It’s less flashy than social media posts, but website optimization pays the most dividends. Statistics show search engines drive 300% more traffic to websites than social media. And 68% of web searches begin with search engines, not social media feeds.
Becoming an expert at how to optimize content for SEO would help big time, wouldn’t it? That takes time that many brands, small or startup, can’t afford to take. So here are five tips for optimizing your outdoor lifestyle website:
1. Create engaging content
Flat copy in huge, chunky paragraphs isn’t what anyone searches for online. Your blogs, guidebooks, infographics, and videos should engage and delight visitors. The time a potential customer spends consuming content on your site sends all the right signals to Google.
Higher value to search engines leads to higher page rank on search engine results pages (SERPs). You’re seen as an authority on a subject — who provides relevant content that searchers want.
Adding visuals to content is especially helpful for outdoor brands. Outdoor lifestyles are visual, with video, photos, and product images to choose from. An image every 200 to 300 words is ideal to maintain engagement in most long-form writing.
2. Optimize meta tags
A sign of an optimized SEO environment on a site is the presence of meta tags in your content skeleton. They show the structure of your web content to search engines and explain what the copy is about. The three main ones are:
TITLE TAGS
They have the greatest influence, and they appear in two places. They’re first in search results as the top hyperlink, and second in some browser tabs. Write title tags as close to 70 characters without going over, with the top keywords as far left as possible.
META DESCRIPTIONS
They are the content snippets in search results below your post’s title tag. They don’t have SEO value, but they are key to an SEO factor: click-through rates. Aim to write engaging descriptions for web pages and posts of 300 characters or less.
HEADER TAGS
H1, H2, and other tags organize your content and are the only tags visitors see on your site. There are no character limits, but they need to be descriptive! Header tags should contain your top keywords and be easy to read.
3. Use the right keywords
Identify your optimized keywords for SEO to attract your target audience. If they represent your niche well, they’ll draw traffic to your site. Don’t choose high-volume keywords that don’t fit your brand, though.
Instead, focus on keywords that represent your solutions — and build your authority. Your specialties distinguish you from your competition and attract the right consumers.
Think like a consumer. Work backward to deconstruct it, by asking “if I wanted to find this online, what would I type into a search engine?” Use Google Ads, Semrush, or Raventools for research.
4. Competitor research
Read what other brands in your niche have to say. By looking at where they use keywords in tags and elsewhere, you can see their strategy. Use the same keywords to establish a foothold in that search.
Look for gaps in your competitors’ offerings. If you have products or services they don’t, that could power a keyword campaign.
Do they offer a product, popular hunting vests, for example, but not for women? If you do, incorporate keywords that could lead search engines to your content.
5. Boost local SEO
To enhance future success in a local market, give attention to your local SEO. One survey revealed that 97% of consumers use search engines for local businesses. Optimizing local terms, such as city, region, and state, can capture specific audiences.
Creating local content, such as blogs and guideposts specific to an area, can help. Nicknames for regions, such as the Inland Empire, Piedmont, Upper Peninsula, etc., are effective.
Make it easy for consumers to find you. Check that your NAP (name, address, and phone number) is accurate and consistent everywhere.
As you review your options, consider TBA Outdoors
You could merge all your site SEO efforts into a single partnership. TBA Outdoors features a team of web-savvy, outdoors-loving professionals who know top marketing. As a strategic partner, TBA Outdoors can deliver healthy ROI for our clients.
TBA Outdoors is in it for the long haul, just like you. Let’s talk about how we can work together to improve your outdoor lifestyle website.
