Auditing Your Franchise SEO Strategy: Applying the SWOT Analysis for 2018

Today’s post explains how you can apply a SWOT analysis to audit your franchise SEO strategy to ensure optimal performance in 2018.

What is a SWOT analysis?

A SWOT analysis reviews the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats that an entity (usually a business, though it can be used for a place, industry, product, or, in this case, franchise SEO strategy) faces.

One of the major advantages of this analytical framework is the way it looks at the interrelation of internal and external factors. For our purposes, that means we will be auditing the internal strengths and weaknesses of your franchise SEO strategy, along with the opportunities and threats presented by the external web climate you find yourself in.

Obviously, this article won’t be able to pinpoint your current franchise SEO strategy’s internal strengths and weaknesses. That would require a closer look at the unique approach your franchise is currently taking. To schedule an internal audit, call us at 866-311-7189, or visit https://clicktecs.com/contact-us/ to book your consultation online.

That said, we can list off some best practices and common mistakes to help you tweak your internal franchise SEO strategy today.

And since everyone’s franchise SEO strategy is influenced by the same external factors (Google algorithm changes, new technologies, shifts in social media functionality, etc), we can spotlight a few important external threats and opportunities.

So without further ado, let’s begin!

Strengthening your internal franchise SEO strategy

Here are some signs of strong internal franchise SEO strategy to aim for with your brand:

• Using clear, crawlable URLs that appeal to Google-bots and readers alike;
• Conducting ongoing keyword research that makes use of long-tail phrases, secondary keyword lists, and leverages targeted search intent;
• Constantly investigating the SERP to see what Google believes is relevant to the searcher, then making that the basis of your franchise SEO strategy;
• High-value, authoritative content that answers specific user questions and helps them meet their goals;
• Writing compelling titles tags and meta descriptions;
• Optimizing your site for max page load speed.

Remember, this is just a list of general best practices – ultimately, your internal franchise SEO strategy must be tailored to your unique industry, audience, and needs.

Addressing weaknesses in your internal franchise SEO strategy

Conversely, here are some common mistakes people make with their franchise SEO strategy that you should avoid:

• Overloading content with stilted keywords;
• Stuffing websites full of rich media that unfocus the reader and cripple site load time;
• Not giving URLs, page titles, meta tags, and other ancillary content the TLC it needs;
• Writing dense, jargon-heavy content that is not accessible to the average reader;
• Designing multiple sites for different devices (aka building a separate mobile and desktop site);
• Over-scheduling content to the point where it seems spammy.

Rapid-fire threats and opportunities to consider in your franchise SEO strategy

There is a very thin line between what counts as an external threat and opportunity. The difference usually boils down to whether or not you saw it coming and adapted before the competition. With that in mind, let’s look at some SEO trends and predictions for 2018:

• Content is still king. The value of quality content is not secret, but it’s growing even more with the influx of new features like voice search, Google Posts, Google Q&As, and so on. All of these different channels and query types may seem intimidating, but they ultimately point the user to the same place – a piece of quality content. Brands that invest in premium content as part of their franchise SEO strategy will enjoy a real competitive edge in the coming years.
• Mobile accommodations are needed more than ever. With the majority of users now searching and purchasing from mobile devices, franchisors need to invest in mobile technologies to turn this potential threat into a major opportunity. In addition to mobile responsive sites, mobile applications will be more valuable than ever.
• Net neutrality developments put greater emphasis on rapid site-load speed. In the United States, the battle to maintain Title II protections on net neutrality is over. Though the laws are still coming together, it looks like premium payees will enjoy “fast lane” internet access, while the rest of us slug along with slower connection speeds. If you acknowledge this development and design your site for optimal load speed, the net neutrality changes will work to your advantage. But if you stick to your guns with rich media and cheap servers, you may see a big drop in web traffic and SERP position.

Book your franchise SEO strategy audit

We’re just getting warmed up and we’ve run out of space!

But the conversation doesn’t have to end here. If this introductory piece has you interested in a franchise SEO strategy audit, visit https://clicktecs.com to set up a free consultation.