Over the years the basic approach of SEO has not changed all that much, but the effectiveness of the different techniques varies considerably.
This is because Google, other search engines, social media, and video have all made changes to how people find what they are looking for on the web.
This means that different aspects of SEO have changed considerably in their effectiveness, leaving some websites behind while others have risen to the top. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) has been a mainstay of web marketing for nearly two decades. Understanding the changes that have been made in that time is important, but the goal is to find the basic approaches that not only work today, but tomorrow as well.
For those who are new to SEO or have had little luck in getting their SEO techniques to work, here are three main areas that you need to focus on if you want to maximise your success.
Good Quality & Informative Content
First and foremost, if your website has nothing interesting to offer then no one will stick around to view it. Without effective, high-quality, and informative content, your website is nothing more than a bulletin board with nothing to announce. Content is the prime driver of interest, which is why the most successful sites have the best content. The most effective use of keywords does little for your site if the content is not up to par.
Good, informative content is defined as information that is applicable to the niche, industry, or interest that your website is about. The content must convey information that is relevant and enlightening to a certain degree while also being entertaining or at least engaging. The content may be in text, image, photo, or video form and designed specifically for visitors or readers who have a genuine interest in the topic.
It also helps if the content is posted on a regular basis to help build up an audience. Generally speaking, good content that is posted once per week is better than having four or five pieces of content posted in one week and several weeks goes by before anything else is posted. Our content management service is ideal for this.
If you cannot provide the good, informative content on a regular basis yourself, consider hiring a copywriter. A copywriter has the experience, access to research, and skills to provide consistent content for your website that builds an audience. Of course, you will need to pay for the services of a copywriter, but the overall effect will greatly increase the visitors to your website when you hire the right one.
Fast Loading of Your Website
It may seem so simple that many online business owners and website administrators overlook the importance of download speeds. Essentially, the faster your website downloads onto the computer, laptop, or mobile device, the better the impression is made on the consumer. This is why many web hosting companies will brag about just how fast websites on their servers will download to various devices.
The important factor in terms of download speeds is not so much beating the competition by a fraction of a second, but rather to ensure that it is not slow or sluggish. Few things turn away potential visitors to your website as when it fails to download quickly. The slower the download speed, the more likely they are to simply stop and go somewhere else. User experience is vital to your online success, and making sure your website loads quickly is a key aspect of user experience.
This is not only a matter of convenience, but many people perceive a slow download as something being wrong with the site itself. So not only will they turn away, they will stay away for fear of having their device infected. Even when no virus or malware was ever present.
The bad impression that a slow download has affects not only your site, but your brand as well. Whatever effort you have put in to make a good impression about your business will quickly be quashed by your website which takes too much time to download. The first step when you notice that your website is not downloading as fast as it should be is to contact your web host.
While in some cases the web host may be at fault, in most cases it is something on your site which is slowing down the process. Large files are usually to blame, such as images or video that take up considerable bandwidth space. By reducing or removing the files, you can speed up the downloading process.
Even when a slow downloading speed does not dissuade someone from forging ahead, the overall experience they have will still be a poor one. This leads to a lower sales conversion rate which means you are losing out on valuable profits all because of a correctable issue. To ensure that your download speeds are sufficient, it helps to do the following;
- Check download speed on tablets and smartphones
- Identify large files that may be slowing down the process
- Look for changes over time to see if patterns develop in download speed
The sooner you identify the issue, the faster it will be resolved. So, check the download speed after you add any new image, video, or file to your site. By catching it early, you can keep your site downloading fast and smooth.
Focus on Clusters of Topics, not Keywords
Another way to put it is to identify long-tail keywords which are usually topics that you can focus your content around. This is especially true for those who use voice search for topics which your website is built. This means keywords that are three words or longer, often including a command or question that makes the perfect set of topics to construct your content.
For example, if you sell a product that cleans widgets, you may be tempted to use short keywords such as “widget cleaning”. You will have far more success if you build your content around long-tail keywords or topics such as “how to clean a widget” or “best products to clean widgets”. By using two, three, or more long-tail keywords or topics to construct your article instead of simple, short keywords, you greatly increase the chances that your website will be ranked highly for those interested in your online business.
You’ll want to choose a topic that is directly related to your online business and build up a series of articles around it. For example, if you have a particular product in your catalogue, then you can create several topics around it such as the following;
- How the product works
- How the product is ranked compared to the competition
- Uses of the product
- Origin and history of the product
- Why this product is right for you
A series or cluster of articles around a specific topic, using variations of natural, long-tail keywords provides stronger results that may last for a longer time. This means that competition on search engines is less as your topics rise to the top. Through trial-and-error along with constant monitoring, you can see which topics are moving upwards and drawing in larger audiences. Naturally, you will have to create the type of content that is interesting and informative for your results to stick.
By combining good, solid content that is built around clusters of topics, you can build up your customer base. It also helps if you can identify any issue that is slowing down the downloading speed of your site and eliminate it as a problem. Remember, how your site performs reflect on your business, so keep that in mind when you are trying to reach new audiences and convert more sales.