Ingenious ways for SEO optimization
Posted on 23.09.19 by Suchismita
As a newbie in the digital marketing area, I always used to wonder why investment in SEO is important? I use to spend hours researching on the topic only to find out this extensive process has one simple reason.
SEO works.
Increasing the website's ranking in Google brings more traffic to your website, consequently generating more leads that turn into sales.
So, the best place to get your ball rolling is to invest in the SEO optimization of your website. This rule applies to start-up websites (who are taking their fresh steps in the competition) as well as established ones (who are trying to achieve new heights in their respective domains).
Read along to know about the absolute 7 factors that can help you to boost your SEO without spending lakhs on the purpose.
(Before trying to carve out a niche as an optimized website with higher google ranking with our pro-tips, it is highly important for you to understand the ‘holy grail’ of SEO success, which can give wings to your business. The first three pointers below are the absolute Google Ranking Factors to consider.)
High-quality content
You might have come across the adage content is the king it holds true when it comes to rank high on search engines. While ranking a page on the search result, Google Search Algorithm gives more priority to high-quality content. This content refers to detailed content, an outcome of extensive research, and covers a broad spectrum of the concerned domain.
This factor has a direct link with users or end-customer of your service who are buzzed with information and articles of all sorts in the web space. So what can add an extra dimension to your content to make is stand different than the rest? The answer is simple (and nothing sort of anything you don't already know of): engaging visual content that complements your written content.
Webpage Speed
By now you might have got the golden rule for enhancing your SEO: Anything that makes your user happy get a smile back from Google, making it the sure-shot mantra for success: UX is the boss!
Page speed is the second most important factor that Google Search Algorithm takes into consideration. Google's mobile-first indexing approach has made the page speed more crucial than ever. This approach serves an eventual goal to help users find sites providing the best user experience.
There are a host of tools available that can help to enhance the loading speed of your website, either by optimizing images on websites, compressing the code used to design the website, or simply bringing the culprits responsible for the slower page loading to the front. Few of the tools are -
- Google Page Speed Insight
- Google Analytics
- W3 Total Cache
Backlinks and Outbound Links
Both these links remain crucial ranking signals in Google's search algorithm.
The simplest definition for backlinks would perhaps be 'a link (or citation) for a given web resource from some other website, including a website, web page, or a web directory. The links enable search bots to easily crawl through your website, leading to more user dwelling time and improved search rankings.
Benefits -
Improved Organic Ranking
Faster Indexing
Brings
Referral Traffic
Outbound links direct users to another specific webpage or website. Outbound links, per se, does not necessarily correlate with your SEO but SEO in the most generic way. However, the result it gets in terms of profit is limitless!
External links bring more value than internal links. This is for a reason that search engines consider other people’s feedback more than your feedback about yourself. To keep in another way, more website links to your sites increases your credibility.
Keyword Relevancy
Ever thought of opening some business? What is the first thought that has crawled in your head? Who would be your target user group and their habits (in relation to your product or service), right?
Similarly, to rank well on Google search results you need to understand what your users type for their queries. This takes us to the use of keywords. As a website developer, you need to figure out popular keywords your target audience is using.
This brings us to keywords searching tools. Ever heard about Google Trends, Keywords Everywhere, or Google Keyword Planner? They help you find the most used keywords relevant across industries. By using these keywords in your content can help you gain visibility in the webspace. However, keywords shouldn’t be used in tits and bits! Don’t place keywords just for the placement, but in a way that will demonstrate the true essence of the write-up.
Additionally, you can use Google's semantic search to optimize keywords targeting in the write- ups. Semantic queries are usually found at the end of the page in 'related search' results at the bottom of the page.
Local SEO
These are nothing but keywords specific to the location of your business. It helps to rank for location-specific terms that increase your chance to land up in the search results. Local SEO allows brands to promote their services and products locally to people seeking out their niche in search engines. It helps your business to stand out in local searches and helps drive more traffic through online leads.
Take, for instance, you own a business is based in Noida or its target audience is mainly living in Noida. In this case, the keywords should contain the word "Noida' in them. So, let's just consider you own a flower shop in Noida, then you should rank for keywords like 'Noida flower shop'.
Header tags
As discussed earlier, user experience is your holy grail if you want to achieve a higher ranking in search results. Header tags consist of headings and subheadings that make your blog, article, or any write-up easier to read for users. It allows skimmers to scan through the content effortlessly while providing them the value they seek.
Meta descriptions
These are the short descriptions that user comes to face with upon searching for a query, basically a small excerpt of the content of the webpage that describes your service or product. An accurate meta description can potentially draw the user to your website thus generating leads. A short and crisp description should capture what your content promises to offer. Incorporate keywords into the content that you want to rank it for.
Conclusion
Google is continuously evolving in terms of recognizing sites that bring the best user experience in the space. This approach is paving ways for sites offering quality content that avails users with real value. Therefore, it is the need of the hour to understand every parameter that Google considers while ranking a page on the search results.