Are you looking for a sure way to grow your business in 2021? If so, search engine optimization, or SEO, is an excellent strategy that can get you significant results for your brand. Essentially, SEO is the process of getting your site to rank on search engines like Google for your chosen keywords.
When your business website is optimized correctly, there’s a better chance that consumers will find your online store while casually browsing the internet. If more see your site, you’ll have additional opportunities to generate sales, traffic, and subscriptions.
Today, we will look at several SEO tips you should keep in mind if you want to see your company thrive. Our goal is to provide you with actionable information that you can implement on your website. Let’s start by showing you how understanding user intent can help you climb through the rankings.
Master User Intent
User intent, also called search intent, is a phrase that describes the reason why a person types in a specific query on Google. Every business and consumer has a slightly different goal, so understanding intent is one of the quickest ways to improve your search rankings.
Think about it this way; it’s easier to rank for your chosen keywords if you understand why users are typing in those words in the first place.
If you’re able to analyze search intent, you can create content that matches your visitors’ needs. Consequently, consumers can find the information they are looking for and will start to trust your business.
You can increase your SEO ranking by figuring out how people are finding your site. Google Analytics gives business owners a ton of helpful information, including search phrases that users type in before landing on your site. If you want to see how people are finding your website, check the “Search Console” tab, which is available on your Google Analytics account.
Check the keywords that users type to find your brand and think about unique ways to create content around their search query. The more helpful content you write about a specific topic, the easier it is for Google to determine your site’s intent. When Google knows your blog’s primary subject, they can more easily match your company content with searchers’ intention.
Improve Voice Search Optimization
Next, let’s talk about the power of voice search. It’s estimated that roughly half of all searches will happen with a voice-activated device by the start of the year, such as Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri.
You may be surprised to learn that 30% of people with smart speakers have used their device to research a product or service. In other words, consumers are using their voice-powered devices to look for companies just like yours.
Optimizing for voice search means more consumers will find your company while they are browsing, even if they are not directly looking at a screen. There are several ways to improve your visibility by improving voice search.
The best way to climb through the ranks is to add new keywords to your selection of search terms. People often speak into the devices and say things that they might otherwise not type. Understanding the intent of these users and making content that matches their needs will ensure that they find your site and stay engaged for a longer time.
It’s possible to dramatically improve your voice search traffic by creating new content for your blog. We suggest handling frequently asked questions in a general sense, and then again as individual blog posts. Now, you have two chances to appear in the results if someone uses their smart speaker to search for one of your keywords.
Fine-Tune Core Web Vitals
According to Google, core web vitals will play a significant impact on search in May of 2021. If you’re like many people, you may be wondering, “What exactly are web vitals?”
Simply put, there are three core elements that Google looks at when analyzing page experience. These values include:
-Page loading time
-Interactivity
-Visual stability
It’s true that these three factors play a substantial role in the experience consumers have on your website. If you want to increase your ranking in the coming year, we suggest fine-tuning all three of these elements on your website.
Things like loading times can have a significant impact on traffic, which affects your bounce rate. If you have an abnormally high bounce rate, your content will get pushed down in the search rankings. Because 53% of consumers will leave a website if it takes 3 seconds or longer to load, it’s recommended that each page loads in 2 seconds or less.
You can also improve your visual stability by simplifying your on-site design. Consumers will quickly leave a website if there’s too much going on at once. The best way to keep people on your site is to use a simplistic design that’s packed with valuable information.
Diversify Content and Engagement Opportunities
Finally, we want to talk about diversifying your content and engagement opportunities. Consumers are engaging with brands like never before, but it’s up to us to take the steps needed to bridge the gap. Creating diverse content and new opportunities for interactions means users will have a reason to stay on your site longer, which directly impacts SEO.
When it comes to mixing up your content, the media you use can make a big difference. A whopping 43% of consumers want more video content, so many business owners and marketing teams have pivoted to visual blog content. Don’t worry; you can still rank for these posts by optimizing the page and including keyword-rich subtitles.
The results show that video content can help you get more traffic and improve rankings across all marketing platforms. For instance, more business owners are adding videos to their landing pages. This simple strategy results in 80% more conversions because it’s easier to digest and offers new ways to interact with your company.
If you want to mix up your engagement opportunities, consider adding new ways to engage on your website. For example, you could include your social media feed on your sidebar. Most people are not willing to go out of their way to interact with a brand. However, if you create a quick and compelling way to engage, some people will take you up on your offer.
Final Thoughts
All of the interactions we mentioned today may sound small in context. The truth is, SEO has a lot of moving parts. You need to be mindful of all of the seemingly small elements when creating content and optimizing your website. Now, you know some of the quickest and most efficient ways to climb through Google and reach your target audience.
Hi Syed,
Well written content for intermediate & beginner level SEO professionals. Your inclusion of voice search is great, I have read multiple blogs who have missed on that opportunity.