There’s never a bad time to think about improving your website rankings. Search engines like Google constantly change their algorithms, meaning you have to frequently make changes to your website in order to adapt to its dynamism. Improving your SEO ranking means you have to spice up your content so it will show up more in searches. There are so many things that influence these rankings, which is why you should take a look at some of the basics so you can get started.
1. Clean website navigation
If you have an online store, understanding universal navigation should be your top priority. The way websites position their links isn’t coincidental. Most websites use a similar kind of layout for their most important links. Links for things like products and contact information are usually displayed on a bar near the top of the website, along with links towards the home page and blog. How can you know what links to put in your universal navigation? A good way to test this is with website usability testing.
Additionally, under each main link, you should include links that lead to subcategories of the given link. If your product has different models, this will allow the user to scan the website more efficiently than if they had to look for individual products through a search bar. This also exposes them to more products along the way. Subcategories can have creative names that draw the user in. Naming them like “home improvement” and “quality of life” might stimulate the user to think whether of these products. Search engine crawlers appreciate this move as well, as additional specific links improve your search rankings.
2. Product descriptions
We all know the point of the online store is to sell products, but there should be a tad of creativity to it. Simply displaying the product and price won’t captivate your target audience. What you need is an interesting and detailed description of the product being sold. Don’t be afraid to show some personality here, either. Don’t just copy the same description the manufacturer’s website uses for the product, as this can lead to Google issuing a penalty for duplicate content. Descriptions won’t just woo your potential buyers, they’ll also improve the SEO of your website. Algorithms and machines can't make much use of a picture alone, which is why text will improve the chances of someone stumbling on to your website. Captivating your customers is the cherry on top.
Adding additional content that surrounds the product can be just as beneficial. You might think that there’s no reason to add more original content, but things like blogs significantly influence how much traffic your website gets. Encourage the potential customers to share interesting blogs amongst themselves, eventually letting your website reach a more varied audience who didn’t even know they needed your product.
3. Good quality photos
Textual content might be one of the most important factors, but that doesn’t mean you should disregard the visual arts. Good quality photos of any product are a boon to online shopping websites. Beautifully shot product images will reel-in the purchaser, while the text will have them buying the product and coming back later. Make sure you upload the image of the product will the proper name attached. This way Google can get a better understanding of the product.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the image file should be as small as possible, while not compromising on the quality of the image. One of the ways websites are ranked is by the speed at which they load, which is why having a small image is beneficial if you want to stay near the top. You might think you need to hire a professional photographer to shoot great images of products, but this isn’t the case anymore. The common smartphone is more than enough to shoot a high-quality photo of anything, just make sure you have some practice with the camera.
4. Improve on-page SEO factors
On-page factors that influence search engine optimization aren’t that difficult to improve. Changing them takes only minutes, but their impact is enormous. Every website, including online store owners, should take advantage of this if they want to optimize their rankings on search engine. Keywords are the name of the game. You need to have unique keyword-rich title tags, keyword-rich meta descriptions, and unique keywords in header tags.
These keywords let search engines like Google know what your website is about, which will lead anyone searching for key products to you and not other websites. Optimizing keyword for search engine optimization isn’t easy, which is why you should consider employing experts in SEO like GWM to help you maximize your website traffic. With these changes, your website should rise to the top of relevant searches.
5. Cooperate with search engines
A great way to increase visitors to your website is to seek help from the search engines themselves. Companies like Google have systems in place that can help your business prosper. If you decide to share business information with Google, they can create a “Google my business” account for your store. The way this works is your website is represented in local searches when people look for a certain kind of product in their area. This segment includes your location, business hours, and contact information.
This will help your website automatically rank near the top for local searches, whether your content is optimized or not. Your website link is included which additionally boosts your SEO rank right off the bat. This “Google Brand” page segment can be a great boost for your brick and mortar stores, while also solidifying your online and offline brand.
Conclusion
Almost a third of all online purchases start with a Google search. With this in mind, getting to know how to game the system should be your top priority. The world of SEO can be intimidating if you haven’t been down that rabbit hole before, but once you get the gist of it, it becomes a breeze. Rules are constantly changing, but there’s no reason an entrepreneur can’t stay on top of it. Follow some of these basic rules and you’ll be on your way to getting your website to the top of online searches.
