With almost half the year behind us, business owners and executives are looking for new ways to get a leg up on their online competitors. While some will turn to SEO gimmicks and massive budget increases, the fact of the matter is you can use simple fundamentals to get ahead of your closest rivals.

In fact, we’d like to share four simple tips to help you beat your online competitors in 2017.

 

1. Make Mobile a Big Part of Your Internet Strategy

Right now, smart phone and tablet users make up more than 50% of all web traffic. That proportion could grow to two-thirds in the next year or so. Despite that reality, a lot of marketers treat mobile friendly web design and mobile marketing as an afterthought.

If you make sure all of your messages are compatible with smaller screens, you’ll have a much easier time engaging buyers through the Internet and email. Plus, Google has made mobile compatibility a must; it’s a cornerstone of its search algorithm, so there’s no good reason to put off this kind of improvement to your website any longer.

 

2. Upgrade to Premium Web Hosting

Web hosting is another area of online marketing that business owners tend to overlook, probably because it seems so mundane. But with premium Web hosting, you get better security, faster page loading times, and access to automatic backup features. You can also add SSL secure connections to your website, which further improve your visibility on Google.

Probably the best thing about premium Web hosting is that it costs very little. Upgrading is a great way to start getting more from your website at a very low cost. And just so you know, we offer web hosting through GoingClear Solutions!

 

3. Develop a Content Plan

Most marketers plan to release a lot of content, but never do. The reason is simple: they have trouble finding time and don’t know what to write about (or produce video about) when they do get a chance. The answer to both of these problems is to develop a content plan ahead of time.

Know what types of content you want to produce, on which topics, and when you’re going to be releasing it. Once you have your strategy written down in an organized way, it will be much easier to stick to. Your creative team can help you map out the steps needed, so don’t let a lack of organization hold you back.

 

4. Study Your Web Analytics Once a Week

If you’re one of the millions of business owners who rarely ever looks into their web analytics, then you should know you’re probably missing out on a lot of money. After all, studying customer behavior is the best way to see what buyers want from your company and what kinds of messages they respond to.

Getting up close with your web analytics is easy once you’re in the habit and know what to look for. By spending 15 minutes on your relevant reports once a week, you can get a much better picture of what’s happening with your business, online and off.

Each of these strategies is simple, proven, and cost-effective. But they only work if you take them seriously and don’t give your competitors a chance to put them into action before you do. So, if your website is falling behind or if you’d like to get ahead of the game, contact GoingClear today to set up a free consultation and see how easy it is to put your website in a higher gear!