SEO tends to be this geeky thing that gets tossed around, put in a black box and many times used as an extortion tool in the hands of unethical people. So, let’s open the black box and do a bit of de-geeking.
SEO in its simplest terms are those things that you need to do so that you rank better with the Search Engines and have the greatest visibility possible online. There are 3 main areas where the “magic” happens:
- Things on your website – content and image related, keyword research for better-focused content
- Technical things behind the scenes on your website – optimizing your code, caching your website, fixing errors
- Increasing your visibility – through building links and a long term strategic content plan
People often ask me if they can do their own SEO. My answer is yes… to an extent. There are things that are easy with just a bit of coaching, and there are things geeky enough that I still rely on the experts. Over the next few weeks, we’re going to unpack and explain things that you can do.
So, Let’s start with an easy win…. Cross my fingers, pinky promise!
Content!
Your potential clients love content that speaks to them, answers their questions, and helps them solve the “problem” they came to your website for. And, Google loves content that does the exact same thing. Gone are the days of just putting the right keywords in the right place. Google is able to understand the context, and by tracking how people search, can tell if they are loving your content or not.
Follow with me on this short exercise on your website
- Review the content on your website. Is it in line with the points I shared recently? Even if someone else wrote it, you understand your business and “voice” better than anyone else. Skip the “corporate speak”, let your passion hang out and reach out and touch the heartstrings of the people that visit your site. How can you solve their problem (i.e. sell your services)? There’s nothing wrong with updating content 🙂
- When you look at your content on a page, is it organized so it’s easy to read? People don’t read word for word – they skim down the page. You need to make sure they can see important information.
There are 3 important things to consider:
- Short sentences, 15-30 words. (If you’re wordy, find a friend who isn’t.)
- Short paragraphs, 2-3 sentences. (Yes, this means we break the old school rule of “keep your entire thought in one paragraph and change paragraphs only when changing thoughts”.)
- Break up your “thoughts” (groups of paragraphs) by using headings. Headings should be used like the old school outline. Yoast has a great article that explains them.
If you’ve made changes and would like to run it by someone, I’m more than happy to do so. Just send me the details.
Seriously, are you leaving $$ on the table because of your website? Take advantage of our completely free in-depth website review. This isn’t a thinly veiled sales pitch, just solid feedback with no strings attached.
