Businesses and e-commerce websites need qualified traffic and visitors to their pages in order to boost sales and obtain recognition. One way to achieve this is through effective SEO marketing.
Search engine optimisation (SEO) is responsible for driving people, consumers and potential customers to your site through relevant visuals and content. But what if your SEO is not so effective in generating the visibility that your business needs? This is where user-generated content comes in.
User-generated content refers to any type of content, be it visual or informative, that is created by the user of an online platform. This content can be in form of video reviews, comments, likes, photos and even repost of links.
They say consumers make the best marketers, and the proof lies in the results where a survey showed that about 90% of consumers trust the reviews left by previous consumers, more than they trust suggestions from their own networks.
What does this mean? It means your business stands a chance of getting a boost if the right reviews are there for the right people to see.
The questions many people ask now remain:
- Why do potential consumers always follow the advice of previous consumers based on reviews?
- Why do marketing strategies that use UGC always work?
- How can one use a UGC to improve their SEO services?
In response to the above questions, most potential consumers tend to believe previous consumers because, as humans, we get influenced by others’ advice. Even if we have never experienced something, we have a natural tendency to believe it is correct based on what the other person says.
Research also shows that most people use search engines when looking for a product instead of visiting the home page at once. Why do they do this? They want to know what others say about that product before they make a purchase.
Also, it is easier to believe a person outside of an organisation than the person within. This means that consumers are more likely to believe their fellow consumer’s opinion about a product or service than believing the brand itself.
On that note, here are a few ways the UGC can influence your SEO.
Basic SEO Attributes
There are basic attributes that sites use for search engine optimisation. These attributes include keywords, backlinks, and internal links. Without knowing most of the time, consumers use these attributes in their reviews and recommendations. These reviews, when made public, can naturally boost your visibility behind the scenes.
When these links and keywords are associated with the product or service of the brand, they effortlessly strength the site’s SEO.
Social Media Optimisation (SMO)
Visual and informational platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter are very popular and useful when it comes to SEO marketing.
Through the help of these platforms, you can contribute to the growth and strength of your site by sharing previous customers reviews. This will help you gain more likes, repost, shares and comments. Even better, this method will lead to profile clicks and engagements on your website.
Longtail Keywords
There are keywords or phrases that businesses can use when competition online is high. These specific keywords are words that most people will not think to use in their business. They may look like regular keywords that are well known, however, they are more specific. For example, a site that sells makeup products can use keywords like “makeup for women” in their search engine results, however, this may prove to be too competitive, so user-generated content using more specific keywords like “makeup for young women” can be more helpful and targeted.
Wrapping Up
User-generated content is an effective online addition for your business. Get in touch with a local SEO specialist to discuss your options to develop SEO strategies for success.
Author Bio:
Doreen Brown from Let’s Get Visible has 9 plus years of experience working with small to medium businesses using ethical & evidence-based Digital Marketing and SEO strategies. She also has a podcast and online academy to further support businesses with their visibility needs.