14 Apr Getting the most out of your website
Your website is a valuable asset. It is your shop window and as such it is not enough to just get it built and expect users to find it. Your website needs continuous updating, reappraising and SEO. It is also very important to make sure your site is mobile compatible as Google is increasingly about how mobile friendly your site is. It is not enough to just have a responsive site. Here are some helpful tips to get you started.
- Keep your site up to date, post new content regularly. Not only will it attract users but in time Google will rank you higher.
- It’s simple but make sure your telephone number, email and location address is clearly visible on your website.
- Take a look at your competition’s website and ask yourself ‘is my site and content better than theirs?’
- Great content that is interesting and quickly tells users who you are and what you do is a great way of improving your search ranking.
- Post a video – according to KISSmetrics consumers are 64% – 85% more likely to make a purchase after watching a product video.
- Did you know Google offers a free online testing tool to see if your website is mobile friendly www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/
- Sign up for Google Analytics, take a look at what people are looking at on your site. Then improve it or write more articles similar to the topics users are looking at.
- SEO is an on-going process and a long term investment in your company website, but it could be the best money you’ve ever spent.
- Google Local is increasingly important, small businesses should look to focus resources on ranking high in local searches.
- Make sure your contact details are correct on Google Local and business directories like Yell and Scoot etc.
- Ask your clients to post honest reviews on your Google Business page. Google uses this data as a ranking factor.
- Make sure the social media icons on your website are working and link to your accounts.
- Be wary of anyone who guarantees they can get your site to number one on Google. SEO is a slow process that needs time and they may be using methods such as ‘cloaking’ (this is when a site provides users with different results than they expected). This is a violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines and could be penalised.
All the above are simple but effective ways that you can help your site move up the search engine rankings without spending any money. If you want a your site to be successful you need to work on it and not expect it to just ‘happen’ by itself. Or, you can call The Maltings Studios to help you achieve the best results for your website.