SEO, or search engine optimisation, is often misunderstood. This is partly due to how some SEO specialists and the industry present it. However, there are certain truths that are important to understand before diving into any SEO work.
SEO is an activity to improve your website and its rankings in the search engines. Similar to working out and eating healthy for your body.
If I was to say to you “Come to the gym 3 times a week for a month and you will be the fittest, strongest and leanest person in your town” would you believe me? Are you confident that you will be fitter, stronger and leaner than anyone else in your town, including those who have been using the gym regularly every month for the last 10 years?
I am guessing the answer is no. and that is because it takes more than a quick bit of work.
Many people view SEO as a short-term quick fix, but this is not the case. This misconception is often the fault of SEO experts claiming they can “get you to page 1 of Google in 6 weeks.” However, it’s important to remember that Google ultimately controls where your website ranks, and SEO experts cannot simply ask Google to place a website at the top of search results.
These claims often relate to keywords that no one else is targeting, which may be because no one is searching for them. Do you want to rank number 1 for a term that no one has searched for? I can’t see the point in that.
If you have had a website built in the last few years, it is probably in ok condition. You can improve it, and this will provide some quick wins, but they are just the foundations.
For example.
If you are a builder in Eastbourne then you can start by having a page with content about that keyword. Ensure the page uses a H1 tag for the heading, has a couple of H2 headings and, ideally an image with the correct alt tag on it.
You then need to make sure your website loads fast and is easy to use on mobile.
But then what?
This is where the work starts. As if it was as easy as writing some keyword heavy content and putting in some headings, wouldn’t everyone do that, and we would all be number 1? Google needs to be able to separate you from the rest.
And this is done by considering EAT. Or now we are in 2023, I should say EEAT
EEAT is experience, expertise, authority and trust (read google explanation here: https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2022/12/google-raters-guidelines-e-e-a-t
This extra E is going to be incredibly important as more and more ai content is created, as it is all about if the author has real-life experience.
So how do you build you EEAT score? I will create a complete guide at some point but for now, consider this.
You need to prove you are the best answer for the searcher query.
Take my builder in Eastbourne keyphrase. It is not enough to simpley have a website with that written in it. You need reviews to show you can be trusted and you need to prove you are an expert by constantly creating content proving you are an expert (think blogs, videos and social posts)
I am always amazed at how many companies pay for SEO work yet either don’t have a blog or haven’t updated it in years.
It is my number 1 tip for SEO.
So as today’s take away, get working out, get writing blogs.
I often have conversations with business leaders who are looking for a new website design. This isn’t out of the ordinary, we are a web design agency, but it’s the fact we talk about design straight away that is, I believe, the wrong way round.
WordPress is an open-source software maintained by thousands of contributors. Because of this, it’s a highly secure and robust CMS, in which we place full trust. But….
We love a font! Fonts can make a massive difference to the design of a website, both in terms of readability and style.
