Most people concerned with website design and writing web content should already have some understanding of at least basic search engine optimisation (SEO) practices. Unfortunately, many people believe that simple things like putting the right keywords in and making sure that their headings are tagged is enough to get their site to rank highly. When it doesn’t appear on the first few pages for any major keywords, they wonder what they are doing wrong.
Below are five simple actions that you can take to make sure that your website is ranked as highly as possible in search engine results:
- Run a SEO audit:
If you aren’t really sure about the SEO status of your website, then it can be a good idea to employ a professional analyst to run a SEO audit for you. If you get someone who is good at what they do, they should be able to deliver a comprehensive report on ways you can improve your website’s ranking.
- Make sure all your links go somewhere:
If you have broken links in your website content then you will be penalised by search engine bots. Luckily for you, this is a simple fix. All you need to do is go through your website and make sure that all your links, hyperlinks, and do-follow buttons lead somewhere. If they do then there is nothing to worry about. If they don’t, then remove or update them.
- Consider what keywords you are using:
Unfortunately, many people fall into the trap of using the most popular keywords on a topic. Although this may seem like a good idea to begin with, remember that most major sites will have also chosen these keywords. This can make achieving a good ranking extremely difficult. However, if you choose your keywords wisely – for example by using long-tailed keywords – you will find that there is much less competition.
- Build great content:
After you have selected your keywords, focus on creating content that people will actually want to read. Search engine bots have become much more advanced in recent times, and they do a whole lot more than just looking at your keywords and backlinks. Creative, engaging content is rewarded, while spammy, poor quality work can be penalised.
- Make sure that you are implementing social media:
Search engine bots now place a lot of emphasis on the social media status of a website or page. If your content is shared and liked a lot, then it will automatically rank higher. Make sure that you give your readers the chance to engage by placing social media buttons in obvious locations.
If you are looking to improve your website’s SEO ranking quickly and without a lot of cost, then consider the above five options. They are cheap, effective, and easy to implement.