We create a lot of websites for our clients and the most common question is without a doubt is… How do I get found on Google?
The good news is, it is reasonably easy to be found on Google. However, it does take some ongoing work and it does not happen overnight.
So here are my must-dos to increase your chance of ranking well on Google.
Work out your keywords
Ideally, you should come up on page one of Google for your own company name (some who are up against larger companies may not). For example, if you search for Picasso Media Group we come up on page one.
However, the changes are people aren’t going to know your company name and you want to come up under different search terms (or keywords). As an example, if someone searches WordPress website packages, we would like to show up within the top few pages. Page 1 is ideal however page 2 and 3 can also be good, depending on your keywords.
The more general your keywords are the higher the competition will be. So if you are a carpenter on the Central Coast you would want to rank for more local terms. The word carpenter would have a huge amount of competition. If you localise your keywords such as Gosford carpenter or similar you would have a lot less competition.
You could even go into more detail than that but it really comes down to what you would like to rank for.
Recommended Keyword Tools
Optimise Your Title Tags
Now you have worked out your keywords you can then focus on the more fun part of Search Engine Optimisation.
This section can confuse people and it seems a lot more technical than you think.
The technical name for this part is called meta tags. However, in laymen’s terms, we are basically telling Google what your page is about and this then displays in the search results.
The three that you need to worry about are:
- Title Tag (this is the most important)
- Description tag
- Keywords
For example, we have created a blog post to discuss the new scheduling feature on Facebook and if you google ‘how to use the scheduling feature on Facebook’ our post shows up.
You can see how our listing shows up in the search results in Google.
We have used a plugin called All In One SEO Pack which allows us to customise these areas of your site. Keywords are not visible in the search results only your title and description.
Your title tag should include your keyword (which is relevant to that particular page). Keep it to around 60-70 characters. You are essentially telling Google what your page is about.
Your description has no bearing on SEO but is, in fact, an advertisement. You want to entice people to click on your search result instead of someone else. Like a two lined advertisement. Make sure this is also relevant to your page content.
Keywords you should include around 4-5 keywords that are similar to your page and what you wish to rank for.
Increase Your Page Content
Google loves content and lots of it. I am not saying to jam your pages full of the written word but you do need more than one paragraph.
You need to write relevant, natural and easy to read content that is about your keywords.
As a rule, try and only target one keyword per page.
I find around 300 words to a page is effective, more if you are blogging.
Ensure you don’t just create content and stuff it full of keywords, Google is all over this and can penalise you if they think you are spamming the search engines.
Blogging
I know, I know you don’t really want a blog (which is fine) but one of the best ways to increase your visibility on Google is to create regular content and blogging is the perfect way to do this.
Blogging on your topic (and implementing the title/meta tags explained above) you should be ranking in Google in no time.
In summary, getting your site found on Google is something that requires ongoing work but is very rewarding when you put in the effort.
There are so many other ways that you can optimise your website however these are my top picks for small businesses. They are quick tips and reasonably easy tips that you can do yourself.
If you wanting to get ahead on Google speak to our friendly team who can help you and provide advice on the best options for your website.