Search engine optimization (SEO) is no longer just for digital marketers who care about how their website looks. With the increasing importance of websites in Google’s algorithmic listings, website optimization is as important as ever.
If your website doesn’t accurately reflect who you are, what you sell, and why you’re different from your competitors, your ranking in search results will suffer. Consider the following tips for making your website the number one destination for searchers looking to find your business or site.
SEO Basics
To rank well in the search engines, your site must be optimized for a few different things. The first is your website’s own domain name. This should point to your website, and not to a different domain name registered in your name.
If your URL is incorrect or doesn’t point back to your site, you won’t be able to rank well in search results. A website’s Google rating is directly related to its ranking in the results section of Google.
To maximize the chances of your site appearing in the top organic results, you need to ensure it is optimizable for SEO. A few SEO tips include:
- Always include your website’s domain name in your domain name (usually the final part of the URL). If your URL is incorrect or doesn’t point back to your site, you won’t be able to rank well in search results.
- Don’t just rely on keyword research and SEO to rank well. Make sure your site is optimizable for both internal and external links, and that it is making use of alt tags and other SEO-friendly techniques.
- Use alt tags to offer alternate translations for keywords. For example, if your keyword is “best SEO services”, you could include “US” in your alt tags to offer your site as the best choice for content and keyword research in the United States.
Answer Keywords
Keyword research is what helps you choose the right keywords to include in your site’s title and meta-descriptions. This is incredibly important because it determines how likely a potential customer is to click on your site, and how long they will stay on your site before searching elsewhere.
SEO experts recommend including keywords in the titles, meta-descriptions, and sub-heads of your site that have been associated with relevant topics or brands. And don’t forget to include these keywords in your content, too. They should appear throughout your blog’s content as well as its footer and sidebar.
Keep It Simple
The most important thing you can do to increase your chances of success with SEO is to ensure that your site follows a basic format. If you’re selling a product or have a blog, stick to a format that’s easy to understand.
Even if people are the ones who understand your content, it’s still better to have your visitors feel as if they do than have them doubt their own conclusions.
For example, if you sell alcohol, don’t go overboard with details. Be concise and to the point. Those who don’t need to know about the types of alcohol, where you sell it, and how to purchase it.
Similarly, if you’re an online resource for gardening and flowers, leave out the scientific terms and numbers. Those who are interested in gardening or flowers might be interested in your product, not a detailed explanation of how to grow them successfully.
Make Your Site accessible
To make your site accessible to a wider audience, it’s essential to make it as user-friendly as possible. This includes making your site’s navigation user-friendly and making the site’s structure simple and easy to navigate.
Your site’s structure and navigation need to be easy to understand, and they should make sense to the average user. A well-maintained site is likely to receive higher page rankings and more conversions, both organically and through the magic of Google’s algorithms.
Your site’s structure and navigation need to be easy to understand, and they should make sense to the average user. A well-maintained site is likely to receive higher page rankings and more conversions, both organically and through the magic of Google’s algorithms.
Use Quality Over Quantity
One reason why certain keywords resonate better than others is likely because they’re used more frequently by higher-quality site visitors. You can boost your chances of success by choosing a keyword or two from each of the following lists:
High Volume Keywords
These are keywords that generate lots of results and have a high chance of ranking well.
Keyword Research
Use a keyword research tool to find the most popular keywords on the internet. For example, if you sell auto glass, you can use Google’s search engine to find the top 25 keywords related to your business.
Backlink Building
Here’s where you take advantage of the fact that people link to your site. Google has made it very easy for website owners to build and manage backlinks, so you don’t have to. Learn more here
Use Graphics And Sound Effectiveness
The more engaging your site is, the more likely it is to be loaded quickly, and the longer your visitors will be on it before they decide to find a better site to browse through.
Your site’s navigation and navigation features should include a balance of images, videos, and other forms of affective and engaging content that your visitors can relate to.
Your site’s visuals need to make sense to users, and they need to be relevant to the content on your site. You should include images, videos, and other media that help your site stand out from the crowd. Your site’s visuals need to include:
- Keywords and content related to your topic. These should appear in the alt tags, and in the body text of your images.
- Visuals that capture your site’s main benefits. For example, an image that shows a magazine page with the headline “The best SEO services” would be an effective visual for your site.
- Other forms of effective and engaging content such as infographics, tables, and GIFs.
Use Data To Drive Decisions
Did you know that the more data you provide Google about your site, the more it’ll show you? In fact, Google will rank your site higher if you choose options that are more accurate or useful to its search results.
For example, if you sell pharmaceuticals, write a detailed blog post about how your medication works, what it’s used for, and the side effects. Then, include detailed information about the type of pharmacist you use, the number of patients you see each month, and the average income of your patients.
Be Transparent
If you want people to trust you and your products or services, you have to be transparent about where you’re getting your information from. That’s why it’s important to clearly and prominently state the sources of your information at the bottom of each page on your site.
For example, if you sell auto glass, include a link to the company’s website so your potential customers can check you out in one place. Likewise, if you sell flowers, include a link to the item’s website so your visitors can learn more about the flowers and their culture.
The Show, Don’t Just Tell
As you’re building your site, it’s a good idea to include a section called “the show” that contains detailed information about your business and the services you provide. This information should include:
- The benefits your clients will receive from each service, as well as a breakdown of the pricing for each option.
- A detailed description of your services, including the services you offer, and how they can help your clients achieve their desired outcomes.
- The costs associated with each service. For example, an SEO service that includes keyword research, a website optimization service, and a full-blown marketing campaign would be overpriced.
Conclusion
The more users that find your site through Google’s search engine results, the more likely it is that those users will come back to your site to discover more about your brand or products.
That means you have to do everything you can to make your site appear as high as possible in search results. Your website’s structure, navigation, and effective use of graphics, videos, and other content elements can help you do just that.
