Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a business imperative for any company that wants to grow in this digital age. The internet is where people turn to when they need something, including insurance.
Therefore, any agency that does not take steps to make itself visible on the internet is losing out on business. Which is why many are investing in SEO in the hopes of improving their rankings on Google and other search engines. But it’s not enough to merely “do SEO.” One has to do it right otherwise it’s of no value.
One of the most critical steps you can take to ensure you get the visibility you need and ensure that your SEO work adds value is by working with an insurance SEO specialist. Such a specialist understands the complexity of the insurance industry. He or she knows that merely typing “auto insurance” into Google will call up thousands of pages and the first couple of pages are going to be dominated by the big, nationwide insurance companies.
Research shows that 75% of people never go beyond the first page of Google. So where does that leave you, the small, independent insurance agency serving only one city or a small town? Invisible, that’s where.
To get past this problem, you need to have an insurance SEO specialist who will help you rank for local insurance keywords. Since you can’t effectively compete with the bigger companies, aiming for the local market is your best bet.
The right keywords are important
A well targeted local keyword will help you rank much higher than a giant corporation. Therefore, you need to create a list of keywords that describe your services and your location, since most people search for insurance by location or by product. For example, they would type in “auto insurance in Houston.”
While that already serves to narrow down the competition considerably, it is still such a wide area that the major companies operating in that area have mostly likely cornered it. Besides such keywords are very competitive, even among smaller insurance companies.
So for your SEO efforts, your SEO specialist can help you target keywords that relate to your location at a more local level, as well as the types of insurance you sell. They will ensure that you use the exact phrases people are likely to use, such as “life insurance + local city” or “cheapest auto insurance in + state.”
They’ll also help you create separate keywords for all the types of insurance you are trying to rank for, rather than lumping everything together.
Be aware though that insurance keywords are some of the most competitive. So you cannot rely only on keywords to help you. Your insurance SEO specialist can help you position yourself as a local authority on the insurance you sell, and this requires building brand awareness. This in turn requires you to create content that people will love, so pay attention to your content strategy.
Take advantage of Google My Business
A key trend, according to Think with Google, is that “near me” searches are increasing by 130% year-over-year. In other words, more and more people are using search terms that include the words “near me” to search for businesses online. For those in a large city with many competing insurance agencies, this could be one helpful trend to tap into. Whenever people type “insurance agent near me,” within a certain radius of your place of business, your company will come up.
Your SEO specialist can guide you through the process of being picked up in such searches. It requires you to set up a Google My Business Listing with all the relevant information. With such a listing, the address of your agency, your website, phone number and hours of operation are called up and put in front of customers. Make sure that you fully complete your Google My Business profile in order to maximize your success with local SEO.
Local SEO is a very important marketing strategy for insurance agents. But because it can be hard to rank for specific keywords, you should consider working with an SEO specialist who understands the process and can help you.
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