The importance of search engine optimisation (SEO) for your website can’t be overstated. With more people searching for products and services online than ever before, and with attention spans getting shorter, if your business isn’t on the first page of the search engine results pages (SERPs), very few people will scroll further to find you and buy from your business.
So how can you make that climb up the search engine rankings, especially if you’re a new or small business and you don’t have the budget?
Read on for some simple ideas that will have you zipping up the rankings in no time:
1. Site speed
Google uses site speed as a key indicator for where a site should rank in the SERPs, so choose an experienced web design company for your business site and make sure to find a reliable web host.
2. Mobile readiness
So many people search via their mobile phone or tablet now that if your site isn’t fully device-responsive, it will stay very low in the rankings; the search engines now give preference to responsive sites in mobile search.
3. Keywords
Keywords aren’t as vital as they used to be in SEO as Google is now looking at user experience as a whole, but you should still do your research for the right keywords to focus on for your business.
When writing a blog post, use the main keyword you want to rank for in the title of the post, and early in the first paragraph. Edit the meta-description (the text that appears below your post link in the search engines) so it includes your primary keyword, and so the copy is enticing enough to get searchers to click through.
4. Content
When writing content, write naturally, for humans not bots, to give the reader the content they want.
Google and the other search engines are now searching copy for keywords to determine relevance, but they are also giving greater weight to natural, well-written text that includes synonyms for the main keyword, and related keywords; for example, if you’re writing about computers, you might mention laptops, desktops or PCs in your copy.
5. Images
When you upload images to your site or blog, use the same main keyword you want to rank for in the image description and the alternative text to boost the relevance of your page or post.
Try all of these techniques and you’ll be working your way up the rankings naturally, quickly and easily, without blowing your budget.
Contact Image Concepts on 01423 900590 if you’d like some help with your website design or SEO.