Afraid of being overshadowed by the big guns on Google’s rankings? Don’t be, says Google engineer Matt Cutts. All it takes is tactical thinking.

While prominence is a factor in SEO, sites of bigger companies aren’t that much different from any other website as far as content quality is concerned, and good content certainly factors greatly into successful SEO. Cutts didn’t say it was going to be easy, but that’s where Folsom search engine optimization experts like Champion Online Marketing come in. Having worked with small, local sites over the years, these SEO professionals know what it’s like to “get tactical.”

With that, here are some of the tips Cutts shared in his latest Q&A video, as reported by Search Engine Watch’s Jennifer Slegg.

One Niche at a Time
It may not be a good idea to have the same wide-reaching content as the bigger brands’ websites. Instead, opt to first find your niche by covering something more specific.

“Think about concentrating on a smaller topic area, one niche at a time, and make sure you cover it really, really well,” he said. “Then you can build out from that smaller area until you become larger and larger.”

For example, if your business is on weight loss, you can expect the bigger fitness clubs’ sites to extensively cover topics on weight loss. However, bigger sites may not always be frequently updated, and this is where smaller sites can have an advantage. Sites of smaller companies can add content more often, and look for niche topics, such as how female dieters can lose weight during spring. From here, the number of possible topics to write about is endless.

Information-Driven
In the end, unique content is the way to SEO success. It is the age of information, and customers everywhere want answers.

SEO is no longer determined simply by how often keywords appear. Thanks to Google’s so-called “doomsday” updates (Penguin and Panda), unique content takes the top spot in determining search engine visibility. If businesses try to duplicate someone’s unique write-up, they won’t get the attention they seek.

Other experts also say that keywords do not always have to refer to the obvious. When users make a search for, say, “plastic surgery in Folsom,” not all of them are actually looking for a surgeon in Folsom; instead, they may be looking for the most popular procedures in that locality. A seasoned Folsom SEO provider will know how to use the right keywords that could lead as many users as possible to your site.

Taking on a giant doesn’t have to mean you have to be as big. Remember, David felled Goliath not through strength, but through tactical skills.

(Source: Google’s Matt Cutts: Small Sites Can Beat Large Sites in Search Results, Search Engine Watch, April 29, 2014)