SEO for Short Term Loan Companies: The Ultimate Guide
- Why SEO is a HUGE deal for businesses offering short term loans
- Four critical things you can do RIGHT NOW to improve local SEO
- Four key ways to boost domain rank with national SEO
Why Short Term Loan Companies NEED SEO
If you look at the numbers, you’ll see that search engine optimization is vital for growing your loan business.
Search engine optimization will:
- Smack your website at the top of search results
- Cost you FAR less than traditional advertising (and get you better results)
Here’s a closer look:
- Thousands of People are Searching for Short Term Loan Companies Online
When people need money fast, where do they run for help?
Banks?
Heck no.
They’re heading to the closest place that offers them a good deal.
But how do they find this place?
Google.
The numbers don’t lie.
Every month, 9,800 people use search engines to find “short term loans” near them.
And 6,900 people click on the websites that show up when they search this.
That’s not all either.
“Home improvement loans” bring in 18,000 searches a month…
“Installment loans” 29,000…
And “signature loans” 4,700.
Lookup any service you offer (emergency loans, personal loans, payday loans, etc.), and you’ll find thousands of people are searching for it online.
That neighborhood you’ve always been targeting?
There are people in there that are looking for these keywords – but your website won’t show up in the search results!
Instead, their search results will show them another lender, and they’ll most likely take their business there.
With good search engine optimization, though, your site will be the first to pop up when they type these keywords into search engines.
That’s why you NEED SEO.
It’s not an option.
Your potential customers are heading online. So should you.
- Traditional Advertising Costs FAR More Than SEO (and Isn’t as Effective)
How effective has your postcard campaign been?
Or your radio advertisement?
Or maybe your billboard sign?
If you’re not sure, don’t worry. Almost no one is.
The biggest problem with traditional advertising is that it costs a LOT of money, and there’s no way to track if it’s working.
This forces you to guess.
It forces you to splurge into these channels and pray that people who need your money see it.
You pay to have your name put all over the place, and hope that someday someone will remember it when an emergency arises.
Now, that may work from time to time… but at what cost?
If only there were a way to advertise only to people you KNOW need your money.
Guess what?
There is.
It’s called search engine optimization.
Search Engine Optimization:
Traditional Advertising:
- Targets people specifically searching for your services
- Targets large areas where no one may need your money
- Reaches an unlimited amount of people organically
- Doesn’t reach anyone unless you continuously pay for it
- Super easy to track what’s working
- Impossible to know how effective it is
- Super high ROI
- Costs a fortune and has a tiny return rate
With SEO, you never have to guess anymore.
You don’t have to seek out people who need your money.
Instead, they’ll wind up right at your website.
Local vs. National SEO – Which is Better for Short Term Loan Companies?
There are two types of SEO: local and national.
For businesses offering loans, local SEO is far more important.
Local search engine optimization focuses on local keywords, such as “short-term loans in Orlando” or “home improvement loans near me.”
Any time there is a location on the keyword, that’s a local keyword.
These are what will drive people in your target areas to your business.
National SEO, on the other hand, focuses on all keywords related to short term loans.
This strategy is better if you’re targeting clients all over the country.
However, national SEO also plays a vital role in helping your local SEO – so don’t ignore it.
How to Improve Local SEO For Short Term Loan Companies
Now that you know why you need search engine optimization, it’s time to look at how.
How can you improve your local SEO and reach those clients you’re after?
Here are four things you should do RIGHT NOW to start ranking:
How To Improve Local SEO for Short Term Loan Companies Step #1: Set Up Your Google My Business Properly
If you haven’t already, sign up for Google My Business ASAP.
This is the crucial first step in getting your local SEO up and running – even more important than working on your website.
Without it, search engines will never put you on top.
Plus, Google My Business will also make it super easy for people to learn all about your business.
The good news is: all it takes is a few clicks to set up your Google My Business.
Head over to Google.com/business, click on “manage now,” and fill up your business details.
Once you verify your address, your profile will be up and running!
However, there are a few secrets to help you rank higher.
Firstly, you want to provide as much information as you can.
If possible, don’t leave anything blank. The more details you give about your business, the higher Google will rank you.
So tell everything there is to know about your business.
Next, you’ll want to add some keywords to your description.
Don’t stuff them in. But naturally add in words like “short term loans,” “installment loans,” or any other service you offer.
This way, Google will know what your business is and what type of financial services you provide.
Finally, you’ll need some great images.
Google will guide you through which photos you need to add (logo, banner, office, etc.).
Add everything they say, but don’t stop there.
Upload 3-4 more photos to show people what exactly your business is like. The more people see, the more they will trust you.
Expert tip: If a well-known influencer does business with you, ask them for a photo in front of your office. Then, with their permission, upload it to your Google My Business profile. It’s a sneaky little way to market your business that works.
How To Improve Local SEO for Short Term Loan Companies Step #2: Get Citations From Directory Sites
Once you’ve set up your Google My Business profile correctly, go get some citations.
Citations are anywhere on the web where your business name, address, and telephone number (NAP) appear.
The more your NAP appears on the web, the more Google trusts that your business is legit.
The best place to get these citations is on directory sites.
Sites like Yelp, Yellow Pages, and Merchant Circle are the easiest places to put your NAP. Plus, you can also get new clients directly from them.
You may also find your business already listed on a directory site. If so, claim it and edit any incorrect details.
You should also set up social media accounts.
Social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram are great places to build more citations.
Now, here’s where you have to be careful:
Your NAP should be 100% the same on every site.
If there’s any tiny typo in there, Google won’t count it as a citation.
7007 Read Blvd and 7007 Red Blvd are two completely different locations for search engines.
That said, you don’t have to worry about shortcuts too much.
7007 Read Blvd and 7007 Read Boulevard are the same in Google’s eyes.
Yes, try to make everything 100% the same, even down to the shortcuts. But don’t worry if you find a site or two that doesn’t allow you to.
How To Improve Local SEO for Short Term Loan Companies Step #3: Get High-Quality Customer Reviews (and Reply to Them)
Google wants the best businesses to be at the top.
And what better way to figure out who’s the best than by listening to customers themselves.
That’s why good customer reviews are vital for rankings.
Unfortunately, it’s way easier to attract bad reviews than good ones – especially for lenders.
Unhappy people are far more likely to leave a review than happy ones.
So how can you get more positive reviews?
Easy… ask for them.
Ask your customers nicely to leave a review. Let them know that it’ll be a big help for you and other future customers.
To make it easier for them, send them a review link.
Head over to your Google My Business profile. There you’ll find a “Get More Reviews” card. This will give you a short URL you can send to customers for a review.
You can’t force your clients to leave a review. Neither can you offer them something in exchange (this is against Google’s policy).
So send a friendly email asking for it and leave it up to them. You’ll be surprised at how many people want to be helpful.
Aside from that, you also want to reply to your reviews.
When they’re happy, thank them for their review publicly by replying to it.
If they’re unhappy, let them know you’re sorry and try to fix the problem.
Most people won’t edit their negative reviews, even if you were able to help them. But replying to these will also show others that you care.
Reviews aren’t only for ranking higher.
According to Forbes, 90% of consumers read online reviews.
Take these negative reviews as an opportunity to show the human side of your company. You can build trust with any potential clients reading by doing so.
How To Improve Local SEO for Tax Preparation Business Step #4: Target Local SEO Keywords for Short Term Loan Companies
Steps 1-3 will help you get into Google’s 3-pack – the first three businesses that show up when someone searches for something like “installment loans.”
Getting into the 3-pack is the ultimate goal of local SEO.
Once you’re up there, everyone that’s looking on search engines for your services will find you.
And the best part?
The closer someone is to your office, the bigger the chance you’ll show up on the 3-pack!
That said, that isn’t the only thing you should work towards.
Often, people in your area won’t type “installment loans” or some keyword that will trigger the 3-pack in search engines.
Instead, they’ll search for a keyword like “short term loans for bad credit Orlando,” or “short term loans no credit check Florida.”
That’s why you’ll need your website to go after these keywords.
Remember, not every keyword will bring up the 3-pack.
So sprinkle some local keywords around your website. Work on getting your pages to rank for these.
How to Improve National SEO for Short Term Loan Providers
Just because your target audience lives in a particular area doesn’t mean national search engine optimization is of no use to you.
If you focus solely on local SEO, you won’t get a strong domain rank.
A strong domain rank is vital for local SEO.
With it, your website will always be one of the firsts to show up.
But the only way you can get it is through national SEO methods:
How To Improve SEO for Short Term Loan Providers Tip #1: Build Quality Links
In traditional search engine optimization, link building is essential.
Your content will never rank #1 for any keyword unless you can get links from other good websites.
However, gone are the days when any link counted.
Today, your links have to be from a good website within your niche.
Links from unknown blog posts won’t do you any good. But a link from a trusted financial site will push your rankings up.
That’s why you should work on building these links.
How?
You could:
- Ask for backlinks
- Write a guest post
- Build relationships
- Perform case studies
- Start publishing your own blog posts
Doing these will gain you links and strengthen your domain rank to reach even more clients.
Note: building links with other local businesses will also help you with local SEO.
How To Improve SEO for Short Term Loan Providers Tip #2: Start a Blog and Publish Quality Content
Another way to boost your domain rank is by starting a blog.
When you do this and publish quality content, you’ll bring in waves of new traffic to your website.
There are a lot of people who have questions about loans.
Where do they go for answers?
Google.
That’s why you should provide great articles with the best answers on the internet to these questions.
You’ll not only rank higher, but you’ll establish yourself as an authority on these topics.
A little keyword research will show you what people are asking and what you should write about.
And when you answer people’s questions with your content, you’ll not only get more traffic but more links as well!
Note: If you’re writing about financial advice, you need to be EXTRA careful. Google is ultra-strict when it comes to YMYL – web pages that can affect people’s finances. So write a great article that is 100% true.
How To Improve SEO for Short Term Loan Providers Tip #3: Fix Technical SEO (or Hire a Web Developer)
Here’s some advice:
If you really want to rank higher, get a web developer.
This is because one key ranking factor is technical search engine optimization.
Technical SEO deals with complicated errors in your web pages. Errors that aren’t immediately obvious and incredibly difficult to fix.
If your web pages are full of these, you’ll never rank.
To fix these, you’ll need to know how to code and edit template files… not something most lenders want to get into.
But if you do. If you love working on technical errors, here’s what you should look for and fix to rank higher:
Crawl errors
Schema markups
Broken links
Mobile-friendliness
Page speed
And more.
Honestly though? You’ll probably want a web developer to look into these.
How To Improve SEO for Short Term Loan Providers Tip #4: Create a User-Friendly Website
Finally, you’ll need a website with excellent user experience.
You want a site that’s simple, clean, and super easy to use.
Visitors should find exactly what they’re looking for right away.
Because if they don’t – if your website is too fancy or overly complicated – they’ll click the back button and you’ll lose a client.
You also want a website that keeps your users on your site for as long as possible.
Put up infographics, videos, and images that will keep them peeled to your page.
The longer they stay, the higher your rank goes.
Also, when you have a neat site that makes it super easy for visitors to apply for loans, there’s a much bigger chance they will.
So pay attention to user experience – it may win you a bunch of clients.
Conclusion
Search engine optimization takes a LOT of work to get started.
You’ll pour so much effort into it, and you won’t see anything happening for the first few weeks (maybe even months).
But as you work hard, it will click eventually.
And when it does?
Boy will it be worth it.
Everybody looking for fast money will find you and find you FIRST.
You’ll finally get to that part of town you’ve been eyeing for years.
You expand your business, open new branches, and reach new areas!
This isn’t your typical method of advertising.
With SEO, your business will experience steady growth for the years to come.
