In this entry, we’ll talk about optimizing your website, not just each single page, but for the search engine to notice. So without further ado, here are seven basic SEO tips to get your website more attention from the search engines like Google, Yahoo! and Bing.
- Your Website Should Be About One Thing
Though you can cover other related stuff, it always pays to keep things consistent and make the website about one thing. Pick a primary topic that is the most important to your message. This is a very important step, thus you may want to do a thorough keyword research before you decide on what website would be about.
- Use Keywords Where They’re Needed Most
Gone are the days of bombarding readers with poorly written contents with overdone and overused keywords. Now, search engines actually look for keywords that are used right. Thus, make sure you use keywords where they matter most. You can include it on your site title, domain name, tagline, description, blog categories, keywords, page title and content.
For WordPress sites, you can use All-In-One SEO Pack plugin to make your life easier.
- Link Your Pages Together
Have your pages linked together through what we call internal linking. This way, your pages will be feeding off each other, making it easier for readers to navigate your site and go from one related page or content to another.
Many content management systems actually do this automatically. But if yours don’t have this feature, then do it manually. Link your most important pages straight to your homepage, and cross-link them with each other, especially those that are related to each other.
- Use Permalinks with Keywords
Many websites use ugly permalink structures that look very unprofessional. This is something you can’t afford if you want to be seen as an authority in your industry. Thus, instead of using a URL that looks like this:
Your website URL should look like this
https://websitename.com/coolpage/
5. Get Rid of Anything That Slows Your Website Down
Many people tend to forget the importance of page load times, when in actuality, people hate websites that takes forever to load. And most often than not, they click exit rather than waiting for the website to load.
To speed up your website, get rid of the non-essentials, such as music players, flash graphics, large images, and any unnecessary plugins.
- Use Keywords for Images Too
Keywords aren’t just exclusively used for contents, they must be used for media too, such as images. Thus, when using images, make sure you include a good description of the image that includes the keyword, as well as alt attributes.
Also, you can include your main keywords for the image’s file name.
- Link Your Pages To Other Related Website with Relevant Content
External linking works like internal linking; when your page is linked to a good website, they feed off each other’s optimization. This is called external linking, and it’s best practiced with authority sites.
Of course, do this sparingly, as many times outbound links is a “vote” for the other website. If you do this well and strategically however, this tells the search engine you’re a trusted authority website yourself and deserves to be seen on your particular topic.