Website Optimisation For Better Search Engine Results

Posted: 14/11/2014 7:59:00 AM. | By: Kev Seeley

In the past, search engines looked primarily at meta tags. When people began "spamming" search engines, or repetitiously placing keywords in meta tags and page text so they could pull poor sites ahead of good ones in search ratings, the search engines changed their formulas (and continue to do so) to push spamming sites down and bring worthier sites up. If, however, you are truthful with both the spiders and your customers, you can achieve decent rankings.

Search engine companies aren't telling us all their secrets, but it appears that most of them look at a combination of all your word choices (whether meta tags, headings, or ordinary text) to make sure your content is genuinely written for people, not spiders. Here's your warning: Do not try to fool the spiders into listing your site higher. They already know all the tricks and they will punish you!

Here's a checklist summarising what you can do:

1. Familiarise yourself with SEO: The most important component of search engine marketing is making your site easily discoverable in search results, and that requires a basic understanding of SEO. You don’t have to buy a book or take a class on the subject, though: BlueBay Solutions offers search engine optimisation advice to all our clients - for free.
2. Grade your website: BlueBay Solutions offers a website "grading" tool (clients only - sorry!) which will provide you with a quick assessment of where your website is optimised for search engine marketing and where it is not.
3. Make the quick fixes: While you could spend months optimising your website for search engine marketing, make sure to get the little things out of the way first. Focus on what the website grading tool says you’re lacking (e.g. meta tags, keywords in your title and heading tags, etc.) and then go from there.
4. Use search engine marketing optimised CMS software and plugins: Unless you’re a large company with the money and need to customise every aspect of your website, you’re likely using a content management system (CMS) such as Page Factory. The good thing about using a tool like this is that they come optimised for search engines. If you run an ecommerce website, shopping cart software such as Cart Factory will fit the bill nicely.
5. Test your PPC and landing page strategies: It's a smart idea to test which keywords and advertisements drive the most traffic (keep track of the stats), and it's just as important to track what happens once those visitors arrive. Google offers tools such as Google Analytics to help you track those visitors and see whether they are staying on your site or bouncing away.
6. Inbound links are still king: The truth of the matter is that inbound links are still the top way to boost your rankings in search results, so partnering with other websites (preferably with similar content to yours), asking for links, and creating great content that others want to link to should be your top priority.
7. Write great content: Search engine spiders and their algorithms are becoming more "human" all the time so it's probably fair to say that writing content that engages and informs your users will also engage and inform the search engines. Write great content and watch your traffic increase.

And please, don't forget, optimisation is not all about search engines and spiders. Is your site optimised for your users? After all, without them you have no real reason to bother with this whole internet thing do you? That sounds like a great topic for a future post...

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