10 Quick Tips to Improve your Search Engine Rankings

Is your website lost in the obscurity of the internet? Here are 10 tips to improve your rankings.

  1. Research good keywords (Read More)
  2. Sufficient Text - Too little text on a web page will cause Google to turn it into a supplemental page
  3. Similar Pages - Pages that are too similar may be filtered out by the search engines.
  4. Unique Page Titles - Each page should have it's own title based on page content and your most important keywords.
  5. Unique Meta Tags - Each page on your site should have a unique meta description and keywords based on the pages content and your most important keywords.
  6. Keyword repetition in page text. Keywords and keyword variations should be used frequently on the page. Don't get carried away, make sure the page is still easily readable.
  7. Keyword emphasis in page text - Use heading html tags and bold to tell the search engines what you think are the most important words on your page.
  8. Keyword placement in page text - Be sure the first and last paragraphs on your page include your major keywords.
  9. Alt tags on images - Search engines cannot read an image. Tell the search engine what the picture is about and how it relates to the surrounding content.

*If you don't understand all the terms expressed here, talk to your web designer.

10 Google Tricks you probably don't know

  1. Dictionary - Want to find the meaning of a word? just type in define: before the word...for example define: minister
  2. Find a restaurant(or anything else): Go to Google Maps and type in geelong: restaurants. Zoom in on the map using the wheel on your mouse.
  3. Find a movie - type in movie: geelong
  4. Find weather reports - Type in weather: geelong
  5. Find web pages that have links to your website? type in link: Your URL. e.g. link:www.fasteddy.com.au
  6. If you want to match an exact phrase, use quotes e.g. "marathon master games"
  7. Find PDF results only - Add filetype:pdf after your search words e.g. geelong council financial report filetype:pdf -- this is a great way to find online manuals.
  8. Calculator - Just type in the calculation required e.g. 21-12
  9. Stocks - Type the stock symbol in Google. For example, typing: msft will display the stock information for Microsoft.
  10. Find your place - go to Google Maps and type in your address e.g. 393 ryrie st geelong then zoom the map (scroll wheel) to the detail you require

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION (SEO)

Every website should be optimised for search engine ranking but if you are reliant on customers finding you via Search Engines this is critical. The steps below can be worked on to a greater or lesser degree.

There are several areas to consider:

1. KEYWORDS AND KEY PHRASES

You can do some research and assess your most important keywords and key phrases as entered in a Search Engine such as Google.
Think about what search words you would want to point to your website. e.g. If you're an accountant you might want to rank highly on 'accountant geelong', Type your keywords (and combinations) into Google and check out those sites that come up. Take note of how relevant they are to your business and if so what words they have used in their text and headings etc.
Keep a list of your important keywords and key phrases and try to incorporate these into the content of your site, repeating them frequently. Note that your keywords may vary from page to page of your website.

Use your keywords and key phrases throughout your site and ensure that they are included in the Meta Tag area of your pages(see below)

2. META TAGS

Meta Tags are hidden text in your web page. You will be interested in the three following Tags:

  • Title: The title should be descriptive of your business and maybe contain a keyword. The title will show on the Tab of the visitor's web browser. e.g. Seashore B&B Accommodation Lorne.
  • Description: This should be descriptive and engaging. Often search engine results will list this text. Once again, slip in as many keywords as you can without making the text look bad:-
    e.g. Seashore B&B accommodation is located on the Great Ocean Road in Lorne. Stay in an historic cottage with sweeping views of the rugged coastline. Enjoy the Great Ocean Road from Anglesea, Aireys Inlet, Fairhaven, Lorne, Apollo Bay and through to the Otways. Our Bed and Breakfast services will pamper you.
  • Keywords: This is a list of comma separated words and word groups:-
    e.g. accommodation, B&B, bed and breakfast, rooms, great ocean road, lorne, etc
    Keywords Meta Tags don't hold much weight with search engines as it's easy to put anything you like in them. Using the keywords in the content of your pages is much more important.

Vary your titles, descriptions and keywords from page to page as duplicate information may be ignored by the search engines.

3. IMAGE TAGS

Make sure that all your images have 'Alt' tags attached. You can tell by hovering your mouse over the image... a pop up message should appear describing the image. This description is used by the search engines.

4. SUBMIT YOUR SITE TO SEARCH ENGINES

  • Submit a sitemap to Google (this tells Google that your site exists and what pages you would like it to index in it's database)
  • Submit your site to Specialty Search Engines. Specialty Search Engines can be profession specific e.g. architects, artists etc. Have a look at http://www.searchengineguide.com/searchengines.html or www.completeplanet.com/ and you will discover search engines specialising in all sorts of topics and professions. Check them out and get yourself listed on good search engines related to your business.

5. EXTERNAL ACTIONS

  • Search Engines take notice of Links between websites and will upgrade a site that has a lot of links pointed to it. High quality links (from busy websites) are rated more highly than those from quiet websites.
  • Incoming links (getting other websites to point to your website)
  • Submit your website to Specialist Directories
  • Submit Articles to various websites, bloggs etc with a link back to your site
  • Submit Press releases - find newsworthy events to write about your company.
  • Link Trading - Offer a link to related websites in return for a link back to you
  • One Way Link - Sometimes you have to pay sometimes you'll get it just by asking for a link. Especially if you have an interesting site
  • Link Bait - If your content is high quality and desirable, other sites may link to it.
  • Get involved with other sites such as Forums, Bloggs, Review sites, Classifieds etc.
  • Outgoing links - It has been suggested that Google uses the sites you link to in determining the subject of your site. Link to a few authority sites.
  • Statistics - Web Site statistics. You can check visitor rates and see what pages visitors access and how long they stay at your site. If people are leaving quickly then you may have a problem with your page or you may be targeting the wrong audience.