Improve Your SEO Immediately
It’s an Ongoing Process
If you aren’t going up, then you’re going down.
At least that’s the way it works for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). If you aren’t evaluating your website at least once a month to ensure that you are trending upwards on search engine appearances, then your company needs to start doing so immediately.
If your site is in hot water in terms of SEO, then long and sustained adjustments to your company’s marketing strategy are the only sure way out. However, there are several things that you can do to improve your website’s SEO immediately.
In this post, we will go over a few things you can do right now to improve your SEO. Follow these tips and you will see results almost instantaneously.
Make Your Site Right
Below are some tips to make your website work for Google and other search engines.
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Have a clear and well-organized site map.
A functioning sitemap should be organized and structured, clearly leading readers and developers to desired information using a logical pattern. Not only will this help your reader (and your friendly local developer!) find their way on your site, but it will also help search engines find and prioritize your pages.
A well-thought-out site map is the best way to get people past your home page.
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Title Your Pages.
You want people to know the topic they’re reading about when they go on a given page, so make sure each page has a relevant, keyword-rich page title that is concise and easy to comprehend. An excellent page title will be short and to the point. Don’t try to jam as many keywords as possible into your title. Instead, use one keyword that people are searching for (according to your analytics).
Have clear page titles or else people and search engines will skip past your page.
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Make use of Google Analytics.
You won’t go very far in the SEO game unless you are regularly checking your analytics. Many companies get a “new member bump” when their site first goes live on Google and assume the future is bright. A fresh face and blind luck can only take you so far. If you want to truly get ahead, take advantage of Google Analytics. Google Analytics’ basic package is free for small businesses and offers your business profound insight into customer behavior, user experience, device functionality, and more.
Find out what your site is missing on Google Analytics. Your competitors are!
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Explore Google Search Console.
Google Search Console is similar to Google Analytics in that it gives you data to improve your SEO rankings and customer experience. The difference is Google Search Console is more focused on issues with your site, rather than customer trends. Google Search Console will let you monitor server errors and site loading issues.
The number one reason people click away from your site is poor loading times. Google Search Console will make sure your site is running right.
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Optimize your H1’s.
The average business owner does not understand the importance of an H1. H1s are the subject heading of a page on your site. Secondary to the page title, they tell the reader and search engine exactly what the page is about. They can provide more detail than the page title and will often include a secondary keyword. In most cases, the page title and the H1 will be the same. An H1 essentially fills out your page for SEO by providing a precise description that appears on the top of the webpage.
Make sure your reader understands what they are reading about. Write a well-thought-out H1 and watch your engagement soar.
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Put keywords in titles and subtitles.
When you skim a page, what do your eyes fall on first? The prominent (and often bolded) titles and subtitles. The same thing is true with search engines. A proper subtitle will break the body of text into distinct sections and allow both readers and search engines to get a more detailed idea of the information the page contains. Make sure your titles and subtitles are rich with keywords (from your Google Analytics review) to ensure search engines can connect potential customers to your site.
Proper keyword usage in your titles and subtitles will make information on your page easier to identify.
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Make use of metadata.
Many business owners think that if they title their page and write high-quality content then users will flock to their site. Unfortunately, this just isn’t true. Search engines need overt instruction to identify relevant information correctly. Because of this, it is essential to fill out your metadata and alt tags. This includes page descriptions, keywords, image alt text, and image captions (if relevant). Anything you can do to directly tell the search engine what information the page contains will be a huge plus.
Use metadata to tell search engines exactly what you have to offer customers. This will take out the guesswork on the search engine’s part.
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Remove out-of-date or under-performing pages.
Old content hinders your site. In a time where sales and reputation are driven by search engine performance, your business can’t afford any dead weight. Look at your site with a critical eye and determine what content is working and what isn’t. Google Analytics will help, but more relevant is your expertise in your field. If you are struggling to determine which content isn’t working, there are dozens of content experts (like Legend Web Works!) who can help you find your weak links.
Remove or refresh under-performing pages, or else they’ll only hurt you. Sometimes less is more!
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Make sure your site agrees with mobile.
More and more people are moving to mobile for their web searches. If your site is poorly formatted or glitchy on mobile, you’re losing out on a large chunk of potential customers. Check your site on mobile often on several different web browsers. If there is an issue with how the site appears or you struggle to load all of your content, you need to make this change immediately.
Fix your mobile site and you will see a dramatic increase in sales conversions.
A Healthy Site Makes a Happy Business
If you want your business to stay competitive in the modern world, then improving your SEO is essential.
Use the tips above to yield immediate improvement. However, the best results don’t come from actions you can take in one day. Instead, for the most noticeable improvements, invest in long-term sustained changes. This includes regularly posting to social media and producing informational blog posts.
In other words, you need to constantly put out fresh content with helping the customer in mind. Yearly content refreshes and bi-yearly website redesigns are another great way to stay on top. A modern look and helpful content can do wonders towards building your brand value.
Sound like a full-time job? It is! Because of this, many businesses are choosing to outsource their SEO and content creation to experts in the field. Legend Web Works is just such a company. We’ve helped businesses all over the state of Ohio and Kentucky rebuild the value of their brand and get found on Google and social media.
Want to take your business to the next level? Turn over your content management to Legend Web Works today.
