Search engine optimization is about making your site easy for search engines to find.
If someone does a Google search for “New York Web Design Company”, and that’s what your company does, good SEO will increase your chances of your site showing up in that search. And of course, your site needs to show up for your prospects to find it.
SEO is a profitable way to market your business. It can help you reach the prospects who are looking for your services at the exact time they need it. Top position in search results is not guaranteed, but following five basic steps will improve your chances of ranking well. While pay-per-click advertising is the only sure way to get a front page placement, SEO is an effective, low-cost marketing technique. When done correctly, it can have a significant impact on your business.
You don’t have to be a professional search engine optimization company to implement some basic SEO that will help your site rank. (If you need a refresher on the basics, check out our basic introduction to SEO.)
Here are the 5 basic SEO techniques that every website should take advantage of:
1. Keywords. You need to understand what keywords and phrases your prospects are searching for so that you can use them throughout your site. But it’s not about which keywords are the most popular. It’s about which keywords best describe your business. The phrase “search engine optimization” is very popular, but the phrase “affordable SEO in New York City” might better describe your business. Check out the Google Keyword Tool for keyword ideas.
2. Use keyword rich content throughout your site. Search engines read the content on your website and use it to determine your ranking. Therefore, it is important that your keywords are present in the actual text of your website. It is important to remember that the content on your site has two functions, attracting search engines and attracting the reader. See our article, Your Website Content Has Two Functions. Another great way to have keyword rich content constantly updated on your website is to have a blog.
3. Use descriptive page titles. The title of a page is one of the most important things search engines use to find your site. (The title is what you see at the top of your internet browser). Remember, titles are not only seen by search engines, they are also seen by your website visitors. Don’t overload your title with keywords or phrases, just focus on the most important ones that truly represent your business.
4. Use keyword-rich meta tags. Meta tags are the html tags found at the top of the code on your web page. They are another way that search engines find your website. Make sure to use a description tag for your web pages. A good description tag is usually two or three sentences long and has the strongest keywords or phrases built in. Search engines aren’t paying as much attention to keyword tags, but there’s nothing wrong with putting 5 or 6 keywords into a keyword tag on your site. Don’t overload your labels, less is more.
5. Remember the importance of inbound links. The quantity and quality of the inbound links are important for the ranking of your website. There are many ways to increase inbound links to your website. Some include blogging comments, writing articles, using social media sites, or finding partners to link to your website.
Even if you don’t have a professional SEO company working for you, you can still use the basics of search engine optimization to help make your website more search engine friendly. By implementing these basics, you will have a huge advantage over other new websites that don’t.
If you want to further advance your SEO searches when developing a new website, consider hiring a professional SEO and web design company to take care of it.