The Sponno Guide for Ranking Higher on Google.

Over the past decade or so, SEO has become increasingly more important. Due to technical advancements with regards to devices like smartphones and tablets, the reach of internet browsing has dramatically extended. This has meant that search engine companies like Google have had to continually improve their algorithms for their search function more frequently, in order to ensure that users can easily access information on these devices. This has also had the effect on making the realm of SEO (natural search) more and more complex and, of course, increases the level of competition as serious marketers fight for optimal visibility on the first page.

There have been six major algorithm changes from June to September 2014 and it is crystal clear that Google is intent on continually improving their platform for the betterment of user behaviour. This presents a challenge to search marketers because each time there is an algorithm change, there is an additional component that Google needs websites to comply with.

The SEO landscape is continually changing but there are a few simple things you can do to make sure you have your best foot forward.

What are our Top Five Tips we recommend for Businesses?

Tip One – PURPOSE

Think about the purpose of your website and make it easy for users to go directly to what they are looking for.

Below are a few examples:

Lead Generation – A contact page on every website may be a good idea to ensure you are able to capture more leads and do not miss out on any opportunities.

Marketing & Branding – Downloadable marketing collateral will ensure that users can keep a copy of your information and possibly share it via email, Bluetooth, social media…etc.

eCommerce/mCommerce – Try to make sure that is extremely easy for users to transact, navigate through your site and get support for technical/billing issues related to your site. It is a good idea to have Shipping Terms, Terms of Service, Privacy Policy and FAQ information easily accessible.

TIP: Think of the end-user and make it easy for them to use the site. Provide users with the information you would want when on your site. Google Search is a platform that has services with the purpose of providing users with relevant information. If your website is doing the same and your objectives are aligned with Google’s, this will help you build a good foundation for SEO.

Tip Two – CONTENT

Create content for every subject matter on your website. This may be a product, type of service or any other critical information you feel is important enough to have a dedicated section.

TIP: Make sure each page is more than 250 words and do not think about keywords until the content copy has been finalised.

Tip Three – META DATA

Make sure that at the very least you have populated the tags for the page title, description and keywords within the section of your website.

TIP: Treat each page as a chapter of a book. Your title tag will correlate with the name of the chapter (which should contain the subject matter). The description will remind you of a one sentence summary and, remember to organise your headings in a logical manner (i.e. main heading, sub-heading…etc.). Your keywords should be thought of the subject matter, or even popular queries (what people type into a search engine) which the page is about.

Tip Four – URLs

Ensure all URLs use the same format across your website. It is advisable to use a meta tag to stipulate which URL you want search engines to use when crawling your site. When creating the URL make you have already thought of your subject matter or query and use that. Replace each space with a URL character.

TIP: Try not to use common “stop words” in your URLs unless you a targeting a specific query and are not too worried about any of its variations. I recommend using a hyphen as the URL character that separates each word in your URL after the domain name.

Tip Five – TRACKING & REPORTING

Use Pay-Per-Click advertising to find out what works for your site and areas to find what areas need improvement. I highly recommend setting up Google Analytics and linking this up to Webmaster Tools in order to gather data from your Pay-Per-Click campaign. Integrate this into your SEO campaigns in order to market more efficiently, rather than “taking a stab in the dark”.

TIP: A dual purpose campaign is always more effective. Using landing pages designed for SEO for your Pay-Per-Click campaign may not only improve your quality score and make it cheaper to buy the ad space, but would also open up further keyword opportunities.

Succinctly put, if you endeavour to action at least one, but ideally all, of the above techniques, you’ll soon become aware of your business achieving a higher Google ranking, even amongst the continuously fluid environment of the SEO scene.

For further advice on SEO and how to implement these techniques into your own campaigns call our Digital Strategy Team on 1300 859 600.

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