Shailesh ShethImprove Organic SEO Rankings on Google
Organic SEO Rankings are the holy grail of online marketing. They’re what every business aspires to, but only the lucky few achieve.
What’s the secret to getting your website ranked high in Google and other search engines? It’s not easy, that’s for sure, but it is possible. Here are 15 ways to improve your organic SEO rankings and get ahead of your competition.
1. Perform keyword research and use those keywords in your content
You can’t have a successful organic SEO strategy without knowing which keywords you should target. Your pick of keywords will depend on the product or service that you provide, and where you’re doing business.
Ensure your online business is found by people looking for what you have to offer by using relevant keywords in your copy, meta tags, and headlines.
2. Optimize your website with HTTPS
Google announced last year that they will give websites using the HTTPS secure protocol a rankings boost over those without it.
As of July 2018, Google Chrome began marking all non-HTTPS sites as “not secure”, which further emphasizes why you need to implement this protocol on your website.
3. Publish content frequently and on a schedule
Google and other search engines like to rank sites that frequently update their content, so you should try and publish new articles and blog posts often.
If your business doesn’t have the resources to create high-quality content on a regular basis, look for ways to repurpose the content that you already have.
4. Update your website regularly to fix bugs and broken links
If your website is full of broken links, faulty code, or if it’s not mobile-friendly then Google will probably take notice, and they won’t be impressed. Fix these issues by hiring someone to perform a website audit and install Google Analytics to monitor visitor activity.
5. Use your keywords in the correct places and vary your H tags, alt tags, and meta descriptions
Keyword stuffing is a thing of the past. Just as you shouldn’t overuse keywords on your website, you also shouldn’t neglect them altogether. Use keywords strategically throughout your copy, and don’t forget to vary the tags you use.
6. Create a mobile-friendly website or responsive web design
Responsive websites automatically adjust their layout and content to fit any screen size, making it easier for them to rank higher in Google’s search results. If you can’t create a responsive web design, at least make sure your website is mobile-friendly.
7. Improve the user experience on your website
If you want people to convert, then first you need to give them a reason to stay! Make sure that they have somewhere comfortable and convenient to sit while on your website by creating an environment with contemporary features like parallax scrolling, full-screen backgrounds, video backgrounds, and pop-up tooltips.
8. Optimize your website for local or geographical keywords
Do you want to attract new customers in your area? If so, then it’s important to use relevant keywords that describe where you business is located. For example, if you own a surf shop in Venice Beach, California, add keywords like “Surf Shop” and “Venice Beach” to your copy.
9. Use local or geographical URLs
URLs that contain relevant keywords related to your location tend to rank higher in search engines for geographical long tail searches.
Make sure the URL of your website includes keywords that describe where you business is located, for example, if your surf shop is in Venice Beach, California then use a URL like store.venicebeachsurfshop.com vs venicebeachsurfshop.com
10. Register sites with Google My Business
Setting up a Google My Business account will help you rank higher in local search results. If you don’t have one, then this is the first step you should take to boost your organic SEO rankings for local searches.
11. Internal link to other related pages on your website
Search engines love to rank websites that have a high level of internal links (links within your website to other relevant pages). To take advantage of this, include links to related articles and blog posts on different pages.
12. Create a backlink strategy
Search engines look for quality backlinks to determine your website’s authority. If you want your site to rank higher in Google, then find ways to generate new high-quality backlinks on a regular basis.
13. Submit your website to the top directories and business listings
Backlinks from top industry-specific directories can help boost your rankings on search engines. So, look for ways to get listed on the most popular directories in your industry.
14. Submit a sitemap to Google Search Console
When you submit a sitemap to Google Search Console, it tells them which pages are new and/or have been updated recently so they can index those pages first. To create a sitemap, follow the guidelines provided by Google: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/189077
15. Use keywords or key phrases in your URL structure
URLs with relevant keywords tend to rank higher for those keywords. To take advantage of this, use relevant keywords and phrases as part of your URL structure and description tags.
Conclusion
If you want to improve your organic SEO rankings, then follow these 15 simple tips and tricks. Although it might take a while for search engines to find your newly optimized pages, it will be worth the wait! Good luck!
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