Your company website is the first impression nearly all of your customers have of your business. If it's not optimized for search engines, though, potential customers may never see you. Search engines have artificial intelligence "bots" that scour the internet for websites that match a user's search query, and the more attractive your website is (Search Engine Optimized, or SEO), the closer to the top of the rankings it will be and the more traffic you'll receive.

If you're struggling with visitors to your small business website, there are a few tricks you can employ to increase unique site visitors.

Checklist For SEO

On-page SEO doesn't just mean a great website. It's also a website that's constructed properly and easily found. Here's a handy checklist:

• Use a good server to host your site
• Make sure you have the correct domain name for your site and enable encryption
• Ensure that you've enabled HTTPS and all your links are HTTPS encrypted
• Make sure there's only one version of your site
• Set up authenticated emails so your customers can contact you
• Fix or remove broken links, and remove irrelevant content
• Enable data compression and caching
• Link your website and share it on social media
• Use the Google Search Console webmaster tool to register your site

Focused Content Strategy

Quality content adds value to the user experience and enhances your SEO. Your ideal customer isn't just searching your website arbitrarily – they have a need and are looking for specific ways to have it met. When you offer how-to video guides for your products, well-written blogs about trends in your industry, or even detailed e-books, you're creating a website that's rich in useful information.

Not only will this strong content strategy increase your visibility, but you'll also position yourself and your business as a trusted authority in your field. When your customers trust you and depend on your insight and information, they'll become repeat customers.

Use the Right Keywords

The right terms in your content attract the attention of search engine bots and help boost your rankings. Large companies can afford to dismiss more niche keywords and long-tail strings of keywords and phrases, but smaller businesses can't.

Focus your content on more specific keywords and ones that relate more specifically to your business and brick-and-mortar address. Location-specific keywords are important, too, so be sure to use your city and state, plus nearby towns, in your content.

Acquire Both Active and Passive Links

Good content won't just earn you new site visitors. You'll also acquire backlinks, where other sites link your content to their site. These links add value to your SEO and improve your position as a trusted authority.

Not all links are good ones. Types of links that improve the value of your website include:

• Links pointing to your website naturally, offering helpful information to the user
• Links from websites related to your industry
• Links to specific content on your site that other website owners find useful

Stay Up to Date with SEO Changes

The algorithms that major search engines use change from time to time, and an SEO strategy that worked a few years ago may not be effective now. Google programs its bots to provide results that match important keywords and relevant, fresh content. Keep your site updated, and look for changes announced by the major search engines.

A great website is perhaps the single best marketing tool for your small-to-medium business. Making sure that it's visible to new and returning users through smart and effective SEO can help your business grow.