The Top 10 things Google looks for on your website!
‘’I want my website to appear at the top of page one on Google when somebody is searching for my product – how do I do that?’’
If I had a euro for every time I was asked this I would have a steady income and if I knew all the answers, then I’d be richer than I could ever dream of and would be relaxing on a tropical beach right now!
However, I do know that there are a few things we can do when it comes to ensuring our website is optimised for the search engines. Here are some of the things the search engines look for in a good website:
Website Content
The search engine is trying to figure out what your website is all about. They are looking for original, relevant content that explains what you do. Remember to give them enough text for them to search through. It’s also important that the images you have on your website are properly named and tagged to get extra leverage.
Keywords
These are the words that somebody will type (or speak) into a search engine to find what they are looking for. If you include those keywords in your website content then you have every chance possible to appear in relevant searches. Remember phrases (long tail keywords) as well as individual words for those quality clicks you are looking for.
Structure and Internal Links
Having a website that is easy to navigate and one that makes sense will not only be good for search engine results, it will be a great user experience. When the website is built correctly it will have easy to follow links to navigate around it.
Inbound links
When quality websites list your website as a link then the search engines will notice. If that website has a high authority within your industry it will serve as a recommendation of yours. The search engines will like it and you will be attracting extra visitors by getting more clicks.
Location
Your website is more likely to show up as a result in the location you are based. That makes sense, as Google is trying to be as helpful to the searcher as possible by giving them the most relevant result. Help yourself by ensuring your address or locations are clearly mentioned.
No ‘black hat’
Long gone are the days of hiding lots of keywords in your footers! Your keywords need to be spread naturally throughout your website. Using the same keywords over and over will have the opposite effect of what you are looking to do. Buying links or any other funny business won’t help you succeed.
Mobile optimisation
If it doesn’t look good on a smartphone, forget about it. Your website should look and interact as well on any screen size. Remember there are smartphones, tablets, smart TV’s and many other size screens. Ensuring your visitors have a great visual experience will reap rewards.
Speed
Your website should load quickly. We lead busy lives and can’t wait around waiting for pages to load. There is no excuse, if your website is slow then speed it up. There can be many reasons for a slow website but the main culprit here is normally big media files.
Security
If you have not already installed an SSL cert on your website, make it a priority. The search engines prefer a secure website and not having the cert will be a hindrance to you. Low cost and easy to do, put it on your list.
User Experience
If it’s good for the user it’s normally good for the search engine. Always think user before search engine – because the human is the one that will end up giving you the cash. If your website is easy and clear to move around, then your visits will be many and the time spent on it will be long. This is all loved by Google.
These are just a few tips that may get you thinking about your website and how you can improve it. As always if you want to find out more, why not keep an eye out for an SEO course near you.
