​Regardless of the industry you operate in, competition is on the rise. More than likely there are a large number of businesses online that provide products and services that are similar to yours. What many business owners fail to realize is that internet shoppers are very interested to know who they do business with.

By Alain Houle, Alco Web Design LLC

That’s exactly why they check the “About Us” page on your website. If you have just a smattering on information there and haven’t really cared to write anything substantial about your background etc, they may be more inclined to leave the website and take their business somewhere else.

Here are some pointers about what you can add to the “About Us” page:

• Don’t be afraid to speak about your background. If you started off small, mention it; this approach will help you focus on giving a human face to your business. The one way to set your business apart from the competition is to give it a personal touch and that is exactly what the “About Us” page does. 
• Don’t ramble. Speak with clarity and mention everything in brief and stay away from mentioning trivial things. It’s important to be truthful and maintain brevity.
• Strike the right balance between promoting yourself and just giving customers a peek into what your company is all about.
• Consider the use of photos, videos and relevant infographics. But don’t use it to such an extent that it takes away from the content on the page.
• Make mention of your company’s vision, mission statement and values. Again, it’s important not to make it too flowery or too lofty. 
• Include a Call To Action at the end. Here too, it’s important not to get too aggressive as that can sometimes be a put off. In addition to your contact details, add a subtle line that encourages readers to delve deeper into your website or contact you via the number or email listed there. A successful marketing strategy at this point would be to offer a sign-up discount or some other offer. 

As you can see, the “About Us” page on your website isn’t as inconsequential as it may look like. It’s a great way to connect with readers, tell them more about your company and encourage them to stay on your site. For more online marketing tips and for comprehensive web design solutions, spend some time on this blog or contact us, we will respond promptly.

​Most people that are looking for a product or service will end up conducting an online search. They will look at multiple sites that provide that product or service and zero in on one that matches their requirements. Not only do they look at the specifications and description of a product; they also want to ensure the site they are purchasing the product from is a credible company.

​By Alain Houle, Alco Web Design LLC

​They ascertain this by looking at what the position of the website is on the SERP (search engine results page). You will rarely find users moving onto the second page of the search results. So when there are so many biggies out there with established companies working on their marketing strategies, how can the small businesses keep up?​

Some strategies
The good news is that it’s possible even for small businesses to reach that coveted position on the SERP; they can do this by focusing on building website authority. Take a look at a few things that can be done easily:

• Carve a niche- This is very important; if you deal in multiple services or product niches, your marketing focus will also get diluted. The minute you pour more effort into just a few select keywords, your visibility on search engines will increase.
• Long-tail keyword strategy- These are nothing but longer phrases that incorporate your keywords. Statistics prove that long tail keywords help improve ranking- they may bring in less traffic than smaller and more keywords, but the traffic will be more specific to your business. 
• Local SEO- If you are a small business, its best to focus on Local SEO and target a local audience rather than aim for national or global visibility. The latter two won’t bring in business and won’t add to your authority either.
• Focus on inbound links- Use local specific keywords, post press releases and work on increasing the number of inbound links to your site. These links should also come from other high authority sites in your specific industry. 
• Reviews – The other way to jump in rankings is to focus on cultivating very positive reviews from different customers. That doesn’t mean you solicit reviews or compensate customers for posting favorable reviews. However you can encourage them with occasional call outs via social media sites, or you can encourage reviews using Yelp stickers on your social networking profile. 
• Authority content publisher- When you want to build credibility, trust, loyalty and awareness, the one way to do that is to frequently publish quality content. Build your on-site blog and distribute videos, podcasts, webinars and ebooks etc via various channels.

When you are consistent with your brand building strategy, you will automatically become a dependable authority in your field. For more information about how you can build authority for your business website, and for comprehensive web design solutions, contact Alco Web Design via email; we will respond promptly.