Your website is one of the first pieces of marketing seen by potential customers. It is how people find you. And, SEO (search engine optimization) for logistics and trucking companies is the practice of communicating the value of your website to search engines. 

Using keywords, and other SEO practices for logistics strategies, helps search engines identify your website as a reliable source, which keeps it at the top of searches.

In this article, you will learn the basics of SEO and how to incorporate it into your digital marketing strategies. It includes: 

• Why your logistics and transportation business should consider SEO
• Best SEO practices for logistics and trucking companies
• How SEO fits into your marketing strategy
• How to build SEO into your logistics and transportation website
• Researching keywords
• Use content marketing to boost your SEO

Why your logistics and transportation business should consider SEO

SEO for logistics puts your business front and center for all of your potential customers. Building a quality website that is mobile-responsive and uses targeted keywords and phrases helps you appear on the first few pages of Internet searches. Since most of your potential customers are likely using the Internet to find your business, SEO will help these potential customers to connect with your business. 

Best SEO practices for logistics and trucking companies

First, your website needs to be well designed and responsive on all platforms. The Constant Contact website builder tool has a variety of templates that are responsive on computers, tablets and smartphones. 

When writing the content for your website, use keywords and phrases that identify your business to search engines. Clearly communicate exactly what your business does. Since there are so many different types of logistics and trucking companies, tailor SEO strategy around what you do best. 

• Target your keywords around your specific services
• Keep your website updated with fresh content
• Utilize social media to keep your business at the top of searches

How SEO fits into your marketing strategy

SEO isn’t about stuffing your website with keywords. It is about establishing yourself as a credible website in your industry and helping people find your site. All of your digital marketing tools contribute to your SEO. 

Your website should build on other branding materials within your company. If you have brochures that you use to promote your business, use the same tone and keywords on your website. 

Staying active on social media also boosts your search engine rating. Posting regularly makes your company more visible and it enhances brand awareness and builds you up as a respected expert in your field. When posting on social media, focus on blog posts and social media content that is engaging and useful to your followers. 

How to build SEO into your logistics and transportation website

Your website should be easy to navigate and each section should include clear information. Use headings that directly correspond to what is on the page. 

Don’t pepper keywords throughout your website for no reason. They should be organic and contribute to the page. The quality of your content will make your website appear more relevant to different search engines. If you’re using a web builder tool with templates that contain “lorem ipsum” or another type of “dummy” text as filler, delete these pages before publishing the site. Going live with placeholder text can diminish your performance in search engines.

Researching keywords

The best way to optimize your website for SEO for logistics is to tailor it to keywords and phrases that your customers will use to find you. Doing some research upfront will help you tailor your website copy and marketing content to these phrases. 

For example, if your trucking company primarily handles ground shipping for local retailers, your customers will find you using phrases like “how to ship merchandise from a small business” or “retail shipping companies near me.” 

Start your SEO strategy by brainstorming a list of potential keywords that people might use to find your business. Start with your mission and your business plan to find your keywords. Come up with more ideas by: 

• Using the autocomplete feature in Google
• Looking through the list of related searches
• Looking at your competitors’ websites and noting the keywords on different pages
• Using an SEO tool to generate keywords

After you have come up with a list of keywords, start using them to customize the content on your page. You can be creative, but the text should communicate what you do and why you are unique. 

Pak Mail features its keywords in the main headline on each of its location pages. This headline reads, “Shipping, packing, and freight stores in Denver, CO.” Under the header, the website clearly indicates what they ship and where. The company then goes on to detail other services that they offer. 

Pak Mail is one of the top organic search results that appear on the page when looking for “shipping companies in Denver.” The link leads specifically to locations in the Denver area rather than the homepage. The company did not pay for its prominent placement. Its placement is due to effective SEO. 

You can also use meta descriptions to boost your SEO. A meta description is a small line of text that appears under search results telling the viewer about the site. This search result for “trucking companies in Minneapolis” describes The Freight Rate Central in a few words so the reader can decide if the result is relevant to their search. 

Use content marketing to boost your SEO

Creating high-quality content establishes your website as a reliable result in Google and other search engines. Regularly posting engaging articles to your blog helps keep your site higher in search engines’ results. Search engines “read” the words on your website. Writing blog posts increases the keywords on your site while maintaining its quality. 

It seems simple, but regularly posting to a blog and to social media sites can take up a lot of your time and you shouldn’t post for the sole purpose of posting. Your content should be relevant to current and potential customers. Blog posts should be deliberate, engaging, and informative. 

While coming up with new topics for regular posts can be taxing, especially if you have to do it on top of running your business, you can make it easier by taking some time at the beginning of each quarter to create a content calendar. 

For topic ideas, talk to your current customers and see what types of issues they have and identify frequently asked questions or topics that are coming up with a lot. You can use these to draft blog posts that help your customers tackle these issues. You can also read trade magazines and other blogs to help you come up with angles that align with your business. 

Having an SEO strategy may seem overwhelming at first, but it’s another tool that you can use to build brand awareness. Effectively using SEO for logistics helps people find your page when they need it. 

Be sure to:

• Clearly communicate your business’ unique value on your website. 
• Be specific when discussing what you do and how you do it. 
• Draft and publish regular blog posts and social media posts to enhance your credibility. 

By doing all of these things, you can keep your website at the top of search results. 

If you want to know how optimized your current website is for search engine listings, you can use Constant Contact’s SEO tools to audit your website. 

Learn more about marketing your logistics and transportation business with The Download: Guide for Online Marketing.

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