Ask a managed service provider what the most difficult part of their business is and most will point at lead generation and client acquisition.
Lead generation and business development isn't easy, but what if we told you that you could tap into some underrated but powerful techniques to build a steady flow of leads for the long run?
These three techniques all have one thing in common: SEO.
SEO stands for search engine optimization and it is the process of increasing the visibility of a website on web pages that are indexed by search engines.
Why should MSPs focus on SEO? An MSP business is generally a high-margin business. Not to mention that Google is the easiest way for interested prospects to find you online. This along with your high profit margins can mean incredible revenue and profitability.
1. Satisfy search intent
When asked to order the factors affecting rankings of a webpage, content undoubtedly comes first. And have you wondered why there are only a few pages that continuously manage to rank on the first page of the SERPs while others look stagnated in pages farther away?
Though there are a lot of factors involved, the most important of all is solving for user intent. If your content doesn't match what users are looking for, search engines can easily gauge this using the 'time on page' metric and keep pushing your page further down.
Weren’t you just thinking about how you could narrow down and find the search intent for specific KWs (Keywords)? We got you covered!
Take a look at the results on page 1 and make sure to include the information present on all these pages. Make no mistake, this doesn't mean copying info from other sites. Take inspiration from existing content and add your creativity and knowledge to draft an article.
Another way is to use tools like SurferSEO or Frase that can run through the top results for your keyword and find the similarities between different web pages ranking for the same. It can help you explore the topics that have been commonly covered by the top pages. This could guide your writing process. You'll need to write covering most of the topics included by the first 10 results on the search result.
2. Use ZSV (Zero-search Volume) Keywords
In the quest for high-volume keywords, there's a general propensity to miss zero search volume keywords. But why should someone pay attention to Zero-search volume KWs? It's just that the keyword research tools are attributing zero search volume to a keyword as they don't index all KWs people on Earth are searching for on the internet.
This is a sneaky way to get traffic to your website without a lot of competition as most of your competitors will not want to write for these KWs. It should also be noted that not all zero-search volume keywords will result in traffic to your site. You'll need to pick the right ones and here's how you can do it.
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Search Semrush of Ahrefs for your target KW
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Find related KWs that show zero search volume
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Pick a ZSV keyword and search for it on Google
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Find if there are relevant 'Related searches' and 'People Also Asked' questions for the KW. If yes, you just got a ZSV KW that's worth writing about.
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If not, repeat the process unless you find a good enough keyword.
3. Interlink
If you have even slightly started studying up on SEO, you would have come across the term 'backlinks'.
Backlinks are links directed towards your content from other sites on the internet. More authoritative sites with more credibility and a higher rank linking to you will help search engines see you as an authority in your space and rank you higher.
This has forced not just MSPs but the entire SEO industry to try and build links. In the search for backlinks, interlinks are often missed. Interlinks not only help improve search engine rankings but also help people stay on your site.
For example, if you have a page on 'hardware for small businesses', you could link it to articles on 'how to reduce hardware costs in your business' and ‘ways to reduce IT costs'. It helps keep visitors on your site and the more content people consume from the site, the better they are going to trust you. Leave no page orphaned. Every page on your website should have interlinks from other pages.
Keep in mind that SEO is a long-term game. It can take time to get results but as you consistently keep creating high-value SEO-focused content, your MSP will start getting a steady flow of leads who engage become clients in no time.
