When we think about ranking on Google, keywords are the first thing that comes to mind. And that makes perfect sense because we want to rank for what people are searching for when they need our products or services.

But what most don’t think about as often are branded searches, which are paramount to protecting your brand.

You may be thinking, “But it’s my brand name; of course, I rank for that.” Are you sure? And if you do, are there other websites ranking above you?

It is very common to see directories, review sites and affiliates ranking higher than a business's official website simply because of the lack of branded keyword optimization.

Doing SEO focused around your brand has many benefits:

Control the narrative: When you do brand SEO, you ensure that the information people find about your business is accurate and positive. This helps you control your brand’s narrative.

Combat negative content: SEO can push negative or misleading brand content down the search results, making it less likely that potential customers will see it.

Secure brand assets: Branded keyword optimization ensures your brand’s assets (like your website, social media profiles, and other digital properties) appear at the top of search results, not third-party websites.

SEO Tip of the Week

Work on the following steps to protect your brand with SEO:

Optimize your website for branded keywords

Make sure your website ranks for branded keywords (e.g., your company name, product names, etc.). This includes optimizing meta tags, headers, and content around these terms.

Action Step: Perform an SEO audit to identify branded keywords and optimize your pages accordingly.

Create High-Quality, Authoritative Content

Regularly publish content that showcases your brand’s expertise and addresses your audience’s pain points. This helps build authority and trust.

Action Step: Develop a content calendar to publish blog posts, whitepapers, and case studies consistently.

Leverage Social Media Profiles

Your social media profiles should be fully optimized for your brand. Even if it’s your personal profile, include your brand name in the bio or description. Social profiles often rank high in search results. This also works for community profiles like Indie Hackers or Product Hunt.

Action Step: Complete all social profile sections with accurate information and regularly post engaging content.

Monitor Your Brand Mentions

Use tools like Google Alerts, Mention, Podscan or Brand24 to monitor what’s being said about your brand online. This will help you address any negative mentions promptly and stay on top of possible business opportunities.

Action Step: Set up alerts for your brand and product names.

Build and Manage Backlinks

High-quality branded backlinks to your website improve your search rankings and credibility. Focus on getting links from reputable websites.

Action Step: Reach out to industry blogs, news sites, and partners for guest posting opportunities and collaborations to promote your brand.

That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading. Now, get to work on your SEO!

Are there any specific topics you want me to cover in the coming weeks? DM me on Twitter and let me know!

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