Frustrated with low search results? Boosting your rankings doesn’t have to eat up the day. Read on for ten quick ways to boost your brand’s SEO—without breaking the bank.

1. Boost Social Sharing—Social media shares boost your brand awareness and convey credibility. Since Google searches Facebook and Twitter alongside ordinary websites, social media shares are fair game when it comes search engine results. Enhance your blog with ‘share’ buttons, or augment your posts with compelling visuals and graphics, then invite your users to share. 
2. Embrace the Heading—Headings and subheadings help Google to take stock of your content. Embedding keywords into your headings, then into your content, signals to Google that you’re a heavy-hitter, and your content is worthwhile. 
3. Increase Value—When it comes to SEO content, you’re not just looking to mention the same word over and over again. Remember—fresh, relevant, creative content will set you apart, but generic, repetitive writing will only lower your rankings—and dissuade your net-savvy customer base. 
4. Embed Alt-text into your Imagery—By adding keyword-rich alt-text, you’re making your content accessible to the blind and visually impaired. Plus, alt-text won’t hurt your search engine rankings one bit, since text in your images helps Google to read and sort them. Keep alt-text descriptive, relevant, and concise – never spammy. 
5. Utilize Links—Google loves links, so use them liberally – as long as you’re linking to sites with “domain authority.” These “big guns” in the Internet realm have established themselves as credible resources for information, so links to those sites tell Google you’re a legitimate, valuable brand in your own right. 
6.  Get Blogging—Fresh, regularly updated content is one of the best ways to boost your rankings and keep them high. Consider implementing a blog to discuss industry trends, hot tips, or bits of news. Blogs don’t have to eat up all your time – but if you commit to hosting one, be sure to publish with some consistency – daily, weekly, or monthly, perhaps. An abandoned blog won’t do your credibility – or your SEO rankings – much good. 
7. Get a Handle on Keywords—Early on, take stock of any potential confusion inherent in your keyword choices. Specificity could make the difference between high and low rankings, so take the time to carefully establish which words you’ll be using – and which ones you’re better off avoiding. 
8. Create Meta Descriptions—To amp up SEO opportunities, harness the meta description—a tagline that follows your title or heading. Meta descriptions help search engines to quickly establish what your content’s all about while simultaneously boosting the ever-important “quality” rating. 
9.  Enhance Keywords with URLS—Since Google tracks your URLs along with the rest of your content, it’s worth embedding relevant keywords within your webpage’s addresses. Omit cluttery words, like ‘and’ and ‘so,’ plus short, common words like ‘stop’ and ‘go.’ “High-value” words – those that relate clearly to your field or topic – will keep your brand ranked high. 
10. Optimize Titles—Never overlook the power of the title, which helps to guide both your users and the search engines crawling the web. Within each title tag, aim to embed “long tail” keywords – relevant, specific keyword phrases that relate to your content’s topic. Fifty words is an optimal length.

Happy content marketing, entrepreneurs! 

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