Many business owners have heard of search engine optimization (SEO)and know it can offer a variety of benefits. Some have even tried their hand on their own websites. However, there are a lot of misconceptions about SEO, especially as ranking factors have evolved over time and continue to change somewhat each year. Today, pulling off a successful SEO strategy involves much more than incorporating plenty of keywords in your website content.

Reaching new customers is necessary if you want to grow your business, but attracting new business is often a major undertaking. Relying on outbound marketing techniques (such as cold calling, networking, and other similar methods) can be time-consuming and incredibly costly. Rather than investing a great deal of time and money into a risky outbound marketing strategy, you may want to consider using inbound marketing to connect with more prospects.

Online reviews offer business owners insight into how their customers feel about their business, for better or for worse. However, reviews can have a greater impact on your business than simply providing feedback on the customer experience you are providing.

Your business’s reputation speaks volumes to potential customers. That’s great news if your business has a strong reputation, but can be a major problem if your reputation is less-than-stellar. Luckily, negative reviews don’t have to prevent your business from reaching its fullest potential. With the right reputation management strategy under your feet, you can put the bad reviews in the past and move your business forward.