SEO or search engine optimization represents a set of techniques and practices used to optimize the website and raise its ranking in the search engine results page. When executed properly, it is an excellent way to increase traffic coming towards your website and is particularly useful for small businesses which don’t have the same budget for advertising as large companies do. However, bad SEO can have quite the adverse effect and could potentially result in getting your website completely omitted from the search results.
Mobile-first and responsive web design are a must!
Considering the fact that over a half of all internet traffic now comes from mobile devices, it’s important to have a website which is mobile-first, or at least responsive. This is one of the key factors the search algorithm looks for when ranking your website, so make sure to avoid spending all your time, effort and resources into making a desktop-first website only to have it outranked by the competition. Well, the optimized mobile-first website allows for a better mobile user experience, which is another factor you have to take into consideration.
Create a Blog
Search engines absolutely love blogs. To be more specific, they love well-written and regularly updated content and blogging is by far the easiest way to generate content regularly. You can use it for a number of different purposes, such as keeping the public up to date with the latest website developments or answering any questions customers might have. Additionally, a blog is an excellent way to engage with customers as it allows them to leave comments and reviews, which is known in the industry as passive content.
Produce Engaging Content
Once you’ve set up both your website and the blog, it’s time to fill them with content. All the content you produce must be original, relevant and most importantly engaging. The best way to ensure that is to use content and keyword research, which will give you information about how people search for products and services and incorporate that information into your content creation process. Use appropriate title tags and meta descriptions for each post you make and don’t forget to properly name and optimize the images.
Use Appropriate Keywords
Once you’ve done the research, it’s time to incorporate those keywords into your content, using the best available keyword research tools. They are vital for any SEO strategy, as they help both the users and search engines with figuring out what your website is about. The best way to do this is to separate the pages on your website that have content on and use separate keywords for separate pages. By doing that you direct the customer towards a page which is best suited for answering their questions. Avoid overstuffing your articles with keywords, as this will only get your website down-ranked by the search engines.
Focus on local SEO
Setting organic search results aside, you also want to rank well within local pack listings. To start, you should open up a Google My Business page with proper description, category, contact information and information describing the purpose of your business, high-quality profile and cover picture and if relevant, closing and opening hours. NAP or name, address, and phone number consistency are also important so make sure to make that information accessible from every page of your website. Finally, work on getting reviews from your customers. Although Google reviews are considered to be a top priority, don’t forget to focus on reviews from sites like Yelp and local directories.
Use Analytics to refine your strategies
Measuring and evaluating the results of your search engine optimization efforts is vital for success, as it provides vital information you can use to further tweak and improve your SEO strategy. Google Analytics is an excellent tool for measuring organic traffic over time and providing you with information regarding your target audience. This includes what browser they’re using, from where and when did they access your website, how long they’ve stayed on each page, etc. You can use this insight to further improve the visitor’s browsing experience.
Focus on Social Media Marketing
One of the best ways to grow and maintain your brand’s influence is to use social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and other niche communities. Include links to your social media profiles on your website and maintain them regularly. Social media is excellent for engaging with your customers, and also provides you with additional marketing without any cost. Google and other search engines rank interconnected websites higher than those with no social media links. And it works wonders for positive brand association and awareness.
Author bio: Steven Clarke is a digital marketing specialist at SEO Adelaide. In his spare time, he likes to write about his ideas and share them with the world. Steven is a regular contributor to several websites.
