Learn how to improve the SEO rankings for any website regardless whether you want to increase ranking in local or national search results
(STL.News) The most important reason and benefit of owning a business website are to be easily found by prospective customers or clients online.
Building a website and launching it will not be enough to own a website that ranks well in search engine search results. Launching a website is not the end of your online marketing efforts. It is the beginning!
One of the biggest mistakes we see is a lack of local presence. Being found in local presence is easy, but ignored by many web design firms because they want to offer it as an SEO package or they don’t know. Just because a person can create an attractive website does not mean that they can get your online presence top ranking in search results.
Consumers resort to the web for information. While graphics are great for the website visitor to see, it is not what they seek. They want information. They thrills left this industry a long time ago as consumers have become more search savvy.
Two important things that need to be done for local search results and general search results are:
- Properly index your website in webmaster tools
- Properly submit your business listings to maps
All search engines and many apps have maps that help consumers find your location quickly.
An essential web design task has to be content. While many make the mistake of worrying about the appearance, the most attractive websites will not influence consumers if they can’t find the site due to a lack of indexing or inadequate content.
If you properly index a website that lacks appropriate content, the search engines still will not know how to index the site. Search engines can index the images, but the search engines cannot read the image.
If you hire a low budget web designers or a graphics designer that builds website will end up being an expense rather than an asset.
The content needs to be written by a professional that understands how it needs to be written to be correctly indexed by the search engines.
Recently, we consulted with a restaurant whose name was “M____ Grill.” Due to the lack of website structure and content, you could not find them indexed as a restaurant in their community. However, you could find them indexed under barbecue grills because the word “restaurant” was nowhere to be found in the text on the website.
Google said many years ago that “content is king.” It is not their opinion. It is the fact that Google and other search engines can only index a website for search results based on words, or text, or whatever you want to call it. Nonetheless, content needs to exists and easily read by the major search engines, or you are wasting your time and efforts to create a website that will never be found.
What do we mean by indexed? If you properly index your website, they will crawl your site and read the content to know who you are, to understand what you do, and see where you are located. Additionally, they will read what products and services you offer to understand what consumers to show your content to.
Search results are a database search. The process resembles a filing cabinet. The file clerk will look at the file title tab and file (index) the folder in alphabetical order. If that file folder has not title or content in the file folder, they can still file it, but how would you know where they filed it or what was in the folder? You don’t. The search engines are no different.
If you consult with a web designer that contradicts this information, find another designer quickly, or you will be wasting your money.
Hire a professional that promotes “search engine friendly” web design. They will ensure that the search engines quickly found your website.
This article was referenced and linked to by ProBlogMaster.com.