A GUIDE TO SEO AND CONTENT CROWDSOURCING

When I was a new kid on the block, a fresher, SEO always attracted me the most. In this instalment of the Digital Marketing series I'll list SEO and crowdsourcing tactics.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is one of the most important aspects of digital marketing. You need to ensure that the name of your brand/service/product comes out easily through search engines like Google. For example, if a customer searches for "customised PC in Bangladesh" they should be getting your website in the search result.

SEO optimisation may ensure the highest traffic to your website, visibility of product, and service.

Over the years, SEO has been all about knowing the tricks of the trade. The SEO of tomorrow will be less about having the right hashtag or the right keywords on the page and more about creating interesting, original content that is socially consumed and shared. Overall, the focus will shift from on-page SEO to the various components of off-page SEO that come together for a holistic and powerful strategy. Along with the old techniques, SEO activities like submitting your site to a web directory to boost your ranking will remain essential to get higher positions on Google.

One great example would be Trip Advisor. Through their web page, they will tell us not only where to go, but also what to eat, what to do and how to be there through customer reviews and feedback.

Content Crowdsourcing Tactics

Crowdsourcing is deliberate, active listening. Brands often seek engagement through crowdsourcing via direct appeals for feedback, contests, polls or surveys. When brands are creating a new product line or service, crowdsourcing gives fans an opportunity to be heard.

We have seen a good number of companies using customer feedback to develop new product and services. For example, Starbucks asked for customer opinion on the flavour of new coffee. Another example is Mountain Dew's 'DEWmocracy'.

Socially-generated content, where your audience is the main player (usually through a contest), has been done for years. But there is an even bigger opportunity for crowdsourcing platforms that contribute to new marketing ideas. As the social footprint is growing, marketers are finding more ways to leverage crowd creativity through interesting and viral pieces of content.

Stay tuned for the third instalment of this series, which will be on social media integration and mobile based marketing.

 

The writer is a professional with over 11 years of experience in mobile banking and digital marketing and is currently the Head of mCommerce Operations at Airtel Bangladesh Ltd.