Understanding SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
In our previous blog posts, Managing Your Online Reputation Pt. 3 and Managing Your Online Reputation Pt. 4, we reviewed what a search listing site consists of. Overall, search engines like Google, list businesses according to the SEO attached to your website. Without SEO your business wouldn’t show up in the Google index.
What is SEO?
SEO (or Search Engine Optimization) is the process through which one increases the visibility of a website on a search engine organically (non-paid). A website can appear higher in the search rankings through “natural” or “organic” results that consist of keywords or phrases which users may use to find online content. You can utilize SEO in your favor through keywords or phrases, easy to read slugs, meta tags, faster site loading speed, and readability.
Using Keywords
A keyword is a phrase or 1 to 2-word description that you would like your site to rank at the top spot in search results. Choosing the correct keywords is vital to keeping your business at the top of the list. For example, if you are posting a new chicken recipe, you might want to use “chicken recipe” as one of the keywords. There are different kinds of keywords that you can use:
- Head-term keywords are described as one or two keywords, i.e. old furniture.
- Long-tail keywords consist of three or more words, i.e. old 1800 Victorian furniture.
- Navigational keywords are used to search for specific brands, websites or services.
- Informational keywords follow the who, what, where, when and how for specific information, i.e. “how many….” or “what time does….”
- Transactional keywords are used by customers looking to complete an action online, i.e. buy Foo Fighter tickets online.
Whatever service or product you provide, be sure to choose keywords that are relevant to your business. Narrow down the core keywords that apply to your service so you can create a master list of keywords for future reference.
Creating Easy to Read Slugs
A slug is what shows up after the URL of your website.
Example: https://www.pushcrankpress.com/brandnewideas
Each page on your website should have a slug. Make sure that these slugs are easy to read and match the content on the page it represents. Google will list your site higher in the search results if the description of the slug matches the content on the page. Make sure that the slug is simple and easy to read. If your site sells specialty pins you will need a slug that reads www.yoursite.com/specialty-pins. This way, Google can track and find the product and place it in the search results for someone looking for your product.
Let’s Get Meta
If you have don’t have experience with coding, you may want to seek the help of web coding professionals when adding Meta tags to your site. Meta tags are bits of code that are written into an HTML file of a website. These bits of code are then translated by Google as relevant information that is unique to the content you provide.
We Are Reaching Hyperspeed
If your website loads at a slower speed than your competitors, your site won’t appear higher in the search results. Ensure that your web team monitors and updates your site to the most current themes so your site speed doesn’t slow down. Look through the files on your website, like images, large bodies of text, audio files, and videos. Make sure that these files are small. The larger the file, the longer it takes for your site to load them into the browser.
Clear Writing And The Passive Voice
The first rule of content writing for the web is to make sure your writing is clear and concise. Exclude grammar mistakes, spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, overlong paragraphs, vague language and clichés in your writing. Make sure your content is readable. Be sure that your content is original, can be backed by facts, grammatically correct and engaging to users. If you have misspelled words Google is less likely to place your content higher in the search results. Be sure your writing style is in the active voice and utilize transition words in your writing. You can use the passive voice, which is an inclusive writing style, so the reader is included as the subject of the sentence. I.e you!
The art of SEO is a meticulous process through which organic traffic can be heightened through meta tags, impeccable writing, increased web loading speeds, keywords and more. Optimizing your site for search engines helps bring your website higher in the search results. It is easy to post content and expect traffic to just come to your door, but it takes time and practice to put SEO basics to use. Our team of web developers ensures that each page of your site is developed with SEO. We’d love to have a conversation and help bring your business higher in the Google search results.
Call us today, 334-446-6149.
Posted: Feb 18, 2019