Create Quality Content

Content is king and it always has been. Google loves great quality content because it knows that people routinely count on the search engine to find the information they need. This is why you should be focused on creating high quality content that is just asking to be shared. When people see your quality content, they’ll likely to link to it and share it and Google will reward you when your content is shared on other websites and blogs. Since Google favours websites that frequently add fresh and relevant content, you should be adding new content to your site on a regular basis.

Improve Site Speed

When it comes to SEO, website speed is very important. As technology improves, people have become less patient. They expect to find the information they’re looking for in seconds. This means people want websites to load quickly. To find out how your site is doing in terms of speed, use a free site speed tool you can easily find online. If you discover that your site ranks significantly lower than the industry average, speed it up by:

• Using a simple website design

• Optimizing your images by scaling them to reduce page load times

• Reduce server response time by switching to a faster DNS provider

• Use fewer plugins

• Reduce redirects

See What Your Competitors Are Doing

In order to rank higher than your direct competitors, you’ll need to know what they’re doing to get them to rank high in the search results. Do a little competitor analysis to find out what your direct competitors are doing to succeed that you’re not. You can use an SEO research software platform to do this. Just start by searching for one of your most important keyword terms. Then see where you rank in relation to your competitors.

Grow Natural Links

A key ranking factor used by Google is the number of natural, quality inbound links you have.  In fact, ranking without these links is very difficult. To grow your natural links you can:

• Submit your site to niche directories

• Guest post on relevant blogs

• Take part in reciprocal linking as long as you don’t go overboard

• Leave comments on blogs & forums

• Start a blog

The more quality links you have pointing to your site the better. Never underestimate the significance of link building when it comes to ranking high in search results.

Avoid Using the Most Common Keywords

It’s very hard to compete and rank well if you’re routinely using the most well-known keywords. That’s why you need to think outside the box when coming up with keywords to use. Look for niche keywords and phrases people are using to look for the types of products and services you offer.  Of course, you should use the common keywords people are using to find your products and services, but include some keyword variations in the mix. Use a keyword tool to like Google’s Keyword Planner to search for new keyword suggestions.

Learn how Google search ranking works to help you better understand what you can do to push your site up in the search engine ranking pages or SERPs. To get your site ranked high in search results, you’ll have to do some hard work as ranking is never easy. By doing some research and following the tips above, your site should start to rank higher to boost your traffic and bring you more business.

The post Five Tricks to Ranking Higher in Google appeared first on Wafers Museum.

Top ranking employees at both Google and Bing have said that unlinked mentions can be as strong as a signal as a backlink and that they use these mentions as a factor when determining site authority. So what is an unlinked brand mention?  It’s anything related to your brand that may get mentioned (without a link) on another website that’s not yours. If you think about it, you probably read articles online all the time where brands are mentioned without any included links.

How to Attract Unlinked Brand Mentions

You can look at a brand mention as a seed that someone else plants for you to help you grow your brand or business. Considering that these mentions are coming from others and they’re now being considered as ranking factors for the search engines, you should naturally want to attract them. Here are a few ways you can do just that:

Amp Up Your Social Media Presence

When it comes to social media, the more mentions you get, the wider your reach. When your brand has been shared on Facebook, retweeted on Twitter, re-pinned on Pinterest or shared on Instagram, you’re getting social media mentions to make your brand more well known.

To increase your social media presence, be sure you know who your audience is so you know what type of content to share with them. Remember that social media users share the posts they find interesting, funny, informative, and unique. So plan your content strategy around providing your audience with what resonates with them.

It’s important to engage with your social followers by answering their questions, replying to their comments or chatting with them in discussions. This will send a very clear message that you actually care about your followers, which can go a long way in you earning some mentions from them.

Encourage Your Customers to Leave Reviews

Reviews are a terrific way to get some brand mentions. You can ask your customers in person or via email to leave reviews on the most appropriate platforms for your type of business. For example, if you’re in the hotel business, ask your customers to leave reviews on TripAdvisor. If you’re running an online business, a good place to have your customers leave reviews is Trustpilot.

Crank Out Good Content Worth Sharing

Producing good quality content can go far in getting people to mention your brand. A great way to publish content on a regular basis is by blogging. Publish one or two blog posts a week with new product info, exciting industry or business news, or great stories, then share those posts on your social channels so they attract brand mentions.

Since quality content is so important, you should be devoting a portion of your time each week to coming up with great topics to blog about. Look for industry news and topics that are trending, then put your own spin on them and turn them into mention-worthy blog posts.

It’s a good thing from an SEO perspective to have people talking about you behind your back. It means your brand is getting attention and is growing. Unlinked brand mentions have ranking value. And, if you happen to get mentioned in national or international publications,  these mentions can be a huge deal that can instantly boost your business as an authority.

If you partner with the right SEO expert, they should have more tricks up their sleeve to benefit your site and help you rank higher.

The post Boost Your Rankings with Unlinked Brand Mentions appeared first on Wafers Museum.

Local link building is done to build relevance for a website toward its locality with the goal being to establish a presence in the SERPs for local terms. Getting an inbound link from a local source can be more valuable than getting a link from a big, well-known source like a national news publication. Here are a few relatively easy ways to pick up some local links to put your business front and centre.

Get Press Coverage

As a local business, you want as many local people as possible in your area to know about you. When it comes to advertising and marketing, nothing beats local press coverage. Free press coverage drives traffic to your website and helps you get those sales you need. To get noticed by the press you should:

• Reach out to local media outlets with interesting stories about your business

• Invite local media to special events you’re having at your business

• Offer to provide guest content to local newspaper sites

• Share your events on local online calendars

Enter Local Competitions to Win Awards

Many local organizations and companies organize and sponsor awards in various business areas. Conduct a search to look for any awards you can win, and then sign up. If you’re fortunate, a sponsor will mention you to give you some free advertising just for being a nominee. Even if you don’t end up winning, your website may appear on local online lists and in print media like “Best 25 Tailors in London”.

Host a Community Event

You can get listed on your city’s website and other local news sources by hosting a community event. The type of event you host is up to you, as long as you’re creating and providing a productive resource for the members of your community. You can host an event that draws many people like a garbage pick-up day where the meeting place is your business. Another idea is to host a food drive or drop-off for people in need. Both of these ideas will generate interest and show that your business cares about more than just making money.

Connect with Local Influencers

A great way to earn some inbound links is to build actual relationships with local influencers. These people can be politicians, community leaders, or journalists. You can bet that these local influencers are online using posting on Facebook, tweeting, and updating their blogs. These people are always looking for new, unique content to share and they provide you with links, mentions, and other types of signals Google uses to rank sites, so get out there and connect!

You can contact a local influencer in person, via phone, or through email and introduce your business to him/her. You can also connect through a social channel the two of you both use.

Conclusion: It’s not all that difficult to connect with local influencers to get incoming links to your site. You can also get social mentions and reviews from these people to make you more visible to your targeted customer base. While some of these methods involve you getting out from behind your computer and meeting and greeting people, it will be worth the effort as it’s always good to show the face behind the brand. One of the best “SEO tricks” you can try, is really simple, hire the right SEO agency!

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