Jun122017
The importance of great content

13 ways to help customers find you online

The saying ‘content is king’ still holds true when it comes to gaining great search rankings and converting page hits into customers. Here’s why…

Do you understand the importance of good content? Like, really understand it, and know why we hear sayings like ‘content is king’ when it comes to websites and digital marketing? It comes down to one thing: being found online. And by that we mean the ease with which your potential customers can find you when looking for your services.

After all, no one picks up a phone directory any more. What they do instead is enter some key words into Google (and let’s be honest, it usually is Google: it accounts for around 77% of internet traffic worldwide) and sit back and wait. But there are ways to ensure that Google will find your website, decide it’s exactly what that person is looking for, and rank it higher up the page than your competitors’. And we all want to be on that very first page, don’t we?

Understanding how Google works

Here at Make Me Local, we’ve had extensive training in search engine optimisation (SEO) with the world’s top search engine experts. Which means we know and understand how Google works; how it operates using algorithms (a set of calculations/coding used by computers) and what it searches for when looking to provide the best search results. And that can be summed up in one word: quality.

What is ‘quality’ content?

Google is always on the hunt for quality content. But what does that mean? For those looking to create a website that is readily found in online searches, it means doing the following to ensure that Google recognises it as being a quality site and places it right slap bang on that all-important first page of results:

  1. Creating original copy (words) that hasn’t been copied from elsewhere and repeated verbatim.
  2. Establishing what your key words are (the words people enter into Google when looking for your services) and including these in your copy.
  3. Using H tags (or header tags) correctly – a good website designer will know how the hierarchy/structure of H tags works in order to ensure your website presents itself as relevant to Google in a search.
  4. Ensuring your website is mobile friendly and optimised for viewing on smart phones and tablets – especially if your target audience is of a younger demographic – around 60% of searches are carried out using mobile devices (and some studies shows this to be higher).
  5. Designing a website that is well laid out with clear contact information.
  6. Ensuring that copy on each page is of a reasonable length – ideally more than 350 words.
  7. Bearing in mind that your website copy should add value – giving the reader a very good insight into your services right from the Home page ­and providing all the relevant information they need to make the decision to contact you.
  8. Being mindful that the copy is well written and presented in a way that makes it easy to access and gives a good representation of you and your service. Credible, expert advice is always great.
  9. Ensuring that your website content is refreshed/updated regularly.
  10. Making sure that the website contains links to reliable, reputable external sites.
  11. Using great images and, if relevant to your business, video, on your site.
  12. Avoiding unhelpful or distracting elements on your pages, like on-site ads.
  13. Dealing with negative reviews or anything that may affect your reputation – you lose marks with Google for negativity and it tags you as a low quality site.

It’s simply not enough to just ‘have a website’. Your website needs to be found online – and it needs to appear as high up in the Google rankings as possible. If this sounds like a tall order, we’re happy to give you some help and advice on how you can ensure the right customers find your business. At Make Me Local, we have over 13 years’ experience in creating websites that are loved by Google and found by customers. Give us a call on 08007720022 for a no-obligation, friendly chat to find out more.