7 things you can do today to get your small business website appearing in Google
Getting your website to appear high up in Google search results is every small business owners dream. It helps you to build momentum in your business and moves you closer to smashing your goals. But how do you actually make it happen?
What is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation and it is essentially the process of optimising your website so that it appears in search engines for specific search terms. This can be done through on-site SEO and off-site SEO. On-site SEO looks at everything you can do on your website to make is search engine friendly, such as creating good quality content, making sure relevant keywords are present and adding internal links. Off-site SEO looks at everything you can do away from your website, such as building good quality backlinks and gaining exposure through other channels, such as blogs, podcasts and social media.
How do I use SEO to get my website to the top of Google?
This is the ultimate questions for small business owners. Unfortunately it’s not something you can achieve overnight. It takes a lot of work to research, plan and implement your SEO strategy and it needs to be built into your ongoing marketing plan. However, there are things that you can do today to build solid website foundations and set your business up for SEO success.
7 simple ways to improve your on-site SEO
Here are 7 really simple ways to improve your website for SEO success and increase the chances of it being listed in Google search results.
1. Do some keyword research
Keywords are the foundation of successful SEO. These are the words that people will search for in Google before discovering your website. Start thinking about what these keywords might be right for your business. If you’re a local business, these keywords should include your location (location based searches can be less competitive).
For example, a wedding photographer in Chester might want to focus on these keywords: “Wedding Photography Chester”, “Wedding Photographer Chester”, “Informal Wedding Photographer Chester”, “High end wedding photographer Chester”.
Keep in mind that some keywords are more competitive to rank under than others. Try searching for your relevant keywords in Google and see which websites are listed. Can you compete with these websites? If you want to dig a little deeper, you can use keyword research tools like SEMrush to identify relevant and high-ranking keywords in your industry.
2. Improve your page title tags
Now you have a better idea of what keywords you need to focus on, start incorporating these naturally into your website. The first place to start is your page title tags. This is the HTML element that specifies the title of each web page. The title tag will be displayed as part of the search snippet in a search engine results page, so it’s important to include relevant keywords here.
3. Improve your meta descriptions
Next you want to look at your page meta descriptions. The meta description summarises a page's content and it’s one of the first things people will see when searching for something in Google, so it’s crucial for SEO. Include your keywords but make sure it’s written in a natural way (keyword stuffing will have a negative affect).
4. Review your website URLs
Check the URL for each page on your website. Is it clean and clear? Does it include keywords? Be mindful of making changes though, as this could create 404 errors if a user tries to visit the old URL for a particular page. Only change an existing URL if you think it really needs it and to avoid any complications, create a 301 redirect for any pages where you’ve changed the URL.
5. Make sure you’re using H1 and H2 title tags in the right places
H1 and H2 tags are essential for helping search engines understand the content on your website as well as improving user experience and accessibility. The H1 tag should always be first as this shows search engines what content can be expected on the rest of the page. There should only be one H1 tag on each page. The H2 tag can be used to create subheadings, breaking information down into smaller points. You can use multiple H2 tags (and embed H3 tags within these if necessary). This method of laying out content out is particularly helpful when writing blog posts.
6. Improve internal linking
Internal links are hyperlinks that point from one page on your website to another page on your website. They help search engines understand your website’s structure and how different pages relate to each other. A good internal linking structure also helps search engines find and index the pages on your website. When creating internal links, the anchor text used should be descriptive and contain targeted keywords to further optimise your on-site SEO.
7. Optimise images
Ensure you optimise your images by using accurate file names that include keywords. Each image on your website should have relevant alt text and all images should be a compressed file sizes (big file sizes will cause your website to load slowly and this will affect your SEO ranking and usability). Search engines rely on this information to understand and index your visual content, so optimizing these elements correctly is essential. It also increases that chances of your images appearing in Google Image results.
If you want a more in depth look at your website’s SEO, I can carry out a website SEO audit and provide you with an actionable plan that outlines exactly what changes you need to make. It will look both on-site and off-site, giving you everything you need to know to build a really solid SEO foundation for your small business website. I’ll also do some keyword research for you to make sure you’re focusing on the right things.
Get in touch to find out more.