The 3 Ways You Can Rank on Google

Once your business has a great website, the next step is marketing yourself so your target consumer can easily find your products or services. In our digital world, utilizing search engines for marketing is a highly effective way to get in front of the right people. Think about it, if you’re shopping for something and not sure where to start, where do you turn? According to the reported 3.5 million searches happening on Google per day, that is where many people are seeking out information and can be reached. So, if you have a business, how do you go about reaching people on Google? You may have heard of different SEO tactics or paid advertising you can do, but we are going to break down the 3 primary ways you can reach customers through Google – Organic, Paid, and Local.

Organic Search

Organic search refers to where your website ranks in the unpaid, natural rankings determined by Google’s search engine algorithms. This is where the practice of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comes in. SEO is the steps you can take to give your website a better organic ranking in Google. However, SEO is not a simple, one-size-fits-all solution. There are multiple factors that go into it, such as the user’s search query, links, domain authority, website content, and more.

Paid Search

Paid search is advertising that you can purchase by bidding on certain keywords and getting your website to appear at the top results. In Google, these ads are created through their Google Ads platform and are pay-per-click (PPC), which means you pay only when someone clicks on the ad through to your website. You decide when your website will appear by bidding on certain keywords. For example, as a digital agency, we could bid on keywords like “web design” or “digital marketing services” to get our ads to appear when someone searches for that on Google.

Local Search

Local search results refer to the search results that appear according to the user’s local area. They usually appear with a map listing, and include the address, phone number, and business hours along with the business’s name and website. Results in local search are achieved through claiming and optimizing your Google My Business listing. This gives you the ability to make sure your company’s information is correctly displayed in Google and gives you the ability to add additional information like FAQs and pricing, as well as pictures of your physical location.

So Which One Is Most Important?

With three different ways to rank in Google, which one should be the most important to you? The short answer is, all of them are important and can’t be ignored. Ideally, you should rank somewhere high up on the page for the most relevant keywords to your business for all three. But the one you put the most focus on will depend on your business goals and your marketing budget. If you don’t want to put the budget into paid advertising, focus on improving SEO so you can do well in organic search. But keep in mind, even if you’re not spending as much on ad money, the steps that go into SEO can take a lot of time. If you have a physical location that customers come to and you know they want to find your information quickly, focus on local search by optimizing your Google My Business listing.

For best results in SEO, Paid Search, or Local SEO marketing services, work with a digital agency of experts that knows the best practices for all three. Contact Atilus today for more information about our digital marketing services to grow your business online.