SEO known as Search Engine Optimisation, is the technique used to increase the amount of natural visitors to a website by obtaining a high rank in the search results of a search engine (like Google, Bing, etc.). The ultimate aim of SEO is to align your website's content with the interests and needs of your target audience while also meeting the criteria that search engines use to determine the relevance and authority of web pages. When your website is effectively optimised for search engines, it is more likely to rank higher in search results, leading to increased visibility and organic traffic.

It's very important to show up in the top search results since according to research, less than 1% of users click through to the second page of search results (Backlinko, 2023).

Below are our best tips to help with your websites SEO.

Content creation is fundamental to SEO as it plays a pivotal role in making a website relevant, valuable, and user-friendly. When users conduct searches, search engines prioritise results that best address their queries. By producing high-quality content that aligns with the interests and needs of your target audience, you signal to search engines that your site is a valuable resource.

Content creation allows for the natural incorporation of relevant keywords and phrases, aiding search engines in understanding the context and topic of your pages. Moreover, content provides opportunities for on-page SEO optimisation, such as meta titles and descriptions. The user experience is enhanced when content is informative, engaging, and caters to diverse preferences, reducing bounce rates and encouraging longer dwell times.

Regular updates and a variety of content types demonstrate to search engines that your site is actively maintained and relevant. In essence, content creation is a dynamic and ongoing process that not only satisfies user intent but also aligns with search engine algorithms, ultimately boosting visibility and rankings in search results.

Keyword research is the method to find and research actual search terms that people enter into search engines. It involves understanding the language and terms your target audience uses, as well as evaluating the competitiveness and search volume of those keywords. There are many websites like SEMRush which offer you the tools to expedite the keyword research.

With keyword research you can predict changes in demand, respond to market conditions and produce the services and products that potential clients are actually looking for. Keyword research is one of the most valuable and rewarding techniques of SEO, and ranking for the right keywords can make or break the success of your website.

Title tags are often displayed as the main clickable link in search engine results, making them the first point of contact between your page and potential visitors. A compelling and accurately descriptive title can significantly impact click-through rates, encouraging users to choose your page over others. Google will only display between 50-60 characters in your title tag, so you should really keep them under 55 characters.

Strategically incorporating relevant keywords into your title tags helps search engines understand the main focus of your content, contributing to improved rankings for those keywords. However, it's crucial to balance optimisation with readability and user appeal, as overly keyword-stuffed titles can deter users.

On the other hand, the meta description, displayed beneath the title, offers a brief summary, influencing click-through rates by providing additional context about the page. Though not a direct ranking factor, the meta description, limited to around 150-160 characters, presents an opportunity to craft compelling snippets, engaging users and encouraging them to click. Crafting unique and descriptive meta titles and descriptions for each page is essential, contributing not only to improved SEO but also to a more effective and user-friendly search result presentation. Regular optimization based on content changes or SEO strategies is advisable for maintaining their impact.

It is important to optimise each of your website pages around a single idea or keyword. By honing in on a singular theme, pages can be strategically optimised for targeted keywords, enhancing visibility in search engine results. Moreover, this approach promotes a positive user experience, as visitors easily find coherent and relevant information. Focused pages facilitate logical internal linking, aiding navigation and strengthening the overall structure of the website.

Short URLs are highly valued in the realm of SEO due to their positive impact on user experience and search engine performance. The URL is one of the first things a search engine uses to determine page rank, which is why it is essential for you to make the URL easy for search engines to crawl. You can do this by keeping the URL short, by aligning it to the page topic and keyword, and by ensuring that the URL helps you to categorise your site pages.

From a link-building perspective, short URLs are preferred as they are more aesthetically pleasing. Other websites are more likely to use clean and concise URLs when linking back to your content, contributing to a professional and organised link profile.

If you search for your company on a variety of browsers in different locations do your social media pages come up in the search? (Think Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, etc). Your website should come up first in the search, but closely following should be your social media channels brimming with up-to-date content and an engaged community. With this scenario, if the reader doesn’t click your webpage, at least they are driven to your brand which is a very valuable positioning technique. Also if you’ve let the company Google⁺ page out in the digital wilderness to die, consider reintroducing it to the daily posting plan. Google⁺ is after all Google’s social network baby and will get always preferential treatment in Google searches.

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With the increasing prevalence of mobile internet usage, mobile SEO has become critically important -especially when you consider the fact that over 80% people in the whole world own a mobile phone (Oberlo, 2023). Mobile optimisation involves various practices, including responsive web design, fast loading times, mobile-friendly content, and ensuring that elements like images and buttons are easily accessible and clickable on smaller screens.

Google, the dominant search engine, has adopted a mobile-first indexing approach, meaning it primarily uses the mobile version of a site for indexing and ranking. As a result, a website's mobile performance directly influences its search engine rankings.

Sites that prioritise mobile optimisation are more likely to rank higher in search results and, more importantly, deliver a satisfying experience to their mobile visitors, which is crucial for retaining and attracting audiences.

Tracking your results and updating your site is essential. You must be able to see what results come from the changes you’re making and analysing the results will enable you to make better choices in the next update. By regularly analysing your rankings via a rank tracker and your Google Analytics, you will be able to keep ahead of any issues and ensure that you’re taking advantage of all new opportunities in 2024.

*Do we need to mention the difference between organic and PPC? Organic can help rankings long term and FREE, PPC can help introduce people to the website in bulk and quickly but once the advertisement has finished so is your ability to keep visitors coming and that’s why organic SEO is important.

Conclusion

If you’re not already doing SEO, you should really think about starting today or you’re likely to get left behind. SEO is one of the biggest subjects in website design and creation and more and more businesses are getting on the SEO bandwagon, if you’re not doing it, you will fall further and further back in internet searches and further behind your competitors. Thankfully it’s not difficult or expensive to make changes to really improve your search engine positioning.

If you need help with your SEO, don't know where to start or simply don't have time, here at Visions we have SEO experts ready to give you a hand. Let's have a chat and let's create your SEO strategy to boost your rankings.

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