Firstly let’s be clear about what not to do and dispel a few myths about Google and SEO (search engine optimsation). As you already know, Google.co.uk is the UK biggest and most successful search engine with nearly 90% of the entire on-line UK search market.
source: www.statista.com
Myths
Common myths we are asked about…
- clicking on your Google listing like a demented woodpecker will not enhance your position
- buying thousands of back-links to your web pages will not enhance your position (and could get you black listed for doing this)
- repeating the same keyword phrase or geographical town many times (spamdexing) will not enhance your position (and could get you black listed for doing this)
- buying multiple web names will not enhance your position
Do not
Common mistakes we see on other websites…
- do not buy a website that is not ‘mobile device friendly’ – test your site: google.com/test/mobile-friendly (in April 2015 Google announced it was preferencing mobile friendly websites)
- do not buy a website on-line (like Wix, Godaddy, Vistaprint) as they can’t be optimsed for Google and use common templates/images etc that Google has already listed/preferenced on other websites.
- do not repeat content/copy content from other web pages/sites
- do not slow the website down with large file size images
- do not use just images on pages, Google can’t read an image, it likes to see text
- do not ignore the metatag, alt tag, title tags (and many more) essentials that Google requires
- do not use http non-secure protocol, all sites must now be https (SSL)
Do’s
The must haves we encourage and install in our web designs..
- list the keyword phrases you think potential customers will use to find you. Here at OHM we’ve got about 30 for our website, for example “website designers in Kent”
- always use one or more of your keyword phrases in any news blog or web page.
- ‘breadcrumb’ your web pages with internal links
- avoid external links without using codes like “no follow”
- add alt tags to images (description of your image)
- change the file names of images to a description
- resize all images to enable quick download (Google penalises slow sites)
- check and position your keyword phrases weekly
- add your website and business details to ‘trusted’ directories like your local .gov business listing (keep this listing real and up to date)
- complete all work at a steady rate, not all at once. Google is sensitive to sudden bulk changes
- make sure your web pages are original, the text is keyword heavy and image file names/tags etc are relevant to the page text/website content
- Use your style sheet text tagging correctly (H1, 2, 3 etc)
- add new content via a news blog (like this blog) weekly
All the above are do’s and don’t for ‘natural listings’, not the ‘Pay Per Click’ option that Google offers which can drain your marketing budget in a few days with not much to show for it.
Here are other key elements that may affect your Google listing…
- .co.uk web name for a .co.uk search engine
- buy a web name with spaces (- hyphens) so Google can see who you are
- buy a web name with a trade keyword(s)
- buy UK web hosting, Google knows where your web pages are
When you get all of this right in what we call an holistic website design you will see some amazing results especially with local area searches. Most of this work can be completed by the website owner if you’re using a user friendly platform like WordPress, or for a small fee by the designer (If they know how). But most of our clients ask us to complete their Google SEO (search engine optimisation).
For more information about how do you get to the top of Google search results contact us
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