If you’re wondering why your small business website isn’t getting the kind of traffic you deserve, you’re not alone. There are currently 1.8 billion websites on the internet today, and a good chunk of these sites are scrambling to get ranked on Google search engine results. Out of the 71% of small business websites online currently, 49% of this demographic invest in search engine optimization (SEO) strategies.
While every small business website is different, the race to get highly ranked on Google is the same for every SMB owner. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to rank highly on Google, but it takes time and you’ve definitely got to keep up on your technology research. So if you’re concerned about your Google rank, and struggling for more traffic, read further. We’ll share tips about how Google ranks your website in search engine results and what you can do to improve your odds in the SEO game.
Why Is a High Google Search Rank Important?
Most SMB owners are urgently seeking ways to get their site seen online. The best way to do this is to get ranked on the top of the first page of a Google search. Google is responsible for 90% of search results, and therefore it’s a big contender when getting your website found online and gaining traffic from visitors.
There are a variety of ways to get highly ranked on Google, and we’ll discuss that in a minute. But first, the important thing to know is getting that coveted top-rank spot on Google is crucial. In fact, according to search engine results page (SERP) reports, 32% of searchers click on the first page of Google results, whereas a meager 17% take the time to click on the 2nd page and a whopping 3% don’t even bother to push on to the 3rd page of results. With these sobering statistics in mind, you can clearly see how a high Google rank for your SMB website is critical.
How SEO and Google Ranking Factors Work
Savvy search engine optimization is the best way to get ranked as highly as possible on Google search results pages. There are two different types of ranking strategies – organic and paid. Organic search results happen through SEO tactics that you, as an SMB website operator, render yourself through on-page tweaks and satisfying Google criteria. The only investment you need to make in organic traffic and search results is your own hard work (or hiring an SEO expert).
Paid search results, as the name implies, involve pay-per-click advertisements that you pay for in order to boost your traffic. The most common example is Google AdWords, in which you pay for a campaign for your website ad to be featured on other websites, and Google searches.
Both paid and organic rankings on Google are governed by their algorithms based on metrics and criteria Google deems important. In all, there are over 200 Google ranking criteria and factors – and some SEO experts suspect there are more, but we may never know all the tricks up Google’s sleeve in terms of how they assess which sites are ranked higher than others. But that’s no cause to lose hope in your SEO game. Read further for how you can improve your Google search result ranking.
Top Criteria Google Looks At When Ranking Your SMB Website
If your website isn’t getting ranked on the first page of a Google search result page, then there’s room for improvement. Here are the top criteria Google looks for that you can implement on your SMB site to boost your SEO and Google search rank.
Site Speed: One of the factors involved with ranking high on Google search results is having adequate bandwidth so your site speed is optimal. You can boost your website speed by obtaining the best managed WordPress hosting services, or dedicated hosts. These services provide security, fast website speeds, and many more benefits that can meet the approval of Google standards for getting ranked. When you bear in mind that 68% of web surfers click out of a website that is too slow to load, then you know site speed is vital to your SMB website success.
Get Backlinks: One of the top ways Google determines your site is relevant is how many backlinks you have. Backlinks are links on other websites that direct back to your website. The more links Google finds on other websites that link back into your website, the better your rank will be. You can get backlinks by asking website owners related to your niche for a link placed on their site. You might also inquire if you can be a guest author and have a blog post on other websites with a link back to your website.
Keyword Factors: This is a huge aspect of SEO that Google takes into consideration. To get the tricky business of keyword optimization right, you’ve got to research the keywords or phrases that are relevant to your SMB website’s genre. For example, if you sell baseball bats, do a Google search on highly sought-after keywords related to baseball bats. Ultimately, you want high-demand keywords that are in low supply on the internet. Once you collect this essential keyword data, you can begin building quality blog posts around these keywords. Be sure to include keywords into the title, the first paragraph, in your image descriptions and sprinkled throughout your article.
Consistent Content: Most SMB websites die on the internet vine because they aren’t offering fresh, new content on a regular basis. Google looks for websites that are consistently adding new content. This is essential for getting traffic to your website. A blog section on your SMB website is crucial for getting ranked online. Keep your content evergreen so that Google is constantly scanning your site. This one thing is a giant in terms of boosting your rank on Google search.
Get Responsive: Make sure your SMB website is responsive. This means your site needs to be easily viewable on any device. Google started penalizing websites around 2015 if they were not mobile-friendly by ranking them lower on search engines. If you’re using a WordPress platform, then get a WP theme that is responsive and mobile-friendly. Currently, almost 70% of internet users view websites on their mobile phones. Therefore, if your site isn’t viewable on mobile phones, tablets, and desktops, Google will ding you for that, and your site will rank lower in search results.
The Last Word on Getting Highly Ranked on Google
Whether you opt for paid or organic traffic or even hire an SEO expert to help you with optimizing your SMB website, boosting your presence online is pivotal to your SMB success. So if you’re fed up with low traffic and substandard search engine rankings, employ these tactics to optimize your site and start getting the sales you deserve.
