Your new website looks great! It has been developed using WordPress, your web copy has been optimized for your keywords, everything has been done for on-page search engine optimization but now what?
What more can you do to get to the top of Google?
1. Get a Google Local Business listing
Google Business search results appear at the top of a Search Engine Result Page when Google predicts that the searcher is looking for local information.
Local Business Listings appear at the top of organic results so if you want to be on that important first page then make sure you have a Google Business page that links to your website. Ensure that you verify that you are the Business Owner. Once you’ve verified your listing, you can enhance the Business Page by adding photos, business hours and by asking loyal clients to add reviews.
2. Get Natural Quality Inbound Links
Inbound links (also called Backlinks) are links that are pointing to your site. All inbound links are not created equal. Google evaluates each site to determine if they are quality content-driven links. For example, if your website is about WordPress Workshops in Toronto then having an inbound link from a vacation rental property would be of little advantage to your website. Make sure you do not join link farms!
It is best when links use descriptive link text. Anchor or link text are the words used in a hyperlink. When linking avoid the commonly used “click here” or the URL, use your keywords and describe the link.
3. Use Social Media
Don’t ignore the power of Social Media to drive traffic to your site and to help improve your Google ranking. Set up social media profiles and ensure that each profile links back to your website. Create authentic connections online and you’ll find your “friends” will “retweet”, “share”, and “Like” your content. Once again, it’s quality, not necessarily quantity that will win the day with social media SEO.
4. Blog
Regularly add new quality content to your website and then tell people about it using Social Media. Great content will naturally attract links and bring traffic to your site.
Make sure that your blog is a self-hosted WordPress blog that is part of your site; you want to draw traffic to your website, not an external blog.
Blogging is a great way to build up your reputation online. Natural organic results don’t happen overnight so be patient.
Optimize every post you write for SEO. This SEO blogging checklist will help you do that.
Beware of SEO promises
If a Search Engine Optimization company is promising to get you on the first page of Google—beware! Nobody can guarantee you a certain search engine ranking.
I would be happy to chat with you about how to improve the SEO ranking of your website.
This should be required reading for all new website owners!
Great post. My own experience recently regarding Google Places confirms what you have written. I always recommend that my clients claim their place. And you other three points are equally important – especially social media.
Very well explained Ruth.
These components also play a major role for on-page SEO:
-Title tags should have keywords but also make sense.
-Description meta tag should have targeted keywords.
-Keyword density should be high of targeted keywords.
-Content should be high-quality and original.
-Content should be of appropriate amounts.