Have a website – No customers? Follow these SEO tips.

When you search for something online, the search engine, seemingly like magic, pulls up a bunch of sites that it thinks matches the words you’ve input. The fact is that there is really no magic when it comes to getting more traffic to your website. Traffic is the result of proactive Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

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In a market supply and demand situation, if someone is demanding what you supply, you want the search engine to connect your site to the customer. The secret ingredient in this magic recipe is called SEO. How you optimize your site to rank well on a search engine results page (SERP), doesn’t have to be a mystery. Nor does it have to be complicated.

Follow the simple SEO tips below, and you’ll be well on the way to getting your site ranking higher for your target keywords.

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LINKS

Websites linking to each other is really what the web is all about. Links are the connecting tissue of what most people call the internet.

An external backlink is a kind of an approval of your website. The more links pointing to your site the better. Most websites have none or too few backlinks. That is a big part of the reason they get little or no search engine traffic.

You should also consider it as laying a trail of breadcrumbs for search engines.

Backlinks help you in the ranking game. A backlink is a hyperlink from one website to another website. If you are being mentioned positively on other sites, ensure there is a link back to your site.

Here is how to get external links to your website:

  • Guest post on related blogs.
  • Create excellent content and reach out to related websites and ask them to share your content. It is crucial that your content is excellent.
  • Publish ebooks and offer them for free. Throughout your books link back to your website.
  • Create free tools other websites would be interested in publishing or linking to.
  • Create an infographic. People love to share them. Include your URL, so people can find your site once they see your infographic. Also, encourage people to link back to your infographic.
  • Create presentations and share them on Slideshare.
  • Post your content on at least a couple of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
  • Write, publish, and distribute press releases.
  • Reach out to influencers and ask them to share your content.
  • Find relevant podcasts and ask to be interviewed.
  • Build relationships and partnerships with relevant bloggers.

Internal links also help, but they are more about helping visitors navigate. Internal links also potentially increase the time visitors spend on your site. The stickier the site, the higher the ranking.

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CONTENT

Research has shown that the content length of the top search results averages around 2,000 words. Increasing the length of key posts on your site can help you up the ranking ladder. But don’t add words just for the sake of padding out a piece. Quality wins over quantity every time. Longer pieces still need to provide value to the reader.

The important lesson to learn here is to find the highest ranking content pages and do better. If the top three highest ranked articles on your topic are 1000 word long, you should make your article longer.

To outrank your competition, you must create longer, more detailed, and better researched content.

KEYWORDS

You’ve brainstormed and come up with a list of keywords you’ll use. You’ve even resorted to the Thesaurus to find a few good synonyms. Another way to improve your keyword usage is to seek out related keywords. You can find these easily by doing a keyword search and checking the searches related to your keyword listed at the bottom of the page.

You should also include long tail keywords. These are short phrases that are highly specific to what you offer.

Optimize each web page for a different target keyword.

How to find the best keywords for your website:

  • Be realistic. If you are a web designer, you are more likely to rank for “San Diego web designer” or “web designer in San Diego” than “web designer”. Long tail keywords are easier to rank for, so focus on those, especially in the beginning.
  • Relevant. Make a list of all relevant links to your business. It is better to start with a long list of possible keywords than too few.
  • Variety. Don’t just focus on one or two keywords.
  • Search. Search for relevant keywords and let the search engines recommend you more search phrases.
  • Tools. Use keyword tools such as Google’s Keyword Planner. Any business will find more than enough relevant keywords using the right keyword tools.
  • Competition. Check what keywords your competition ranks for.
  • Niche. Identify keywords that focus on a niche within your industry. For example, if you are a web designer and you have built websites for biotech companies, create a page and optimize it for biotech web design.
  • Misspellings. Optimize for misspelled variations of your target keywords.

GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE

Often overlooked, Google Search Console (previously known as Google Webmaster) offers a set of tools to help you monitor your site’s search performance. If you want to be found on the internet, these tools will help you to be found. As only a best friend would, it points out when you’ve made an error or if there is a problem with your site. For example, it will check for problems with meta descriptions, titles, and duplicate content. And it’s free! Use it.

OTHER TOOLS

Google Keyword Planner – this free AdWords tool will help you find keyword ideas and estimate how they will perform.

SEMRush – shows you the terms for which you and your competitors are ranking.

Moz – software to help you increase your visibility online.

Yoast SEO PlugIn – if you are using WordPress then this is the plugin you need to optimize your content for Google. I use it on my websites because it works.

SUMMARY

At the end of the day, remember that you are writing for real people and not just SERP. Don’t overthink SEO. If you focus on producing quality content that is of value to your audience, keyword writing will almost take care of itself.

Do you have any SEO tips you’d like to share?

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