The world may be on lockdown to contain the Coronavirus pandemic, however, the resilient world of digital marketing is rising to the occasion and working out ways to not only survive but also thrive during this confusion. The pandemic has given us all the time and opportunity to pause and look at things with a fresh perspective.
Not one to be deterred, the SEO and marketing field has come together to identify ways in which businesses can use this time of work-from-home policies and social distancing to enhance their existing campaigns and identify weaknesses and gaps in content.
Here are 7 illuminating ideas from Search Engine Journal on leveraging SEO & marketing strategies to help your business come out stronger at the end of the pandemic:
1. Mini content audit
When was the last time you checked your inventory of published content? If you’re like most other teams that get caught up with the everyday dynamic challenges of developing strategies, then we can safely presume that you haven’t taken a look at your webpages, videos, infographics, emails, blog posts, whitepapers or any other possible content you developed to market a business. The mini content audit will allow you to identify any duplicate content; remove unnatural links; find content which can be reused and repurposed; update content, links, CTAs; and much more. Who knows, it may even give you some crucial insights into your marketing strategies and smoothen your operations for the future?
2. Conduct webinars
If the lockdown has made you keep your impeccable suits in the closet, you can get put one on again and look professional for an enlightening webinar. With everyone’s online presence growing due to the quarantine, business owners or even digital media strategists, can reach out to their customer base and talk about their new products, services, or even reassure their clients of their commitment through this pandemic. Essentially, a webinar will allow the business to stay “visible” and reassure the stakeholders during these uncertain times.
Webinars can act as your outreach strategy, too. You can choose to rise to the occasion and take charge- disseminate reliable information about how the pandemic affects your industry, how the industry is coping, or even share tips and tricks on how to cope with the situation. You can include links to your website with each webinar.
3. Read & research
Whether it is catching up on the latest trends in SEO marketing, or doing a thorough SEO clean-up, digital marketers can play catch-up on a lot of things which will eventually benefit the businesses. Research into webinar and maybe even podcast ideas can come through during this brainstorming period.
4. Explore different sections on SERPs
Some businesses often don’t go beyond simply having a presence on a Search Engine Result Page
(SERP). Whether it is organic or paid search, there are many types of sections on SERP that you can explore and create strategies around during this time of introspection. There are innovative avenues such as featured snippets, position zero, video carousels, Google shopping results, Twitter, and once you plan it, even a knowledge graph. While you’re under quarantine, dedicate the time you save on
commuting by developing the business/brand’s Wikipedia page, get it verified on social media, thus
increasing the brand’s chances of appearing on various avenues of a Search Engine Result Page.
5. Record videos
The SEO space works great with videos, too. Use this quarantine time to create videos that target long-tail keywords and stand a chance of appearing on YouTube search listings. Embed the video along with a transcript on a blog post, make quote-worthy statements, and use video snippets from the video and use on social media.
Here’s an example- a fashion brand can do a video on ‘summer fashion trends under quarantine’. Do a video using keywords; transcribe it accurately, make a blog post around the topic and include the video, images, and transcript. This will improve your SEO rankings and keep you relevant.
6. Dig deeper into first-party data
Even with Chrome’s new policy which dissuades third-party cookies, you still have a lot of first-party data to analyse. Grab a cup of coffee and take a plunge into analysing data that you may not have considered before. You will gather insights into leads that didn’t pan out, leads that did, and much more when you don’t have ten people insisting that you review only a particular trend or data set.
7. Go online
If you own a brick-and-mortar, look up ways to get it online and continue catering to your consumers. Being online could also mean offering doorstep delivery services (assuming it’s legally allowed in your city). Update your Google Business Profile to let your consumers know the special operating hours, safety and hygiene practices that you adopt, and your offers.
At this crucial juncture where you can either react to the pandemic or respond to it, ensure that you base your business digital marketing strategy on wisdom and a long-term vision to come out stronger, and perhaps, even ahead of the curve.
