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Can people actually find your website? Sure, you can give them the link, but what if a random person searches the internet for services like yours? Do you appear as a viable option on the first page of results?
If you’re wondering why no one can find you online, you could probably use a thorough SEO audit. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) involves countless strategies and implementations that make your website more appealing to search engines like Google.
Google looks at over 200 signals before it considers presenting a website in search results. It wants to make sure a website is well designed, easy to use, and filled with the kind of information searchers are looking for. If a search engine finds your site lacking, and therefore, not a good option for searchers, it won’t be compelled to rank it.
Want to see if your SEO is up to snuff? Then fill out the form below and we’ll get started on your FREE SEO Audit.
What Is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and its purpose is to make a website more appealing to search engines (like Google).
Why is this important? Because search engines have one job – to show people the best results for their search. And because they want to do a good job, they want to make sure the options they present are top-notch.
If, for example, someone is searching online for ovens, they’ll probably click on their browser of choice (Google, Safari, Mozilla, etc.) and type “ovens” or “ovens near me.” Why did those specific results appear? Because these businesses utilize SEO to boost their visibility in search results.
Our thorough SEO Audit looks at all the things Google looks at when determining the validity and authority of a website. It crawls through the site page by page, just like Google’s crawlers, and detects any coding errors or missing, integral information. It looks at SEO-contributing factors existing on the website (on-site SEO), and outside the website (off-page SEO).
Here are a few things we look at when gauging the quality of SEO optimization on any given website:
Backlinks and Citations:
Google likes to present websites that earn external references — other websites or online entities that reference (citations), or link back to (backlinks), your website. These external sources show search engines that a website is, in fact, a valid online entity offering helpful information. And if search engines are given consistent proof of a website’s validity, they’ll be more compelled to show said website to online searchers.
Customer Reviews:
Another strong website verifier is customer reviews. Customer reviews prove to search engines that your website is a valid entity, and that it does what it promises to do. Customer reviews are especially important because they express the experience they had with a business. And the more reviews – and more positive the reviews – the more likely search engines will present your website as a viable, helpful option.
Website Health:
Are there any coding errors prevalent in the website’s architecture? Any coding issues that may inhibit your website’s ability to project itself throughout the internet? Are there any irritating glitches or malfunctioning website elements that might dissuade online users? When Google attempts to index, and therefore, rank a website, it crawls through it incrementally, page by page. If it comes across too many errors or notices a deficiency in integral, internal, descriptive information (like metadata), Google will be less compelled to present the website in search results.
Content:
Is your text informative? Does it tell visitors exactly who you are and what you do? Does it help assert your business or organization as an authority in its field? Are your images clean and crisp? Do they tell the story of your business in an immediate, visual way? Websites with great content tend to attract more traffic. And when they have that traffic, they tend to keep users on-site for longer periods due to the amount of helpful content. Is your text informative? Does it tell visitors exactly who you are and what you do? Does it help assert your business or organization as an authority in its field? Are your images clean and crisp? Do they tell the story of your business in an immediate, visual way? Websites with great content tend to attract more traffic. And when they have that traffic, they tend to keep users on-site for longer periods due to the amount of helpful content.
Keywords and phrases:
Speaking of content, does your text contain keywords and keyphrases that people actually type when searching online for services like yours? We take a look at the very words and phrases people use to find businesses like yours, and then check content for the prevalence (or deficiency) of these words and phrases.
Page Speed:
Google prefers websites that load fast, especially on mobile devices. If a website lags, or loads slowly, Google will be more compelled to present sites that load immediately for searchers.
User Experience:
So much of what I mentioned falls under User Experience (UX). When people visit the website, are they having a good experience? Are they finding what they came to find? And is that information helpful?
Is the navigation intuitive? Is it easy to move throughout the website?
Is the website loading quickly, or does someone have to wait for the information to appear incrementally?
One more time for people in the back: Google wants to present searchers the best viable options for their search. If the user experience is lacking – if the website isn’t helpful, and it’s actually hard to use – Google will forego ranking it in favor of more user-friendly websites.
There are several more factors that contribute to Search Engine Optimization, but I’m going to let our dedicated SEO and Local SEO pages do the heavy lifting (because SEO is an ever-evolving, multifaceted discipline).
Ready to figure out why no one can find your website? Want to know why, exactly, your website isn’t a preferred choice for popular search engines? Then you need to do yourself — and your business – a favor: Fill out the form below and claim your free SEO Audit.
