SEO Strategy—How To Rank Your Ministry On Google
Keywords Solve Problems
To rank on Google, you need to solve a problem. These are going to be your primary keywords that your audience will search for online. Some will be more obvious than others—for example, if you serve a group of women who need help studying God’s word for themselves, you may want to get specific with the type of woman you’re serving, age, learning style, topic-based, etc. The more specific you are at naming the problem, the clearer it will be for Google to rank your ministry.
Don’t overthink SEO or over-keyword your content—the key to ranking on Google is posting consistently!
Long Form Keyword
This is going to be more specific searches on Google. Your audience will have a clear idea of what they want and need. They will have a clear idea of what they need answered or what question they need answering. Some of your audience will know the problem they need solving by niching down in the specific need they are looking for.
EXAMPLE: Long Tail Keyword
Instead of “How to start a ministry”, they might search for “ How to start an online ministry for women over 40”.
Short Form Keyword
This is when your audience has no clue what their problem is. They will search for basic key terms (less than 5 words) related to the problem they have or the issue they need solving.
EXAMPLE: Short Tail Keyword
If someone is looking to start a ministry, they might just start with “ How to start a ministry”.
Find Your Own Keyword
What keywords should I be ranking for?
As an online ministry, who you’re called to serve is going to be the first keyword you’re going to rank for. This is your niche, sphere of influence and marketplace mandate. Next, you want to rank for keywords that your ministry is going to be known for; this can be from the content you create to the products or services you offer. Be as specific as possible, even if it doesn’t come up that people are searching for it—sometimes you have to stand out vs just follow what’s trending.
Ranking for KEYWORDS everyone else is trying to rank for is definitely a way to not get found in an overcrowded market.
You should be ranking for things that separate you from other ministries; this means it isn’t going to be the same as everyone else's. Remember, you can’t control the algorithm; you can only feed it with the content you create!
Ranking Your Ministry On Google
Will My Ministry Rank On Google?
Depending on the algorithm and the content you create and the demand of your audience, ranking your ministry (blog/website) on Google can take anywhere from 3 months to 2 years. Please note that ranking on Google isn’t guaranteed; posting consistently or finding other ways to draw traffic to your ministry organically is always going to be the best use of your time.
Remember SEO is a part of it. So if your content isn’t helping anyone or solving a problem, then no amount of keywords and strategy is going to help your ministry rank higher. SEO is a long game; it isn’t something you do once and your ministry gets found. You have to put in the work and keep creating content your audience wants to see.
