So you’ve decided that this is the year that your New Year’s resolutions are going to stick. You want to work out more or smoke fewer cigarettes, and this time you’re determined to succeed. While those are both fine resolutions to set for yourself, why not throw in a few resolutions for your business, as well?

A while ago, your company jumped on the search engine optimization, or SEO, bandwagon but you quickly fell off after you saw how much work was involved. The frequently changing algorithms and the constant need for new content can be exhausting, and your company can quickly fall behind if you chose to ignore it all. Luckily, I’ve compiled a short list that offers an easy way to improve your company’s marketing strategies in the coming year in the most painless way possible. You will be turning yourself into an SEO expert while advancing your company’s online reputation. This might be the one New Year’s resolution that really pays off.

Become The Content King
SEO is largely about content. There is code involved, there’s keyword research, and there’s even some social media thrown in there (which we will get to!). But everything that makes SEO work is about the content, and the quality content at that. To kick your New Year’s resolution off right, start by training yourself to write fresh content on a daily basis. Whether you’re posting it to your own blog or to others with links back to your website, fresh content gives the search engines something new to chew in. It will keep your company’s website relevant and popular, meaning you’ll show up more in search engines when web surfers are looking for a business just like yours. Don’t think that you have to be a professional writer to get good content out there. Write about topics that matter to your company and your industry, keep them light, and engaging. The more interesting your content is, the more people it will attract.

Go Organic
The best results in SEO come from naturally earned links, meaning you didn’t have to pay for your business name to be listed and you didn’t advertise to drive traffic. While “paid search” is an effective way to bring customers to you, it can be very expensive, and even if you get those people to your site, they’ll have no reason to stick around without having the elements that drive organic traffic. If you’ve been paying attention, you know exactly what that means: producing quality content on a regular basis. However, this point does vary from my previous one because here, I’m telling you to get out on the Internet and find networks, communities, groups, and other companies that will link back to yours. Doing this kind of SEO will broaden your audience and improve your company’s overall web ranking since the search engines will determine you to be a popular and trusted source since so many other websites are linking to yours.

Stay In The Know
SEO is not a part-time hobby or something you dabble in for the sake of your business. While throwing in a few highly searched keywords might do a little bit of good for your website, it won’t take you to the top of a search engine query. In addition to planning on writing lots of content and networking frequently, make sure your New Year’s resolution involves keeping up on the latest trends, changes, and news in the SEO industry. There are plenty of blogs on SEO that will do most of the work for you and even offer helpful suggestions on how to take your marketing strategies even further. Staying updated will also help you stay motivated on performing your own SEO. You won’t feel like you’re falling behind and you’ll know about the latest tools to help you succeed.

Amp Up Social Media
Finally, no SEO effort would be complete without a strong social media campaign. While SEO is largely about content and networking, it doesn’t help to have a few extra fans that are sharing your content and your business name for you. Get back on Twitter and Facebook and start refreshing your profile. Give it a new look, breathe some new life into it, and start updating regularly again. Then set your sights on the new social media platforms that are up-and-coming. Pinterest and Google+, to start, are already shining stars in the social media world even though not all companies use them to their advantage. But if you start getting your company involved in as many social media platforms as possible, you’ll not only have an advantage on your competition, but you’ll also be expanding your customer base and potentially bringing in new leads.

Your New Year’s resolutions don’t have to be those pipedream goals you set up for yourself every year. In fact, knowing what steps to take in order to help both your business and your New Year’s resolutions succeed are the stepping-stones to a great year.

Pete Wise is the SEO Manager at blue onion whom have been on the cutting edge of ad creation for the better part of two decades. If you need a denver advertising agency to take your service or product offering to the next level, contact blue onion today. We do everything from branding seminars to full advertising campaigns.