Norwegian internet user profile
When it comes to SEO, Norway will be a demanding market. While planning a Norway-oriented SEO process, the very first thing you need to know is who is your average internet user and how many people have access to the Internet. The internet access prevalence exceeds 90% of households, with about 40% of broadband connections. In short, Norway, like other Scandinavian countries, is a pioneer when it comes to digitalization. Already the 2011 data showed over 3.5 million unique online users per over 5 million inhabitants. However, user demographics are quite surprising! In Norway, the largest group of Internet users are older people - 55 years and older. However, younger users - 15 to 24 years old - are the most active; this is the case in other European countries, too. What's essential for planning online marketing success in Norway, is that to purchase a .no domain you must be an owner of a Norwegian company with a special ID number. In short - no free trade for Norwegian domestic domains! On top of that, many Norwegian online services are paid-only, offering quality content to their subscribers. Both these points indicate to tight interest protection in Norway and inventive revenue maximization seeking.SEO - Norway Top Search Engines
As in most countries (Russia and the Czech Republic being notable exceptions when it comes to search engines) Google is Norway's search engine leader; almost 94% of Internet of users therein use google.no. Ex aequo right behind Google is local Kvasir and Microsoft Bing - about 3% of market share for both these search engines. Therefore, the SEO process needs to be focused primarily on Google, especially as Kvasir is not exactly "SEO friendly". There is also an insignificant percentage of Yahoo and AVG search engines users.SEO Norway-tailored highlights
As a rule, SEO in Norway is not much different from the one tailored for other European countries, however, there are some interesting distinctions. First of all, the Norwegians pay attention to the visual aspect of the website - images seem to appeal better to them than text, which is why, layout optimization, including colors, UX, etc. needs to be the first phase of a new online marketing campaign. The next step will of course be keyword-oriented content optimization. Just as in the case of any other country, the keyword overkill needs to be avoided - it's the unique, high-quality on-site content that increases the conversion rate. Importantly, in the case of Norway local SEO is paramount. It's a very large country, divided into several areas differing e.g. in climate, terrain, and many other factors; those characteristics themselves can speak volumes about local industry opportunities. If you are targeting a wide audience, try to optimize your website for Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger, and Trondheim - these are the largest urban areas there. Backlinks and sponsored links campaigns cannot be overlooked, too - and the rules are pretty much the same for Norway as for any European country. The link building process is a must. It is worth noting, however, that Norwegians hate overt advertising - while this aversion applies more to outdoor advertising, the sentiment influences the virtual world, too. Both global and local keywords fare well in the Norwegian online market - hence SEO opportunities are vast there.Promote your business on social media!
As in the case of pretty much any country, brand building in Norway takes social media activity. The social media process is actually of great benefit for SEO, supporting the search engine optimization. The same is true for other Scandinavian countries. Considering that this is the area where most homes have internet access in the whole world, the hours that people spend browsing various social media channels shouldn't come as a surprise.- Facebook is a Norwegian social media leader. with about 61% of all Norwegian internet users active there, as the research has shown.
- Twitter, too, is becoming more and more popular in Scandinavian countries. In May 2012, 11% of Norwegian internet users had an account. Considering Twitter's growth since entering the Norwegian market, there should be about 30% of Internet users now.
- YouTube is the fourth most-visited website in Norway. Videos from the most popular channels have over 600,000 views, and these are: THLR.NO - where firearms are discussed, Chess.no - lifestyle channel and Telia Norge - featuring tech content.
- The next top player is LinkedIn - certainly the fastest growing social network in Norway. Back in 2012, over 600 00 Norwegians had an account.
- We cannot forget about Google+! Not massively popular in the Scandinavian countries, but crucial for search engine optimization in Norway, as Google crawlers considers websites with G+ business accounts more trustworthy. Curiously enough, the most Google+ users in this country are based in Oslo.
- biip.no - Tinder-like social network for teenagers If interested in a given person, you can communicate it with a like; no need to include them in your personal network of friends.
- underskog.no - a network focused on cultural events, featuring an event calendar as its core.
SEO Norway opportunities - the top industries
Expats in Norway are fierce business-wise, seeking opportunities to increase their chances of succeeding. However, they often throw themselves in the deep end, trying to win the market with a product or service there's no demand for. The industries known for being rich in relatively safe business opportunities are:- construction - in Norway migrants do not only constitute a cheap manual labor workforce but also are one of the key exporters of high-quality building materials
- wood industry - 80% of Norway is forested, which is why wood is the most important export product
- furniture - modern and ergonomic furniture enjoy great popularity among Norway residents
- windows - while in Norway, notice the manufacturers' logos on the windows - in most houses the glass comes from other countries, e.g. Poland. Why? Import is much cheaper than buying a domestic product.
- IT - for developers, Norway-oriented IT outsourcing business plan has a generally positive outlook. Especially for developers from CEE countries (Central and Eastern Europe) rich in well-educated millennials who take IT services to a higher level of quality, at the same time offering competitive pricing.
- renewable sources of energy - Norwegians are famous for their care for the natural environment, which is why photovoltaics, solar thermal collectors and other renewable energy solutions enjoy great popularity in Scandinavia.