Search engine optimization is all about making things easier for search engines. Techniques that help search engines find your web content and then rank it against similar websites are the key focus of SEO. Search engine optimization is basically the foundation for a high ranking on search engines, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo.
Keep in mind how people search for you or your product. Use SEO to give your content a better chance of appearing at the top of the search engine rankings. The relevance of your text to the keywords searched is what determines your ranking. For example, if you are writing an article about cars, you should use more keywords for cars that are relevant to that topic.
In the process of setting up your website, consider the following:
#1 Understand customers
When you’re improving your search ranking, one important thing to consider is your customer’s behaviour. You should understand the cycle of their searches through the buying process. For example, what is a person’s search pattern like before a purchase?
Have you ever been in a situation when you were aware of a problem that needs fixing and searched for potential solutions? For example, ‘leaking tap’. That’s when search engines like Google and Bing can help. They use broad search terms to locate possible solutions that are relevant to your search.
When customers are done searching, they’ll need to find the right product for them. The customer will search for keywords that include location, product type, or product features. For example, ‘plumber in or plumbers in (location)’.
There’s no need to guess who the customer wants to purchase from. They’ll often search for the service provider by name, such as ‘John Doe Plumbing.’
#2 Use keywords
A keyword is something that will lead a customer to your site. For example, mens shoes and ‘where do I buy mens shoes’ are both considered keywords.
Getting the words right! Part of SEO is matching your website’s keywords with those used by your customers. You can start this by including popular keywords or phrases in places such as the page title, the content, or the name of the image file.
Think of some keywords that you want to use. A customer might use these keywords when searching for your business, so make sure to include them. Anything a customer might type into a search engine can be considered a keyword or phrase.
Tip: strike the right balance between keywords and readability. It’s important to include keywords in your content, but don’t overuse them. Make sure your content reads naturally.
#3 Refresh content
New content is the key to website success. Every week, add something new – whether it be a new product or service, a customer story or a product video. Website content should be updated at least every six months and old and irrelevant content should be removed.
With search engines visiting your website more often, you’re able to get your content in front of them more often. This leads to more frequent indexing and the potential for a higher ranking.
#4 Build links
To rank your page well in search results, you need to get links to your website from external websites. To the search engines, links are an indication of how much other people have trusted your content to be accurate, relevant, or useful.
When it comes to links, not all are created equal. Links from more reputable sites have more ‘weight’ applied than less reputable sites. As websites gain more links from reputable sources, their rank increases.
#5 Meta Description
The meta description is a little-known tag that tells your customers and search engines what you’re about. It’s also a great opportunity to make sure they know up-front what they’ll find on your page. This tells search engines how relevant your content is and gives them the information to rank your page better. The more relevant your content, the better ranking you’ll achieve.
Also see: Search Engine Optimization Tips For a Successful Strategy
Wrapping Up
It’s extremely important to check if your content needs updating. Search engines are constantly changing how they use your content, including descriptions. If you want your pages to be found, it’s important to keep up with the times. If you find this is exciting, wait till you learn about digital marketing in detail. Digital marketing is the act of endorsing goods, services, and brands through online media channels. This method of advertising is used by companies to reach their target audience. It can be done through a variety of websites, social media, email, and even your mobile phone. Are you ready to learn more?