If you’re like a growing number of people in the U.S. or elsewhere, you’re socially distanced at home these days.
Maybe you have the privilege of working still. Maybe you don’t. But either way, you probably have a lot more time on your hands, what with every public gathering cancelled.
It’s either maddening or freeing, depending on the way you look at it.
For the purposes of this article though, let’s look at it as freeing – as in freeing to tackle that to-do list you’ve been putting off for days, weeks, months, or more.
They say that necessity is the mother of invention. But boredom is a mother too: the kind that smacks procrastination right into a state of productivity.
So if you’ve been talking about starting a blog, a website, or some other kind of significant online presence… You’ve officially got the time.
What are you waiting for?
Starting a website really isn’t that big of a deal anymore. It used to be that you needed to know something about computer coding… or be connected to someone who knew something about computer coding.
Perhaps you’d have to pay a couple thousand to someone who knew something about computer coding to make it happen. I know that's the route I went before I realized the overall impressive, do-it-yourself offerings out there.
Personally, I used Wix for all three of my websites:
So clearly, I like it well enough. But if that’s not your cup of tea, there’s other possibilities to explore, such as SquareSpace, Hibu, Site123 and web.com.
You therefore don’t have much of an excuse when it comes to preference or ability. Chances are high that there’s something out there that works just fine for you.
Like I said, you’ve officially got the time now. So what are you waiting for?
“But what about SEO?” (i.e., search engine optimization) you ask. What about getting people’s attention once you’ve designed your “perfect” website?
How do you help potential customers find you online by simply searching for the services you offer?
I know I’m going out on a professional limb here, but I don’t see how SEO really works in your favor. Not unless:
You’ve got a ton of money to hire someone to do it all for you
You’re dealing with an obscure topic.
Otherwise, with thousands and thousands – perhaps even millions and millions – of other sites trying to capitalize on the same keywords you are, there’s just way too much competition involved.
The little guy (i.e., you) is going to lose this war almost every single time.
That’s why I wouldn’t lose too much sleep about it. Sure, learn what you can about SEO and do what you can with it. But don’t make it the focal point of your marketing efforts.
Instead, work first and foremost on having a really great website. That means the right layout with the right words and images that all come together in a complimentary, compelling manner.
Then find a different way of spreading the news that you’re up and running. Tell people about it in person… through social media… via trade shows… by running ads in likely places and publications… going on Shark Tank…
There are plenty of paths to profit in this regard. I just don’t think that SEO is your best one.