SEO is one of those concepts that seem far more complicated than they are actually are. For this reason, some businesses do not take full advantage of it. Running a nonprofit organization is hard work and SEO is essential if you want to be a success. Here are 9 simple tips that will help give your organization a much needed boost.
1. Create Great Content
In case you are unfamiliar with how SEO works, the idea is to appeal to your audience as well as search engine spiders. Many people forget this and they solely focus on trying to make content that will attract sites like Bing and Google. The main problem with this is the fact that these sites are not the one who will ultimate determine whether or not you do well. For this reason, the target audience should be your main focus.
The best way to keep people interested is to provide them with great quality content. Not only should it be on a topic that is relevant to them, but it should be free of grammar and spelling mistakes. If you are not adept at writing, you need to find someone who is since this matters greatly when it comes to boosting your ranking.
2. Perform Keyword Research
Most people are aware of the fact that using great keywords plays a huge role in the success of an SEO campaign. With that said, it is possible to use what you believe are winning keywords, yet you are not doing as well as you had hoped for. Instead of getting frazzled, do your research and look for stronger keywords. There are many sites out there who help you find the best keywords in your niche. This includes long tail keywords as well, which are essential to use wisely as well.
3. Add Image Descriptions
When search engine crawlers are on your site trying to determine how worthy it is, they are not able to see images, just text. This means that all of the eye-catching, relevant images you have so carefully selected will be invisible to them. The best way to get around this would be to add a written description to each image you post. Not only will this be helpful when it comes to search bots, but it will also be useful to those who have visual impairments.
4. Create A Google+ Account
While many people do not view this as an essential aspect of SEO, it most certainly is. Many people look for nonprofit organizations that are local. If you add a Google+ profile, there is a possibility that your business will show up to the right of search results when people are looking for a business that fits your cause and location. This is only possible for those who have created a Google+ account. It does not take very long to set it up, so there is no reason for you to hesitate.
5. Use Keywords In Page Titles
When Google scans through articles, it looks for words that give them clues on how and where your site should be ranked. By adding keywords to the title, they will be able to determine where it belongs right away. Make sure that the title makes sense, or it can do more harm than good. For instance, if you want to use the term “Chinese buffet,” you would be much better off using a title like “How To Find The Best Chinese Buffet In Your Area” as opposed to “Chinese Buffet Good Cheap Price Eat Food.”
The second example may make use of more than one relevant keyword, but it is nonsensical, so things like this should be avoided.
6. Do Not Overuse Keywords
This does not refer to the title alone. It actually pertains to the entire body of work. While it is wise to use keywords to boost your SEO ranking, using them far too much sometimes gives search engines the wrong idea. They will see this as a ploy to become more popular and they will do the opposite. Ideally, you should not use the same keyword more than 5-10 times and this depends on the word count of the content in question.
7. Use Social Media Regularly
These days, many people head to social media when they want to connect with businesses. If you do not have an account or you are not active, this is a bad thing since it does not allow people the opportunity to engage with you. Keep in mind that these sites have their own search algorithms as well which can rank you high or low depending on certain factors. In case you are pressed for time, it is possible to schedule posts that will be displayed whenever you wish.
8.Exchange Links
When links to your site are posted elsewhere, it leads to your site being viewed as a reference. This is helpful for all kinds of businesses, including nonprofits. If you want to boost your visibility, you should talk to those with relevant sites and suggest exchanging links. This is a great way to help your site without having to spend any money. Since you are doing the same for the other company, there will not need to be any other compensation offered.
9. Hire Help
If you are really struggling with this, you should hire someone to assist you. If this is not something that you believe you can afford, there may be resources available due to you running a nonprofit organization. also, talk to a few smaller, up-and-coming SEO agencies that may be willing to give you a discount because they need to practice.
There is no way that you will be a success if you are unable to rank high in search engine results. This is why nonprofit SEO needs to be a priority for you. If you are not familiar with this, do not worry. All of the information given here is more than enough to get you off on the right foot.
