The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
Ep 144: Get More Website Visitors with SEO with Meg Casebolt
Description:
These days, it has become a necessity for any business, including yoga businesses, to have a website. However, it's not enough to just have a website. We need to make sure that our websites get found by people who are looking for what we offer, and that’s where SEO comes in. It sounds scary and intimidating, but is so critical to getting more visitors to your website, and Meg Casebolt breaks down just how you can get started with making your website more SEO-friendly.
Meg Casebolt is an SEO strategist, Google Ads consultant, and (currently inactive) certified yoga teacher. She came to yoga in 2001 as an exercise routine, and has been practicing ever since. After receiving her certification in Bhakti Yoga, she taught yoga for 2 years from 2014 to 2016, before transitioning into her current role, so she has a unique and intimate understanding of yoga businesses. Meg describes herself as the “Supergirl to your SEO strategy stress”, and since 2013, has been helping business owners show up in search results, get more leads & sell more products with intentional, strategic content.
It's important to start with the basics, so Meg explains what SEO is, and why optimizing your website for search engines is so important. She shares how to set up your website to help you get found on Google (both as an industry expert and a local teacher), as well as why Google Analytics and Google Search Console can be such powerful tools. Meg also has some insight into specializing and niching down, and how that can help your website rank in Google.
If you are looking for some great advice on steps you can take immediately to update your website and make it Google-friendly, this is the episode for you.
Key Takeaways:
[5:36] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Meg Casebolt.
[7:20] Who is Meg and what is the work that she does?
[8:15] When did Meg become an SEO specialist?
[12:37] What do yoga teachers need to do to help their websites get found? Set up a Google My Business profile!
[17:03] Another thing you can do to stand out is to get reviews!
[19:05] Meg explains why it is so beneficial to have a Google My Business account, regardless of whether you have a physical location or not.
[22:36] The next thing to look at is your website. Meg recommends Google Analytics and some other handy tools to help you get started.
[25:36] What is the difference between Google Analytics and Google Search Console and what kind of information goes Google Search Console provide?
[29:10] How often should you be checking in on your Google Analytics and Google Search Console?
[30:39] Shannon shares some details about the things that surprised her when Meg did an analysis of The Connected Yoga Teacher website.
[34:18] How can you put out content that is SEO-friendly so that people can find your website?
[37:32] What are some tips for tailoring your content to boost your page ranking in search results?
[42:52] It is important for you to list the location of where you are teaching yoga on your website!
[44:33] What are some things that Meg has noticed about how yoga teachers can improve their SEO?
[46:23] Tip: You have to be found for one thing, before you can be found for everything.
[48:17] Start small and work on these aspects that Meg has covered before diving in more to avoid overwhelm!
[52:56] Meg and Shannon discuss outsourcing SEO to a professional.
[55:35] Get in touch with Meg via her website or Instagram.
[56:10] What is the action step that you are going to take to improve your SEO?
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsors Schedulicity and Yoga for Pelvic Health Teacher Training
Quotes from this episode:
"How do you make sure that the traffic that is coming to you is converting into a subscriber, or a sale, or in your case, a student?"
"I'm going to start again with looking at what's working. That's always what I do first."
"One big component of Search Engine Optimization that Google's really concerned about is making sure that your website runs smoothly, that it's mobile responsive."
"Google looks at your site on a phone before it looks at it on a desktop."
"The first thing that you need to do is know what people are searching for."
"The best place to start for SEO content is with keyword research."
"When it comes to writing for search, I want you to focus on being clear, and not on being clever."
"Let your geography be your superpower!"
"Nobody goes out of their way to write reviews unless they're mad at you."
"We're really quick to complain, and we're not so great to share praise, but when you ask for the review, people will give it to you."