Website Optimization Tips

More than ever, it's crucial that your website ranks well in search results. The way to make that happen is to make time to optimize your website; it's a challenging prospect, but doable. Keep in mind that factors related to SEO (search engine optimization) are ever-changing. That said, every ranking factor doesn't have to be addressed perfectly. Much more weight can be assigned to some variables than others. Get laser-focused on what's essential, and you'll notice a significant trend upward. It might take a few months to see the cumulative effect, but the difference in your ranking will be significant over time. Here are several of the most important factors, and what it takes to optimize for each.

1. Core Web Vitals

Great name, right? Core Web Vitals is a recently established initiative by Google that is meant to quantify each metric that makes up a healthy website. Delivering the best user experience is the goal. It's set to launch in 2021 and will be incorporated as a ranking factor into the core algorithm, and called the Page Experience Signal. Visual stability, interactivity, and loading experience (and how they combine) will be crucial components. Each of the metrics is quantifiable and measurable in order to determine the outcome objectively, and each focuses on a specific aspect of the user experience. The tools will include the Search Console, PageSpeed Insights, and Lighthouse (for improving web page quality). Professional web developers can help get your website up to speed; get in touch with a company like web page design Tucson for leading-edge support.

2. Mobile Optimization

Although Google officially rolled out its mobile-first index in 2018, forward-thinking marketers were taking that approach for several years before. Google's Danny Sullivan asserts, "it's about time to move from desktop-only and embrace mobile."

To make your website mobile-friendly, here are a few tips:

• Short meta titles are easier to read on mobile.
• Stay away from pop ups that cover your content.
• Make sure your site is fully functional on any device, whether it's mobile, tablet, or desktop.
• Be sure to scale your images properly.
• Make sure that search engines and users see the same content.

On mobile, less is usually more. Long-form content may not equate to better rankings and more traffic. Watch your analytics carefully to see how visitors interact with your site.

3. Search Engine Optimization

For some people, the technical aspects of SEO can seem intimidating. Fortunately, there are quite a few online SEO tools available; the important thing is knowing how to interpret the information, and how to make necessary changes. To get started, take a look at correcting status code errors, site indexing via Google Search Console, fixing duplicate meta descriptions, and auditing your website content. Also, make sure your site is mobile-friendly (see above), check the robot.txt for errors, and submit your XML sitemap to Google.

4. Content Marketing

"Content marketing" is a buzzword these days, and it's with good reason. As time goes on, it's going to be increasingly more difficult to cut through the clutter of information. In order to do so, your website will need to have several key characteristics.

Here are a few ideas to put into action:

• Be sure to continuously update low-trafficked and old content.
• Promote your articles and blog posts on social media.
• Create a hub of content in the form of a resource center.
• Create informative, useful, and compelling content for your hub.
• Create "spoke" pieces that are related to your resource center, and make sure to interlink.
• Research trending topics, write about them if you can, and share on social media.

Since images and videos tend to convert better than text-only, use your smartphone camera frequently. Or, try a high-quality free stock photo site.

5. Intent and Context

Ranking a keyword — that is, getting on the first or second page of Google searches — certainly involves creating great content, getting trusted links, and optimizing the content. That's just a start. Deep learning and machine learning are evolving, and as time goes on, Google's core algorithm will take them more into consideration. Serving results that are based on searcher intent, from the process of understanding context, is Google's ultimate goal. Therefore, sophisticated keyword selection and research are extremely important. Some queries and keywords are impossible to get a rank for, and contextual relevance is vital; it must correspond with a search query. This is another area where seeking out a professional web design firm is helpful, as their expert specialists can spend time researching current ranking phrases and websites. Your landing page and website need to be similar to those that are highly ranked.

Optimizing your website involves several critical factors that will make a big difference in how easy you are to find online. Try these approaches to boost your chances of success.