home!

Feature – Virtually perfect parts retention on our conveyors       
Benefit – No down time chasing stray parts! Few parts damaged!

Feature – Ten years’ experience in the digital marketing business       
Benefit – No time or money wasted on marketing that doesn’t work!

Tell your customers how they’ll benefit so they feel an emotional connection to what you can deliver. Later, if they care, you can tell them about how you do it, and what you do that’s special or different.

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!

How Will the New Adwords Format Affect Engagement?

Here is the real deal from your friendly black belt SEO experts at Michigan SEO Group:

How will this affect engagement?

Higher Click Through Rate! In theory, more information will allow you to tailor your ads to better appeal to the right customers, giving you a higher click through rate.

Better engagement! Those visitors who read your longer ads should have a better idea of what you offer. That means more of them should stay longer, leading to great awareness, leads, and sale. Keep in mind, however, there will always be a percentage of web visitors who click without reading carefully. They’ll click away quickly ... so you aren’t ever likely to see a zero bounce rate.

To learn more about how the new Adwords format will affect you, sign up for our Black Belt SEO Tips & News!