Do your competitors appear higher than you in Google? If so, you need to take action to improve your ranking.
The higher up search results pages that your website appears, the more traffic you will get. It really is as simple as that. Here are 9 ethical SEO tactics you can use to bury your competitors.
- Focus on Conversions
This first tactic is about a state of mind rather than actions you take, but it is important as it influences all the other points below. The basic concept is who cares if you appear lower than your competitors in some search results pages if, overall, you get more and/or higher value conversions.
- Target the Right Keywords
Following on from the last point, check you are focusing your efforts on the right keywords. This means keywords that have buying intent. The way to think about this is to target keywords that potential customers will use when searching for a product or service to buy rather than a keyword that someone would use to research your industry or product for a school project.
- Spy on Your Competitors
Next up, have a look at what your competitors are doing. You can do this using the brilliant – and free – tool SEMrush. Simply enter the website address of your competitor and you will get a report showing the main keywords on their website, where they are getting backlinks from, and other information. You can use this data to inform your own SEO strategy.
- Be More Visible on the Web
Another good tactic you can use is to become more visible on the web. Google looks at hundreds of factors when considering where to position your page in search. This includes factors that analyze how visible your brand is on the internet and how popular it is. Strategies you can use include using social media more, commenting on news stories for local media, and answering questions on question and answer websites.
- Optimize the Content on Your Pages
Make sure your website’s pages include your target keywords. Optimized website content also includes properly structure sub-headings and internal links. The content should also be 100 percent unique and easy to read.
- Write Killer Page Titles and Meta Descriptions
Google analyses page titles and (probably) meta descriptions, plus users see them on Google search results pages. Your page titles and meta descriptions should include your target keyword, they should be properly formatted, and should encourage the user to click onto your website.
- Fix Errors on Your Site
Google is all about giving its users the best possible user experience. It may decide your website does not do that if it has errors. This includes coding errors, 404 pages, broken links, and more. Regularly check for any errors and fix them quickly.
- Optimize Images
Images can help with SEO too. Make the filename short, descriptive, and ensure it contains the page’s keyword. Do the same for each image’s alt text, plus make the file size of the image as small as possible.
- Start a Blog
A blog helps with SEO in several ways. It increases your reputation on the web, enhances your activity on social media, generates backlinks, and increases the chances that your website will appear in Google search results for long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords are multiple-word phrases that only a handful of people search for, but they often have exceptionally high conversion rates.
