If you’ve let your SEO efforts go by the wayside during the craziness that is the COVID-19 pandemic, I get it, but know that you are missing out.
Now is not the time to ease off the gas in hopes that your existing SEO strategy will continue to work for you. A lot has changed in a short period of time, which is why it’s even more essential to be proactive with practicing SEO.
More specifically, here’s three reasons why:
Internet Usage Has Increased
According to Cloudflare, an internet performance and security company, internet traffic in the United States rose 18% from January 1, 2020 to March 22, 2020. With an increase in people working and schooling from home and more and more states issuing stay-at-home orders, this bump in online time is sure to hold for the foreseeable future.
Always keep in mind that one of the goals of SEO is to make sure you appear in search when people are looking. And guess what? People are indeed looking, with all the time in the world to do so–which brings me to my next point.
New Search Terms Are Trending
Cozy up and make friends with Google Trends because it is a wild time to be doing keyword research.
As we all try to adapt to our new hermit-like lifestyles, a wide range of services are being searched for more than ever, which means there’s a whole new assortment of keywords you should be considering.
Here’s just a few examples of keywords, specific to the automotive industry, that have search interest on the rise. If your business can, or does, provide any of these services, then these are some keywords you many want to be ranking for.
Keyword: “Service Pickup and Delivery”
Keyword: “How to Buy a Car Online”
Keyword: “At Home Test Drives”
Keyword: “Car Payment Relief”
Fresh Content is Crucial Right Now
If by some chance you already happen to have some content on your website pertaining to the rising keywords in your industry or field, congratulations! You’ve got a head start. However, that still may not be enough right now.
You see, for a certain set of search queries, freshness is a crucial ranking factor. Established back in 2011 as part of the Google Caffeine Update, this applies to search results where Query Deserves Freshness (QDF), meaning recent events or hot topics.
And I think we can all agree that anything even remotely pertaining to COVID-19 qualifies as both.
As we have very quickly found ourselves living in a whole new world, search engines and users alike are expecting up-to-date information that speaks to the current situation at hand. Which is why it’s imperative to create fresh content, or at the very least refresh existing content to better match a searcher’s intent.
Whichever strategy you employ, be sure to speak specifically about the steps your business has taken in regards to the health and safety of your employees and customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. To the best of your ability, answer potential questions customers may have like: Are you open, how do your services help people right now, what conveniences are you offering, how have business transactions changed, and what are the steps people need to take. Spell it all out. With so many uncertainties right now, offer people some peace of mind where you can.
While this is certainly a situation that none of us wanted to find ourselves in, the increased time spent online and the shifting daily habits of consumers means that there’s new opportunities for SEO to help bridge the gap between businesses and customers. However, you won’t be able to do that if you’re sitting on the SEO sidelines waiting for normalcy to return. Want more local SEO advice for the present pandemic? Here’s some tips for managing your Google My Business in a COVID-19 world.
If you need assistance in managing your SEO, learn more from PCG!