Zoe is a digital marketer at a graphic design agency, and she’s been tasked this quarter with improving the firm’s SEO. However, the only guidance she has received from her boss is to get the site to rank higher on Google. In order for Zoe to create a successful SEO strategy for the business, what should her first step be?
- Perform an SEO audit of the firm’s website to determine if there are any crawl errors or content gaps
- Set a SMART goal and establish KPI’s to track if her SEO efforts are successful
- Outline a content calendar for the quarter, including target keywords with high search volume
Explanation:
The correct answer is: **Set a SMART goal and establish KPI’s to track if her SEO efforts are successful**. Before diving into specific SEO tactics, Zoe’s first step should be to establish clear objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) for her SEO efforts. Setting a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goal ensures that Zoe has a clear direction and a measurable target to work towards, aligning her SEO strategy with the business objectives of the graphic design agency. By defining KPIs, such as improved search engine rankings, increased organic traffic, higher click-through rates (CTR), or enhanced conversion rates, Zoe can quantitatively measure the success of her SEO initiatives and track progress over time. This approach allows Zoe to focus her efforts on activities that directly contribute to achieving her goals, prioritize tasks effectively, and demonstrate the value of SEO to her boss and stakeholders. Once Zoe has established a SMART goal and defined relevant KPIs, she can proceed to conduct an SEO audit to identify any technical issues or content gaps on the firm’s website, as well as develop a content strategy aligned with her SEO objectives. Therefore, setting a SMART goal and establishing KPIs serve as the foundational steps for creating a successful SEO strategy that drives meaningful results for the graphic design agency.