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5 Basic SEO Tips to Rank Higher on Google Search Results

Updated on by in Web Development

Search engine optimization, SEO, is still highly important to the success of a website and business, yet many individuals and companies are lacking in their SEO skills. Fortunately, it’s not too difficult to make some changes that will help to propel a website into the spotlight and provide some additional success.

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Let’s examine five simple techniques, tips, and ideas that you can implement today, which will make a huge difference in your site’s success.

1. The Right Keywords

The first part of an SEO campaign should always be to understand which keywords and phrases will have the most traction. Utilizing the right keywords will ensure that customers who are using search engines and implementing those keywords have a better shot at finding the site.

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Google has some fantastic tools to help with this, but don’t discount getting some ideas from your customers as well. Coming to understand the words that your customers typically use to describe your company and what you offer is a great way to know which keywords you should be using. Consider putting a web form or a survey on your site to get an idea of the words they use to find you.

2. On Page Content

In addition to the keywords, a site needs quality content to keep visitors returning. Google is placing more of an emphasis on the importance of great content as well, so it makes sense to follow what the search engine giant is doing. It’s important to remember that the quality of the content is important. Having a page full of keywords used to be the order of the day for low quality, black hat SEO sites, but that’s a surefire way to get punished by Google in today’s world.

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You need to have quality content that actually offers meaning for your customers. They are looking for information, insight, and entertainment most of the time, and it is your job to provide that.

Keep in mind that content can vary greatly today, and it’s important to delve in to different areas, depending on the type of business you are running. You certainly need to have written content for your site or blog, but offering photos and videos is becoming increasingly important as well.

3. Off Page Content

In addition to the content that you put on the site pages, it’s important to consider the offsite content as well. Off-page SEO is nearly as important as on-page SEO. Some elements of off-page content you can use include posting on forums, social bookmarking, and writing guest articles and blogs. Each of these strategies can be very useful, but may take a bit more explaining to understand how to use them.

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Posting on forums is a fantastic way to connect with people who may potentially become customers or fans of your company. You can respond to threads with questions on forums related to your niche, or you can start your own threads. However, one of the caveats to this is to keep the advertising to a minimum. You do not want to spam the thread with links to your company unless people ask and want to know more about you. Having your company name in your signature, and your web address in your profile information is a good way to start.

Social bookmarking is a great way to promote your site and boost your SEO, but keep to the most popular sites, such as Digg, StumbleUpon, and Delicious. Learn how to use each of these sites and their tags, and it can help you to reach a much wider audience.

Guest blogging and writing articles is another great option to improve SEO. Find sites looking for content, or contact a blog owner who works in a field similar to yours, and ask about writing a post. They may even want to conduct an interview with you. This content will post to their site for their viewers and readers. Those who read the content may want to learn more about you or a product you offer, and they will then visit your site. If you took Tip #2 seriously, then you should have some good content to offer them when they arrive.

4. Social Media

You can’t get away from the power of social media today. Everyone seems to have Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts, and so should your company. By starting up accounts on all of the most popular sites, it makes it easier to find and keep in touch with customers. You simply need to make sure you are active on the sites and that you engage with people. When they have questions, respond. Add links to your blog and videos from the social networks as well. People are more apt to pass the information to friends and family when it is easily shareable. Google also places quite a bit of importance on social media networks, so it could improve your SEO ranking.

Even though it does take some time out of the day to handle the social media sites, most companies today find that it is well worth the time and the effort.

5: Use Google

Google wants you to succeed, and they want the people who use their search engine to be happy. They provide you with a number of tools to help accomplish this. You can and should use Google Analytics to keep track of what customers are looking for when they come to your site, and how long they are spending on each page. This information will give you more insight into the type of content they like, and that can help you mold your site to meet their needs. Additionally, start using Google Alerts to track mentions of your company online.

This way, you can reach out to those who mentioned the company to thank them, answer a question, and perhaps to ask them to consider adding a link from their site or article to you.

These are some of the best tips for getting a handle on SEO. If you find that you are still overwhelmed with the process, it is always possible to hire professional SEO experts who are able to take care of the minutia.

Author: Mike Miranda

Mike Miranda is a writer and pr person for MMT Advertising.

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