SEO: How’s Your Searchability?

Today, most people use Google or another search engine to find people, companies and resources they are interested in. Sometimes, even today, it can be difficult to find a specific person online. The big issue for professionals like you is that nine out of 10 people will search for information about you online before attending a meeting. If you can’t be found, it does not give a good impression. And worse, a potential client may just end up finding someone else.

Here are four simple and quick ways to increase your online presence and searchability.

Update your free Google tools, including Google Profiles, Google Places and Google+. Make sure your profiles are filled out completely. I watched someone who had not come up in an online search create a Google Profile and within seconds land in the top 10 listings. (AP Photo: Mark Lennihan)

A complete LinkedIn profile is often one of the first things that will appear in a Google name search. It seems simple, but make sure you have added your picture, work experience, summary, searchable headlines and a public profile. It really helps people find you and, rest assured, they will check you out on LinkedIn. (AP Photo: Paul Sakuma)

Your website needs to be set up to be searchable so someone can find you. Have a conference with your website provider to discuss updating your meta tags, site descriptions, keywords, headers and other things that tell the search engines where to find you.