[vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern”][vc_column width=”1/6″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_single_image image=”31286″ img_size=”large” qode_css_animation=””][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Business To Business (B2B) websites are often the forgotten child of the Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) world. Look up any discussion or tutorial, and you will find that most websites in discussion are primarily Business To Consumer (B2C).
In some aspects, this makes sense since many B2B companies have in the past relied on offline or private methods of acquiring new businesses. Be it through recommendations, pitching, invitations-to-quote or industry networks. Yet, with an increased reliance on search engines amongst people in organizations, SEO has now come to the forefront. This shift in search behaviour has further escalated following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. As such, if your brand’s website is not strongly visible within your industry, then you are certainly losing ground to the competition.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
The Challenge of SEO for B2B Websites
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]A question then arises for marketers in B2B companies: “can I perform SEO for my website?”. Oftentimes, B2B websites are placed at an inherent disadvantage in SEO compared to their B2C counterparts. For starters, B2C websites typically receive more traffic given their larger audience base. Additionally, if the website has functions such as reviews or the brand has an active social media presence, then user interaction is certainly to be higher here. Having stated the challenge with B2B SEO, we can now start to cover how you can overcome them.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
SEO for B2B Websites
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Start with implementing standard SEO practices
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Before we go into B2B-specific practices for SEO, it is worth mentioning that standard SEO practices still apply here. Be it keyword mapping and placement, crafting meta tags, image optimization or quality link building, these SEO techniques still apply. As such, if you are currently auditing your B2B website, be sure not to overlook these aspects. With the fundamentals in place, we can now begin to discuss a few different effective SEO techniques for B2B websites to implement.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Details, Benefits & Case Studies
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Typically, B2B transactions are of a substantially higher volume than that of B2C. As such, audiences and key decision makers do require more information before they are ready to do business with you. Including product or service details, benefits delivered, and successful case studies are all terrific ways of delivering them the value needed to convince. As such, we recommend devoting 4-5 sections of a page to these 3 content rich parts. Furthermore, these sections also offer you the opportunity to further include your keywords and their variants on your page in a natural fashion.
Consider installing heatmap technologies and event tracking on your webpage to understand which sections are being viewed actively. If a B2B website naturally has fewer visitors, then the quality of each interaction becomes that much more important. Additionally, setup tracking on internal link clicks. This allows you to get a better idea of how users are interacting with CTAs and moving through your designed user funnel.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Blogging like a B2C Company
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”31284″ img_size=”large” qode_css_animation=””][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Oftentimes, B2B companies overlook the potential value of blogging as they look to “target companies” and not individuals. For starters, this narrative is false as organizations rely on decision makers and their teams of talents. As such, your content could certainly target and give value to these individuals. In fact, blogging is much more important in B2B settings as it gives your website an avenue to gain more traffic and boost brand exposure. Additionally, it serves as a way to establish yourself as a thought leader within the industry.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Elaborating on the intricacies of your product or service
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]B2B SEO blogging is highly beneficial if your product or service is complex. Oftentimes, in order to ensure a good user experience, you probably keep content brief on your static pages. This ensures that your visitors do not get lost in a whirlwind of content when they first visit your website. However, this could also mean that they miss out on the full value that your company can provide. Therefore, using a blog to elaborate on the details and benefits of your product can be highly beneficial.
We recommend dividing each section of your blog into 2 sub-sections. The first to discuss the issue that your audience would have, or the general solution offered in the industry. Meanwhile, you can use the second section to show what your product or service specifically offers and how it differs from the competition.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Be an industry thought leader
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]A big behavioral difference seen in B2B audiences is their search for industry news. By recognizing this, you can fulfill their need to keep up to date while earning valuable traffic to your website on a consistent basis. As such, you should use your blog to cover the latest industry news and offering your opinion on this. In particular, it is your opinions and viewpoints on industry news that carries weight as it gives users the strongest reason to revisit your website.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Get detailed with content silos
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Your blog is a perfect place to develop a web of content under various topics. In particular, it gives you the space to explore these topics in-depth and have audiences that frequent your website. In turn, this informs search engines of the user-centric value provided to its users. This is a surefire way to have the quality of your website recognized and rewarded.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Do not be afraid to give some free advice and guidance
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”31285″ img_size=”large” qode_css_animation=””][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Many users of search engines seek to find answers and guidance on the problems they have. As such, there is no more direct value than to provide some of your expertise to help them. Some marketers are afraid of giving free advice as they fear that users will then not purchase their products or services. We argue that it would be more effective to give beginner guidance to help users. Once your audiences have tried your methodologies and found them to work, they would be more inclined to trust you for escalating their growth.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Interested To Learn More?
[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]Keen to optimise the SEO channel for your B2B company website? Speak to our SEO consultants today!
MediaPlus Digital is a leading integrated web design & digital marketing agency in Singapore, with strong SEO expertise, having delivered 100s of SEO campaigns for our clients.
At all times, we help brands to achieve their marketing goals while also delivering transparent data metrics for them. This allows us and our clients to make informed decisions with positive marketing impact.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/6″][/vc_column][/vc_row]