Return to site

Choose the broad topics you'd like to rank for

What used to be a handful of on-page, off-page, and architecture factors has evolved into hundreds of signaling attributes fed through a complex algorithm that is constantly being refined and learning from your behavior. Google’s number-one mission is to answer users’ queries in as little clicks as possible. So it’s a common-sense assumption that SERP features such as Featured Snippets and Related Questions significantly reduce the overall number of clicks to sites, including your own. Every SERP is unique, even for search queries performed on the same search engine using the same keywords or search queries. This is because virtually all search engines customize the experience for their users by presenting results based on a wide range of factors beyond their search terms. he no follow link tag has done a lot of good for the online world – most SEO spammers won’t bother posting irrelevant links to blogs or forum posts if they know they won’t get to publish a follow link. WordPress automatically assigns the no follow link attribute to all user-submitted links, and Wikipedia does the same for its reference section. Things can always be improved, they can be represented better, the story told could be more engaging, inviting to your audience. It is this type of attitude that will stand you in good stead, instead of thinking that you have done everything you can.

Compare duplicate content to being on a crossroad

Search engines audiences are “in demand” mode and already tell you what they are looking for. This makes them a fantastic pre-qualified market to tap into. If you wish to drive revenue from new business and but find other lead generation tactics ineffective, this is a key platform to consider. The overall objective of SEO is to optimise a website for search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. Beware, excessive linking, either internal or external can lead to the exact opposite results. Make sure that every link serves its own purpose in your content. Use relevant and accurate meta descriptions, title tags and alt text throughout your site. When Google demotes your page for duplicate content practices, and there’s nothing left in the way of unique content to continue ranking you for – your web pages will mostly be ignored by Google.

Word count is a complicated SEO metric

You should make sure that all of your websites (if you have more than one) link to each other, as this search engines can often base page ranking on how many links you have with other sites. This is especially the case if the two websites have similar content and share major keywords. Gut, brain, intuition, emotional intelligence, whatever you want to call it, humans can’t be beat for determining relevance. The easiest way to build high quality links are what SEOs call “web 2.0s.” That’s just a way to say “social sites” or sites that let you post stuff. Now tweeting a link into the abyss won’t do you anything, but profiles, status pages, etc. do carry some weight. And if they come from a popular domain that counts as a link. Are internal links as valuable as external links? If you want to generate traffic through search, it’s best to do keyword research before you start writing. This way, you can focus on keywords for which a certain amount of search volume already exists. The proliferation of smartphones and tablets mean more and more consumers will be viewing your website on the much smaller screen of a mobile device. For a good user experience, make sure your website is mobile responsive, rendering correctly on a desktop, laptop, tablet and smartphone.

SEO changes quickly

We asked an SEO Specialist, Gaz Hall, for his thoughts on the matter: "Some of the pages on your website might not be linked to any other page. These are referred to as “orphaned pages,” and if a bot finds such a page, it is forced to abort the crawl since bots can only move from link to link. " You can generally only use one H1 tag per page, but H2 and H3 tags can be used to break up your content further Make a list of the top 10 business directories and build an engaging, content-rich business profiles on each of them. A small dip in searchtraffic is no immediate cause for concern (it may just be a temporary drop in consumer interest); but if that dip lasts for more than a few weeks or turns into a more significant drop, you’ll need to troubleshoot the problem to see what’s going on. SEO is a long-term strategy for your business and when done correctly (with the proper amount of time and resources allocated to it), it will produce consistent long-term value in the form of higher rankings and increased traffic.

If you add alternative text for non-Flash-enabled browsers then all should be well

Google is looking to reward sites that offer a great experience on a phone. They even now have separate search results for phone users. How do we know if we are mobile friendly? There’s a handy tool to check. Test your site, and work with your designer to make the improvements needed to succeed in the mobile-first world of search. Effective content curation, better accessibility practices and proper information architecture are all key components for strong SEO. Utilise existing relationships with suppliers, partners and even customers to get links to your website. For example, if you sell a supplier’s products see if they have a section on their website that lists places to buy their products or distributors and ask if you can be added to this list. Other sources of links are industry specific directories where it makes sense for your business to have a listing. The bad news about SEO is that it’s not as simple as flicking a couple of switches. Nor is it a one-time deal; SEO has to be a consistent part of your ongoing marketing. There is also an overwhelming amount of information available online – how do you know where to begin? When it comes to SEO, less is not necessarily more. The main body of your piece shouldn’t be under 300 words and if you manage 1,000 words or more on the subject then your page is in a healthy shape.

Choose the broad topics you want to rank for

Frequent link audits can save your site from the dangers of negative SEO. If you constantly monitor your links, it’s easier to spot a sudden change before it becomes uncontrollable. Over time, you’ll gather data that helps you determine which of your keywords are most successful, and which ones need more work -- but how do you pick the right initial set of keywords? If everybody is linking people from their sites to yours, your site must thus offer top quality information worthy of a link. Therefore, Google and search engines alike bump these backlink-wealthy sites nearer the top of their pages in order to ensure people are finding the best sites for the information they require. If nobody has heard of your brand or company name (and it’s not part of the important keyword phrases) put it at the end of the title tag. The key is creating content ready to serve customers across various devices and platforms. Brands need to meet customers where they are in order to provide them information; but without data, this is impossible. Data can let brands know what their customers search for and what they want to see when they make these queries.