Enhancing your content

In a nutshell, your inbound campaign encompasses all the techniques you employ on the web to allow your firm to “get found.” Many of your prospects are already researching accounting services online. To put your firm in a position to attract those prospects naturally, you need to utilize search engine optimization (SEO) as part of your content. To get you started, I’m going to list some basic accounting marketing SEO tips for CPA firms:

• Write good content
  It’s that simple. Write your pages primarily for your prospects, not for Google or other search engines. Create a useful, information-rich site that attracts readers and has them returning for more. If you have a blog, update it often. Not only will you garner good SEO value, but  your content will drive visibility. You don’t have to sacrifice your message to attract visitors.
• Write new content and update the content often
  A stale blog sends the wrong message to prospects who visit your site.
• Use appropriate <title> elements and ALT attributes
  Search engines consider your title to be among the most important elements when associating your page with a particular topic. Use unique, keyword-rich titles for each page. 70 characters or less is ideal.

• Avoid duplicate content
  If your site has identical content to 20 other sites on the web, or even on your own website, your page has nothing to contribute in the eyes of the search engine. Your site will likely be penalized. Be especially wary of subscribing to canned “cookie cutter” content subscription services. Not only will your website SEO suffer, but you will actually pay for the privilege.
• Include all your important text in HTML format
  Flash files, images, photos, video, audio and plug-in content are inherently invisible to search engines. Video, on the other hand, can be a critical element of your SEO strategy if managed correctly.
• Don’t employ deceptive techniques
  Don’t try to trick the search engines by presenting different content to search engines than you display to your readers. Be careful when selecting an SEO vendor.
• Create a sitemap
  Your sitemap will make it easier to index your site. It’s a simple step, but absent a sitemap, it can take a search engine months to crawl your entire site.
• Run a crawl on your site to find problems and errors
  There are a number of tools available to help you, or you can contact a marketing firm for assistance. Having a good foundation that doesn’t cripple your site before you get started is essential.

This is only the tip of a very daunting iceberg that all accounting marketers must face, but using this list to shore up your CPA Firm’s SEO strategy will get you off to the right start. Beyond that, employing a search engine expert to do advanced optimization is an inexpensive option.