Below we have prepared a well thought and researched piece, that will not only improve your website viewership but also equip you with the necessary tactics required in search engine optimization (SEO).
With the presence of mass information on the internet, Google uses several SEO factors to filter and determine what appears top and last. In our experience, we noticed content has the greatest weightage. Some of our websites started to rank on the first page of Google within three months for some of the very high difficulty keywords with high-quality content and some traffic to the website. The best part was we had a very small number of keywords.
Based on the past results, we were able to shortlist strategies that have been the most effective, for example, creating enticing titles to increase the click through rate, using visuals, images and videos on your pages increase the engagement rate, using internal links to other useful articles on the website, speeding up the page load time and link to other quality sites to increase readership. Also, create content that can be viewed and read on mobile phones.
Ranking determinants in SEO
1. Content
Content is one of the elements considered in ranking, It is wise to compose compelling website content that is related to the main topic of discussion. It enhances the page relevance. For instance, if you are writing about Facebook marketing and advertising, explain in detail what it entails. Share ideas, opinions, solutions and experiences about Facebook marketing only. Use the keywords wisely, not too much or not too little. Do not over think! Just keep it natural.
Compose detailed, well-researched and compelling content that expounds more about the title. Ensure all content is authentic. Direct copying from other sources or plagiarism is illegal.
2. Content age
Content age is an important SEO factor. Outdated articles may lose their rankings if they are no longer considered to be useful. Remember we are writing content to rank on the search engines and drive traffic to the most useful articles for years to come. However, Google does not consider outdated content useful. Hence, if your article is about the fast changing technology, then it is necessary that you select the title wisely, to sustain your rankings and traffic over a long period of time.
Example 1
Writing on a topic about environmental degradation cannot be customized. However, writing about how to setup and use a desktop can be modified. In some few years to come, desktops will be nonexistent people will shift to lighter and more convenient gadgets such as laptops and tablets. Therefore, it is wiser to discuss on how to set up computers, in general to create room for discussing the new types of computers at a time.
Example 2
As technology advances, researchers are aggressively looking for more convenient options that will replace existing technological appliances. For example, in the near future chargers may be deemed unnecessary. Innovators are researching on new ways to charge your phone without necessarily plugging into the charger. Thus writing an article on chargers may be considered vague days to come. Creatively come up with content that will last long.
Example 3
For articles titled ‘Best dresses in 2021’, every year, update the article and change the year in the title to keep the content up to date. Here is a secret tip, do not use the year name in the url of the blog post.
3. Use videos and images
Videos and images play a vital role when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO). They depict reality. Statistics show that the brain is more receptive to visuals compared to text, individuals remember 80% of what they see and 20% of what they read. The brain is also perceived to process images 60 000 times faster. If you are writing about dog bandanas include captions of them. images of dog bandanas
Also, use original high-quality photos and videos. Apart from enhancing uniqueness; they will prevent you or the company from getting sued for infringing copyright laws.
4. Write headings that entice the target audience
Headings are crucial for search engine optimization. Their effect cannot be underestimated. A badly composed title with a creatively written body can fail to be viewed and read because of the title. The title is significant and carries mass weight in SEO. Make sure it is related to the body, concise and captivating. It increases clicks to your website. You can optimize your title and monitor the change in your click through rate in Google Analytics.
5. Build quality internal and external links.
External Link Building
It is advisable to link your website to other quality sites, also known as high authority websites, that contain related quality information that can benefit the readers.
High-quality External links from other sites play a magical role in boosting your ranking, if done correctly. We do not believe in the outdated “black hat” SEO link building techniques. Gray hat SEO techniques are acceptable but may not drive any real traffic or benefit. The only white SEO technique we truly believe in is “creating original link worthy content” through research and analysis.
Also, businesses should include links to their social media pages belonging such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube among others. It helps Google identify legit companies. As Consequently, enhances the trust factor of the website.
Internal Link Building
These are links that help navigate from one page to another on a website. They are critical as they help distribute equal power on website pages as you go through each. Internal linking plays an important part in SEO and drives traffic from one part of the website to the other.
Include links of other pieces that you wrote in the past in present articles. Interlinking creates an avenue for readers to seek more information on other articles, thus enhancing content value. This is a clear indication to Google that people are liking the website content. Afterall, Google’s aim is to provide useful content to its users so they continue to use the service endlessly.
6. Page loading speed
Google considers slow page load speed as a bad user experience and discredit your website for poor user experience. As a result, you may lose your current ranking despite all your seo efforts.
Page loading speed is the amount of time it takes to open a webpage. Type of content on the website and the hosting server are some of the factors that affect page load speed. Low page loading speed can significantly reduce your chances of ranking high on Google search. It eventually results in loss of customers.
Here are some tips to reduce the load-time:
- Minimize the image size
- Do not use too many large images on the website
- Do not directly upload videos to the website, instead upload them to YouTube, then embed the YouTube videos on your website to keep the page size small.
- Do not use too much of animation
- Optimize web caches
Remember 1 second improvement in the page load time can result in 7% increase in the conversion rate.
7. User testing
Google detects when visitors frequently visit your website and takes time scrolling it and clicking on the links to other articles, sends out a signal to Google that the readers are finding the content helpful. For this reason, your content will eventually rank high in the search engines.
8. Domain ranks
The Domain rank is also crucial when choosing a domain name. Ensure it is brief, unique, has no hyphens, is captivating, inspiring and meaningful. The name of the brand should resemble the domain name. This will positively contribute to your search engine optimization efforts.
9. Organization information
Include information about your organization in the “About us” Page. Sum up the services you offer, terms of service and privacy policies, for instance, if it is a hospital’s website, write in detail the types of disease you treat and some of the medication you offer to different patients. It is also advised that you include the privacy policy on your website. There are standard privacy policy pages available online, Google will not give you a penalty for using duplicate content on your privacy policy page.
Other important factors
Apart from the above-mentioned factors that aid in search engine optimization, there are other factors that the organization should not overlook. Ensure the content is mobile friendly. This means that readers can not only access the information on computers but also phones.
Do not duplicate content from other websites and finally remove broken links and any malware from your website to ensure a steady upward trend in your rankings.
Conclusion
To sum it up, search engine optimization is a result achieved after website owners’ consider and adhere to all the factors highlighted above. It is important to comply with all of them to maximize traffic on your website.