SEO 101: Business Tips for Barbers
As a barbershop owner, you want to make sure your business can be found easily by potential customers searching for services like yours. One way to achieve this is by optimizing your website for search engines, especially Google, which is the most widely used search engine in the world. In this post, we'll go over the basics of Google SEO and provide tips to help improve your website's visibility in search results.
Understanding Google's Ranking Algorithm
Google's ranking algorithm is the set of rules and calculations that determine how websites are ranked in search results. Some factors that affect search rankings include:
Relevance: Google aims to show search results that are most relevant to the user's query. This means your website's content, including keywords, topic, and context, should match the search intent of your potential customers. For example, many clients will search ‘barbershop near me’ or ‘haircut near me’ so you will want to make sure you include those keywords throughout your website.
Authority: Google considers the authority of a website, which is determined by the number and quality of backlinks pointing to the website. As a barbershop owner, you can build authority by getting backlinks from relevant and trustworthy sources. For example, a local newspaper or blogger writing an article about your barbershop that includes a link to your website. Google Reviews can also help create authority. The more reviews the better.
User experience: Google aims to show websites that provide a good user experience, including factors such as page speed, mobile-friendliness, and ease of navigation. A positive user experience can lead to higher engagement and more repeat customers.
Five Tips to Get Started with Google SEO
Check your current ranking: Search ‘barbershop near me’ and ‘haircut near me’ on Google. Write down your ranking. Your ultimate goal will be to improve your ranking. The higher you rank, the more visibility you will get.
Optimize website content for keywords: To optimize your website content for keywords, make sure each page has a clear focus and uses relevant keywords in the page title, headings, and body text. Include keywords like: barbershop, haircut, fade, taper, beard trim etc. These are the keywords potential clients are searching.
Ensure website is mobile-friendly: Many potential customers will be searching for barbershops on their mobile devices, so it's important to have a website that is optimized for mobile. Google's algorithm favors mobile-friendly websites, so make sure your website is responsive and loads quickly on mobile devices.
Build high-quality backlinks: Backlinks from relevant and trustworthy sources can help improve your website's authority and visibility in search results. Consider partnering with local businesses, newspapers or bloggers to build high-quality backlinks.
Regularly update website content: Regularly adding new content, such as blog posts or videos, can help improve your website's relevance and engagement. Be sure to include relevant keywords in your content, but focus on providing valuable information to your potential customers.
You can do all of this without spending any money. By optimizing your barbershop website for Google SEO, you can significantly improve your visibility which will lead to more clients.
Written by Matthew Mendoza
Licensed barber, educator and consultant based in California. He is passionate about helping barbers pass their barber exam, develop their business and diversify their income. He hosts a podcast, writes a weekly newsletter and offers 1-on-1 consulting.
