SEO is always changing. For that reason a lot of people end up getting stuck and being committed to older SEO strategies that no longer work. What used to work a few years ago no longer works.
Plus, if you’re caught using any of these old and outdated strategies, you’ll only end up with a penalty. Today, having a solid search engine optimization strategy requires a lot more than simply running through a series of steps.
Luckily for you we cover four different elements that will get your website the search results you deserve.
1. Backlinks Still Rule
Backlinks are still one of the most important elements of your SEO strategy. But, it’s not the sheer number of backlinks that matter. Instead, it’s the quality of backlinks that are pointing towards your site.
Obtaining links of this quality isn’t as simple as ordering a link package. But, just a single link from a high-quality source can be more beneficial for your website than a hundred low-quality links.
If you’re a local business, then citations and networking with local businesses are going to be a great source of backlinks. While if you’re a less locally-based organization, then guest blogging and link outreach are going to be great long-term strategies for you.
2. Cherish Thy Users
Your readers will make or break your search engine rankings. Two factors that greatly contribute to how high your site ranks are the bounce rate and dwell time. Essentially, these factors refer to the percentage of visitors that immediately hit the back button when landing on your site, and how long each reader spends on your site.
The lower your bounce rate and the more time each reader spends on your site the higher you’ll rank. Both of these factors signal to Google the quality of your content. The better the user experience, the higher your rankings.
Content that’s high-quality will be very relevant to the search engine keywords it’s ranking for, and keep the reader’s eyes glued to the page.
You can do this by ensuring the first few sentences of your blog posts really hook your readers, formatting your posts for the web, and including multimedia throughout.
3. Focus on Performance
We’ve been talking about site performance a lot lately. But, only because it’s incredibly important. This is one aspect of SEO that’s directly under your control as a website owner.
To take charge of your site’s performance first run your site through a tool like GT Metrix to see where you currently stand. This will also give you recommendations of actions to take.
If you run a WordPress site, then we recommend using a plugin called W3 Total Cache, and even linking up your site to a CDN network.
4. Don’t Neglect Mobile
If you’re not focusing on mobile traffic, then you’re missing out on a large portion of traffic. Plus, if your site isn’t optimized for the mobile web, then you’re not going to be ranking. With Google’s mobile update your site must cater to mobile users.
If you haven’t yet updated your site to a design that caters to mobile users, then get in touch with our Jacksonville web design team today.
Beyond having a responsive site it’s important that the content of your site is also accessible to mobile users. This means your font choice and media elements all must display nicely on a mobile screen.
The future of SEO stands on the backs of your readers. Create high-quality content that saves them, and the search engines will reward you as well. We hope the tips above ill help you create a more well-rounded SEO strategy that’ll get you rankings well into the future. If you’re looking for an SEO team to take your site to the next level, then reach out to our team today.
