When it comes to SEO, there is a long, possibly endless list of things to consider. From keyword research to social shares; content strategies and backlinks; images and H tags – there’s always more you can do to boost your SEO rankings. But what about site functionality?
In a race to get to the top of page 1 on Google, most business owners embark on intensive SEO campaigns. However, they tend to focus on things like content, outreach, local citations and social media activity. While these elements are all critical to successful SEO, there is one important area that gets overlooked: site functionality.
Site functionality simply refers to what your website is capable of and how well it works. If your site’s secure, easy to navigate and free of errors, chances are it’s got good functionality. A website that’s full of broken links and delivers a poor UX, on the other hand, definitely has poor functionality.
Your website is the centrepiece of your online presence, so it’s vital that it impresses visitors and transitions them through your sales funnel. Whatever goal you’re working on – whether it’s increasing brand awareness, optimising conversion rates or cultivating customer loyalty – good site functionality is critical to your success.
However, site functionality doesn’t just have a direct impact on sales and user satisfaction; it affects your SEO too. In fact, site functionality is one of the key areas that Google assesses when ranking your webpages.
By overlooking site functionality when planning your SEO strategy, you’re ignoring one of the most basic elements. Good rankings rely on optimum website functionality. Make this the basis for your SEO activity and you’ll be off to a great start.
Optimising site functionality doesn’t have to be as difficult as it sounds. You might find that you’ve already got some of these points covered and, if not, you’ll have the insight you need to turn things around. To find out what changes you need to make, take a look at some of the aspects of site functionality that impact your SEO rankings:
An increasing number of people are accessing the internet via mobile devices. Advances in technology, Wi-Fi and 4G/5G mean it’s easier than ever to get online using a tablet or smartphone. Of course, the reduced cost of data and widespread availability of public hotspots has helped the mobile trend to flourish too.
In fact, mobile internet use has increased so much that Google has switched to mobile-first indexing. Essentially, if your site isn’t mobile friendly, you’re not going to get the top rankings you’re after. While businesses used to rely on two separate sites – desktop and mobile – this approach limits your SEO success and requires twice the work.
By using responsive web design, you can satisfy Google’s mobile-first indexing algorithm and ensure users have a positive UX, regardless of what device they’re using.
10 seconds might not sound like a long time but sit behind a screen and set your stopwatch. It sure feels like a long time now, right?!
If your webpages take anywhere near to 10 seconds to load, then you have serious functionality problems. In fact, Google has confirmed that a very slow loading speed is a negative ranking factor. This means you could actually harm your rankings by failing to address this issue.
On mobile devices, your site really needs to load in under 3 seconds. However, even loading speeds of 2.9 seconds will only put you ahead of 50% of sites on the internet. Upgrading to a better server or hosting provider is essential if you aren’t getting the speeds you need to rank highly.
If you’re still not convinced, monitor your bounce rate at existing site speeds and check them again when your loading speeds are reduced. Users are impatient when it comes to waiting for a webpage to load and you could be losing a substantial part of your audience simply because your site’s too slow.
People like to engage with businesses they trust. No matter what industry you operate in, chances are you’ll be asking users to part with information when they visit your website. Whether you’re collecting email addresses for a newsletter subscription or processing sensitive financial information via online sales; users won’t give up their details if they don’t trust your brand.
Most users are aware of the difference between http:// and https:// in a URL, so make sure your security certificates are in order. However, users won’t generally spend time investigating a site to determine its authenticity or assess its security measures. Instead, they’ll rely on the overall aesthetic, functionality and security indicators.
Whatever security measures you take to safeguard your business and your customers, make sure you advertise them! Badges, graphics and imagery are widely available when you implement site security, so ensure they’re displayed clearly. This is particularly important on sites that offer online transactions but, even if you don’t process purchases online, be sure to let your users know just how seriously you take their online safety.
These are just three site functionality issues that have an impact on your SEO rankings. There are plenty more functionality elements that affect your rankings too, so it’s important to take a comprehensive approach when you’re evaluating your site’s current performance.
Once you’ve covered the basics of site functionality, it’s time to begin working on other areas. Both on-page and off-page SEO is critical to overall success, so you’ll need to consider your site layout, content strategy, outreach, PPC campaigns, social media performance, influencer links and much, much more.
If you don’t have an in-house SEO team, chances are you won’t have the time or the resources to implement a sure-fire SEO strategy. Fortunately, you don’t need to worry. At ClickSlice, we specialise in creating, implementing and delivering successful SEO campaigns. To find out how we can transform your business, contact us today on 020 3287 3638 or email us at hello@clickslice.co.uk.
Whether you’re a sole trader working alone or heading up a growing enterprise, you’ll want to make the most of the tools at your disposal. When it comes to marketing, leveraging your digital assets with the right tools offers high rewards.
Using the right selection of online marketing methods enables you to maximise results while minimising costs. The potential to substantially increase your sales while reducing your outgoings is irresistible for any business. For SMEs, however, the ability to make enormous gains from even modest resources could be your route to commercial success.
If you want to increase your sales and get the most from your budget, check out the 5 marketing tools you need to be using now:
Backlinks are critical if you want to work on your SEO and increase your Google rankings. Every business owner knows they need a website to succeed. But are you doing everything you can to increase its visibility?
Your webpages need to rank highly for relevant keywords so that users can see your content. One of the most effective ways to achieve high rankings is via backlinks. When other credible sites feature your links, it boosts your rankings in two ways.
Firstly, securing a backlink on a popular site promotes your brand and allows users to clickthrough directly to your content. Secondly, having backlinks on high authority domains elevates your content in the eyes of Google. As a result, your credibility and authenticity increase, thus leading to higher rankings and more traffic.
Video is the most popular type of online content, so it’s essential you’re using it. According to HubSpot, more than half of consumers want to see more video content from brands they’re interested in. What’s more, Wyzowl maintains that 8 out of 10 people have purchased digital content after viewing a video featuring it.
Many small businesses steer clear of video marketing because they assume it will blow their budget. While it’s true that producing great video content can require more resources than other online marketing tools, this shouldn’t prevent you from leveraging your engagement with video content. Although you may need to input more resources, the increased brand awareness, engagement and sales will offer an impressive ROI.
Remember – don’t just share your video content on your website. Users watch a billion hours of video a day on YouTube alone and millions of users consume video content across social media platforms. Sharing your videos on external sites will ensure your content is visible to your target audience and provide them with a direct route to your website.
Often categorised as affiliate marketing, influencer partnerships can take many forms. If you offer an influencer a commission for every sale they facilitate or a kickback for every user they direct to your site, you can implement a traditional affiliate marketing model. This works particularly well for SMEs because you’re only paying for the value you actually gain.
Alternatively, you may want to fund your influencer marketing by paying a flat fee for placements, promotions or endorsements. This means you’ll get to keep the entirety of the profits you make as a result of the campaign, although it does involve a higher level of risk.
Influencer marketing is a relatively new form of online engagement but it’s one that’s grown substantially over the last 18 months. As brands realise just how much sway influencers have over their target demographics, the benefits of partnering with them are all too clear.
If you’re looking for a way to fast-track engagement or you want to build your customer base in record time, an endorsement from a well-known influencer can help you to achieve your goals. Simply remember to select your influencer partners based on their credibility, audience and impact. By doing so, you’ll ensure that your products and services are being endorsed by someone your target demographic trusts and, crucially, by someone who has a direct impact on how they behave online.
Any enterprise can benefit from local SEO, but SMEs are perfectly placed to add value to their business with local search engine optimisation. If you operate from a customer or client-facing location, you’ll obviously want to promote your premises within a specific geographical area. To do this, you’ll need a strategic local SEO campaign. As your brand becomes the go-to business for relevant products or services in the area, you’ll begin to outperform your competitors and secure a larger share of the market.
However, it isn’t just bricks and mortar businesses that need local SEO to succeed. Even if you operate solely via the internet, a local SEO campaign can boost your brand in more ways than you might think.
When you’re implementing a digital marketing initiative, it’s tempting to try and target everyone. After all, the more people who engage with you, the higher your profits can be. In reality, however, successful marketing requires a more nuanced approach. Attempting to target everyone with the same content and delivery methods won’t just be ineffective; it could inadvertently harm your brand.
Instead, it’s important to segment your target audience. By recognising the different needs and wants of these segments, you can cater to them directly. This enables you to provide tailormade content that piques their interest, responds to their needs and persuades them to purchase.
As you segment your target audience, their geographical location is just one factor that could have an impact on their online behaviour and consumer footprint. Due to this, you’ll want to use local SEO to cater to your target demographic and provide them with the content, products and services they’re actively looking for.
Successful marketing means leveraging a wide variety of tools and methodologies. To achieve your goals and grow your business, you’ll a need affordable, results-driven digital marketing strategy. And that’s where we come in.
To find out how we can help you grow your business, contact ClickSlice now on 020 3287 3638.
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