AirBnB has gone from a relative unknown in the hospitality industry to one of its juggernauts, with an incredibly healthy customer retention rate of 74% [Comparably]. How did they manage this? Well, there were multiple business strategies in play, but a key factor was the way that they leveraged SEO for customer retention.
You might simply think about SEO strategies as being how you get your pages to the top search rankings on Google. But, it’s a much more powerful tool than that, and if used correctly, it can target and foster relationships with customers to ensure they pick you not just now, but in the future, too.
In this article, we’ll explore how SEO for customer relationship management and retention and shine a light on key SEO customer retention strategies that have that magic touch in keeping people coming back.
Understanding Customer Intent
To get customers to keep coming back, the first step is understanding what they want, and what they are looking for. Here are some customer relationship management strategies to address their needs and keep them coming back.
Keyword Research as Customer Research
Viewing keyword research as customer research enables businesses to understand customer language, preferences, and search intent. By analyzing the terms customers use, companies gain valuable psychological insights into their target audience’s motivations and challenges.
For example, simply searching for the term “holiday let” or “holiday home” might work for some people. But, people will likely have more caveats and requirements than that, such as “4-bed holiday home” or “holiday apartment inner city.” By understanding what customers are searching for, you can better tailor your keywords and content to showcase how you fit their needs.
Search Query Analysis Revealing Customer Pain Points
Sometimes, a search for something doesn’t always go the way you want it to. But, understanding this as a business can help you to understand the issues customers are facing and their current pain points when it comes to getting what they need.
Try taking a look at keywords or search queries for your site or a target page where there are bouncebacks. Do the search terms and keywords used have a common theme? Can you address that to make sure that the next time someone who uses them lands on your website they find what they need and stay?
Using Search Data to Map the Customer Journey
Depending on where a customer is in their purchase journey, they are likely to change up their search queries and keywords. Understanding what they search for and the wording used means you can tailor keywords to direct users to the pages on your site that will matter the most to them at that moment. You can also use this data to create tailored and personalized ads and content to engage them.
Long-tail Keywords and Micro-Moments
Specific long-tail keywords and micro-moments often go hand in hand. Gaining the know-how of when a long-tail keyword turns into a high-intent moment is crucial to ensuring that you meet customers’ needs quickly. Fulfilling this effectively will not only lead to high customer satisfaction but potentially lead to repeat visits for your goods or services.
Creating Value-Driven Content
If someone is interacting with your brand, then it likely means they want to get something out of you. For most consumers, at first, it’s likely not a purchase, but instead information to help them to navigate future decisions.
Making sure your content delivers value to consumers is paramount. Here are four key considerations when it comes to sculpting your content and outreach to maximize SEO for customer retention.
1. Addressing Specific Customer Needs
Make sure that you have content that helps to address what your customers are looking for. If you find their long tail keywords point towards particular products or product ranges, try creating content and pages that highlight these. Similarly, consider creating quizzes or surveys to not only increase engagement but also to help direct users to the services or products that they need.
2. Educational Content That Builds Trust
Queries with informational search intent should never be dismissed outright. Often, these are the start of the purchase journey, and creating content to suit them can give you a head start in the race to win a user’s custom. High-quality, educational, and informative content that’s well-researched and conveyed builds trust in your brand, and likewise, what it offers.
3. Answer Boxes and Featured Snippets
Make sure important and integral pages and pieces of content are optimized so that they can be displayed as featured snippets and answer boxes on Google search results. Being featured in this way not only provides the user quickly and efficiently with the information that they need but also positions your brand as a trusted source of information.
4. Content Personalization Based on Search Behavior
Customers want to interact with brands that “get” them. Creating personalized content, such as banner ads or email marketing campaigns that align with their recent search queries demonstrates that your brand understands what they are looking for, making them more likely to complete a transaction with you and see your company as somewhere their needs can be met in the future.
Building Authority and Trust
The more authority and trust your brand has, the more appealing it is to consumers. Customers want to know that they will have a good experience and that others have received the same. Building that trust and user satisfaction results in more positive reviews and testimonials, increasing your positioning as a reputable source of business.
Here are some dos and don’ts when it comes to building authority and trust for customer relationships and retention using SEO.
Do
- Create brand consistency across search results on multiple platforms
- Encourage customer reviews and testimonials
- Respond constructively and promptly to any reviews or customer feedback
- Engage with your community through local SEO and social media
- Ensure all relevant content is up-to-date, informative, and meets users’ needs
- Create meaningful relationships with other brands to gain valuable backlinks
- Take a people-focused approach to SEO efforts, rather than appealing to search bots
Don’t
- Post content just for posting’s sake
- Forget the needs and wants of the consumer
- Neglect reviews and feedback, even when they’re negative
- Treat all of your digital marketing avenues as separate entities
- Rely heavily on AI-generated content
- Employ shady SEO practices
Improving User Experience
Make sure that your website matches the quality of content you are creating. It’s no good offering up top-tier, educational, and informative content if your site provides challenges to users browsing it!
Reducing friction in the customer journey minimizes potential points of abandonment, making interactions smoother and more enjoyable. Ensure the site loads well, and is optimized for all devices, especially mobiles. If your site is slow and not working, it doesn’t provide a positive reflection of your brand.
Additionally, make sure to provide intuitive navigation, structuring your pages and architecture so that they can be effortlessly browsed through by the consumer. If they can’t find what they need quickly and easily, they’ll go find it somewhere else.
Although it’s not as explicit as other SEO efforts, technical SEO upkeep like this indirectly impacts customer satisfaction, making them more likely to return and have a positive image of your company.
Measuring and Adapting
Once you’ve optimized your website, always remember that the work is never complete. Consistently monitor your performance and emerging client needs to ensure you are positioned to be able to meet them.
Here are some important factors that should be implemented into your ongoing customer retention and relationship management.
- Don’t just focus on search rankings: Metrics beyond rankings illuminate customer engagement depth, revealing retention potential through lifetime value and interaction quality. Consider how you are meeting long-tail keywords, and how much time and quality engagement users are having with your site as key benchmarks for your customer retention rate.
- Continually monitor user behavior: User behavior analysis uncovers nuanced preferences, enabling personalized experiences. Don’t just push this as a one-off campaign, but continually assess personalized ways to reach your customers regularly. Relationships go both ways!
- Engage with customers frequently: Customer feedback loops create continuous dialogue, demonstrating responsiveness and commitment. If someone feels listened to, they are more likely to develop trust — a customer relationship best practice.
- Implement feedback and optimization regularly: Continuous optimization transforms insights into actionable improvements, showing customers their input drives meaningful product evolution.
Wrap-up
Don’t just see SEO strategies as a tool for search engine success. View it as an essential engagement tool that shows you put customers first. In a crowded market, it’s these touches that will set you apart from the rest, so that people entrust you with their time (and their money).
For more details about how SEO for customer retention can work its magic when it comes to your business’s customer relationship management, give the team at BarkingFrog SEO a call.
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