In 2013, more companies made it a focus to become search engine optimisation (SEO) ‘savvy’ in an attempt to maximise their visibility online. With this, the digital search landscape has become even more crowded meaning that only the best sites will get their heads above the parapet on page one for their chosen keywords. Without blowing our own trumpet, SBF regularly appears on page one for its keywords and we've seen the benefits!
Getting your SEO strategy spot on is now a big challenge for businesses in 2014, but it can be hard to keep pace with the ever-changing demands of the search engines on what they want to see in a website.
Here at SBF, we’ve had a word with Google (OK, maybe we haven’t!), done some research and compiled our top 5 SEO tips for the year ahead:
Authorship Markup
In a way to make content feel more personal, Google now allows websites to link website content with Google+ social profiles to effectively verify ownership of content.
Browsers can then also click on the name linked to the content, as well as the actual content itself, to view their Google+ account and gain insight into the author of the content.
Social signals could become an SEO ranking factor in the future, so having your content linked in this way ahead of your competitors may give you the extra SEO boost you need. Linking your content will also likely increase click-through rates by increasing the desirability of the link, which could in turn help generate more traffic to your website and increase sales/leads! It’s a win-win situation and is certainly worth the little time and effort it takes to verify your content.
Mobile Optimisation
The invention of the smartphone has led to many people switching from their desktops and laptops to their mobiles to search for information. The smartphone market has also expanded rapidly meaning there is a wide variety of affordable smartphones in 2014, which will in turn hand quick and simple web access to even more people in the year ahead.
Consequently, websites that meet the demands of smartphone users will likely rank highest this year, as the search engines look to ensure their browsers have the best possible browsing experience.
Ensure your website is mobile-compatible to help your smartphone users in 2014.
Sociable Brand
No matter what industry or sector your business is in, SME or multinational, B2C or B2B, retail or haulage, you need to ensure you have a social side to your business in 2014 if you want to see SEO benefits.
Try and create a social community for your business through the appropriate social media channels to allow your customers and potential customers to browse and share content. To find out more about social media and how you can use it to your company’s advantage, we’ve also blogged about top tips for using social media.
Again social signals are likely to help search engines determine how relevant your website is to browsers, so use it to your advantage in 2014!
Varied Backlink Portfolio
Search engines are increasingly moving away from counting the number of backlinks your website to determine how to rank your website, but that doesn’t mean you should completely move focus away from backlinks.
Naturally generated backlinks, such as those you receive when your content is shared by other websites, are viewed in the best light by search engines as they indicate that your website is trustworthy and has insightful content, plus they contribute to a varied backlink portfolio.
You can acquire other backlinks through social media, guest blogs and directory submissions, but try to ensure your backlink portfolio is as diverse as possible so the search engines don’t penalise your site for over-optimisation!
Don’t Be Evil!
Did you know that one major search engine, namely Google, has ‘don’t be evil’ as its informal motto?
As this is the case, we suggest that you also abide to this motto and ensure all of your SEO efforts are above board, meaning you steer clear of black-hat, shady practices that may promise ‘quick wins’.
SEO is very much a long-term process that, if done effectively, will see your business benefit in both keyword rankings and brand authority over the coming years.
Knowledge for Small Business and Large Enterprises
At Skipton Business Finance, our invoice finance facilities, such as our UK-leading invoice factoring and invoice discounting solutions, grow in line with your business.
We are pioneers in not just providing invoice factoring and invoice discounting to businesses up and down the country, but also in helping our clients grow and become better.
That's why we have a dedicated section of our website that focuses on offering free knowledge on a range of topics that you may find helpful for your business.