When it comes to SEO, every business that has experienced success has a tip or two on how to get there – and often a much larger list of mistakes that they made along the way.
Learn from the mistakes of others and hit the ground running with your SEO campaign, so when it’s your turn to share advice in the future, you won’t have many horror stories to impart! Only good news and handy, actionable data.
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Our top 3 SEO Do’s
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, involves a fair amount of trial and error. You don’t always know the value of a piece of content before you upload it, or how impactful a keyword will be until you try it. That’s just the way this works.
That being said, there are ways to reduce the error parts of your trial and error, one of which is to have a top digital marketing agency in Dubai help with your SEO strategy instead.
Of course, if you are not interested in having the pros do it for you and would sooner try it for yourself, these 3 handy tips will get you off to a good start…
1. DO know your target audience
The first step to SEO success is to know who you want to appeal and appear to. There is no point in trying to move your way up the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) in response to a query only to realise that your product would be better suited to someone else.
Really think about what problems your product solves and who might have those problems, and then get to work on your keywords.
This might sound obvious, but you would be amazed by how few marketers truly understand who their audience is. We’re not just talking about age, gender, and location – but what really makes them tick.
After all, how can you resonate with someone on an emotional level if you have no idea who they are or how to communicate with them?
2. DO your keyword research before you start
Keyword research is essential if you want to get anywhere with your SEO. The key is to delve deeper into what makes a proper keyword for your business. Instead of just going for a broad term that is used in a lot of general searches, try and get as specific as you can – and indeed use a multitude of different options.
Use long-tail keywords, to try and increase your specificity. For example, ‘cushion’ might be searched a lot, but ‘handmade soft red cushion’ will have far less competition.
Without proper research you’re effectively walking through the forest in a random direction and hoping to find your way.
3. DO put the effort into your landing page
Of course, while keyword research is critical, SEO takes into account far more than just the keywords that you use. For example, you could be failing to gain a more prominent position for something as easily fixed as a slow loading speed – and that is just one of dozens of potential problems that can hold you back.
You should check your page speed, your image sizes, limit your redirects and do everything you can to improve your landing page to boost your SEO.
But that’s not all; you need clear and concise titles, compelling sales copy, solid internal linking, an intuitive user experience, and so much more.
As the saying goes: “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them drink.” Well, putting the effort into your landing page is the most effective way to ensure that as few horses are going home thirsty as possible.
And now for the Don’ts…
1. DON’T forget that user experience is key
As the world’s biggest search engine, a lot of what we are talking about must relate to Google first. Google values user experience highly when ranking their results, so you can’t just try and use designs and content that you think will appeal to their algorithms.
Think about how visitors will respond to your page and how instinctive it is to use. And remember, more people than ever are using mobiles to access websites, so don’t neglect your mobile formatting either.
Your UX should effortlessly lead your website visitors to a positive conclusion (i.e., giving you money!).
2. DON’T over ‘stuff’ your keywords
Similarly, while you may think that more keywords in your website is invariably better, packing them in can actually damage your SEO.
The key is to write as naturally as possible and that means putting readability before meeting a certain quota.
3. DON’T just get set up and then leave your SEO to manage itself
SEO is a never-ending marathon and if you want the best results you need to constantly manage, monitor, and refine your approach.
Search engines like Google are always evolving and updating their algorithms and regulations, so it is essential that you keep paying attention.
Of course, if you don’t have the time or would prefer to spend your precious time on doing what you do best, we urge you to consider engaging a digital marketing agency to take care of your SEO for you instead.
