What is Search Engine Optimization and what does it do? SEO brings more visibility to your business by building trust, authority and relevancy and therefore ranking your website higher in search results on search engines like Google, Google Maps, Bing, Yahoo and more. SEO isn’t just about optimizing a website for search engines. The process also involves optimizing your online profiles like Google My Business, Bing Places for Business, Yelp, Apple Maps, Facebook, LinkedIn and more. We call this collection of web properties the “digital ecosystem” of a business.

When it comes to SEO, we have developed both a short, and long-term strategy for securing and maintaining position and visibility in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). We help insurance agent clients (both captive and non-captive) who want to maximize visibility in their local markets all across the country.

When a home, auto or business owner makes a query in a search engine (probably on their smartphone), the search engine very quickly scrolls through its vast database of web pages and properties to deliver a search engine results page (SERP) with web pages ranked by relevance and popularity. The more relevant a result, the higher it ranks. The result does not necessarily have to be a website or web page. It could be a social media page or another online profile that ranks in the SERP.

Google and other search engines use unique algorithms that evaluate hundreds of variables (also known as ranking factors or search signals). The purpose of this evaluation is to determine how well your web page or web property relates to a query (relevance). The search engines also factor in how many websites are linking to you (popularity/authority). The most relevant authority result ranks first and so on.

Local SEO (Local Search Engine Optimization) helps businesses get found by local consumers and other business owners when they are searching for your type of product or service in their local area. Local SEO means optimizing a business’ microsite so that it performs well on search engines like Google, Google Maps, Bing Places for Business and online directories like Yelp, Citysearch, and Apple Maps to promote your business. Local search SEO can greatly increase visibility for your business if you show up in Google’s “local pack,” “map pack,” or 3-pack,” as the first 3 spots below the map are commonly called.

Ranking well in Google maps is one of the best ways of getting new traffic, phone calls, website visits and local consumer walk-in traffic. There are several ranking factors and a lot of moving parts that need to align, but Agent Branding and Marketing System has a formula for aligning our clients’ entire digital ecosystem to effectively gain visibility and increase the amount of traffic from Google Maps and your other numerous, digital marketing assets.

According to Google, 4 out of 5 consumers use search engines to research local businesses, when shopping for goods or services.

61% of local searches result in a purchase (Search Engine Watch, 2019).

At Agent Branding and Marketing System, we work with our clients to develop and deploy known ranking factors and conversion elements for every local SEO campaign. We create optimized content, that’s fully compliant with your corporate brand and DOI, to add to your web pages to build relevance for targeted keywords and search terms.

We build links from relevant blog sites, article sites and social bookmarking sites to increase popularity and authority. We use cutting edge tools and time-tested strategies to help clients get and respond to online reviews. We also assist our clients in adding photos to their online photo galleries which is another important part of the marketing and branding process. Photos are used by consumers to “get to know you” before they actually call or stop by the office.

The SEO team at Agent Branding and Marketing has a wealth of experience and we bring a unique approach to marketing and branding optimization. Our success and experience with the insurance vertical gives you the competitive edge to “stand out from the crowd” and to grow your book with high quality policies that have the highest retention rates. Our leads “hunt you down” and not the other way around. They’re already “in the market” searching on their smartphones, tablets, laptops and desk-tops in your local market area.