If you want your sites to maintain traffic, or increase their traffic, you need to be using the best practices for SEO. The issue is search engine algorithms are always being updated, so they return the best possible results.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the new rules so you can keep your site and content relevant and discoverable in search engines.
But, Before We Begin…
Before we begin with the tips about improving SEO, let’s go over the real meaning behind SEO. SEO stands for “search engine optimisation.” It is all about getting your site to rank high in search engine results. But, it is not a be-all-end-all solution. It is a tactic, and only works when you combine it with other tactics within a marketing strategy.
SEO alone does not drive people to a site. What does attract attention and clients is a structured marketing plan.
The Top 5 Ways To Craft SEO
- Build your content around long tail keywords. Long tail keywords are specific words people may use in a search. For instance, if you sell hockey jerseys, merely using the keywords “hockey jerseys” throughout your site will not significantly help your ranking in Google. However, if you optimise your content for specific searches like “miracle on ice jersey” or “Olympic hockey team jersey,” you are allowing your site to be searched not only for those specific terms but also with combinations of those words. Today, most people enter particular search words because they know generic searches are going to yield a long list of sites.
- Think about specific search questions people may ask Google and incorporate them into your content. For example, most queries to Google are people asking how they can solve a problem. In your hockey jersey business, a common question might be, “How do I clean my hockey jersey?” If you make that phrase a blog post title or a subheading on one of your pages, you will rank higher when people search that phrase. Think like a prospective customer, and write down the search queries they might use to find your services.
- If your business has a physical location, work your address into your content. Many people search a service and add an area, such as, “Chinese food Anytown.” This is especially prevalent today since most searches occur from mobile devices, and the people are looking to go to the business as soon as they learn its location.
- Write all of your keywords organically into your content. In other words, write for the reader not for the search algorithm. If you are promoting your Chinese food restaurant in a city, then write that naturally, such as, “We offer a robust menu of authentic Chinese food in Anytown.” Or, “We offer the finest Chinese food in Anytown.” Don’t write, “We are a good Chinese food restaurant Anytown.” It reads poorly, and bad writing and grammar make your business look unprofessional. The search algorithms are very good at discerning between keywords and conjunctions or prepositions.
The takeaway from this is to write good content that is engaging, grammatically correct and offers something of value to a customer. In other words, write something you would want to read, something you would find helpful.
