5 Free and Easy Tips to Be at the Top of Google Search Results
During a time where customers are using the internet to research and purchase everything, it is essential to be at the top of their search results. Here are 5 easy steps to get Google’s algorithm to put your small business on the first result page for free.
1 . Generate more organic search
The more people come to your website, the more you will be at the top of search pages. To incentivize users to click on your site, you need to optimize it for search engines. In order to optimize your website, start by thinking about who your customers are and what they would be looking for. Once you create these customer profiles , think about what keywords they would use to look up your business or a need relevant to what you offer. Then, make sure to include these keywords in your website as many times as NATURALLY possible. You don’t want to overstuff your website with keywords as Google’s algorithm tracks down false uses of keywords and brings those websites’ search ranking down.
E.g.: As restaurant in Houston that serves pasta and pizza, your customers are most likely residents in proximity that crave a slice of pizza. In your website, you should include keywords such as “Houston,” “pizza” and “pasta” as much as possible.
Another great way to boost traffic is to have a blog within your website with updates about your store and interesting articles linked to your services. It is a great way to highlight your products/services in a fun and interesting way. Make sure the title of the article stands out in order for users to want to click on it.
E.g.: A small boutique specialized in clothing for women could post, every month, articles such as “10 Must-Haves for April 2020” and “Fall 2019 Fashion Trends” with photos that highlight clothing currently available in the store.
A wine bar can have articles about recipes that pair well with the wine it sells as well as a link to how to purchase those bottles remotely.
2 . Have a good meta description tag
The meta description is a small part of code up to155 characters which summarizes a page's content. Search engines use that small description to identify your business and present that meta description in search results. Here is the one we used at Rem and Company:
Search engines are more likely to show your website to users with the searched-for phrases that are in your description. Therefore, it’s important to optimize your website’s meta description to have keywords customers are likely to use when researching your services.
3. Be mobile-friendly
More and more searches are done on mobile. According to Google Think, 76% of people who search on their smartphones for something nearby visit a business within a day. Hence having a mobile-friendly website is extremely important as Google’s algorithm loves high-speed, well-coded websites that fit EVERY device. A good way to check how good your website is for all types of smartphones, tablets and computers is to try it out on as many devices as possible to view the user experience in each. Ask yourself questions such as: Can the user find my address? Are all the photos high-quality? Is my website easy to navigate through?
Additionally, go to Google’s PageSpeed Insights. This website allows you to enter your website URL and grades it on the its speed for desktop and mobile. It will also tell you if there are any issues. If your website does not load fast, you might lose impatient customers and have lower your search ranking.
4. Optimize images
Google’s search algorithm also values quality images. It’s important to compress and optimize images to have fast page load and a good SEO ranking. You can compress these images while keeping their high quality with free online tools.
It is also important to have a descriptive image name when you post photos or videos on your website.
E.g.: “Annie's Bakery Interior.png” not “photo4824756045.png”
Finally, each image should have alt text on it, which describes the purpose of the image. Alt Text appears when a photo cannot load and helps make the website accessible to all. Most Content Management Systems, such as WordPress, will allow you to personalize the alt text or you can easily add it to your website’s code.
Try to be as precise and relevant as possible about the picture. While it is important for the alt text to be linked to the rest of the website’s content, it should not to be a string of keywords as Google algorithm responds poorly to it.
E.g.: A Yoga studio, in New York City, posts this picture on their website.
Okay alt text: alt=“woman doing yoga in front of large buildings”
While this sentence describes the type of exercise, gender of the person and her location, it is not specific enough.
Better alt text: alt=“Yoga instructor in tree pose in front of the New York City skyline”
This is a better alt text that really describes the woman (you could include her name if she was your yoga instructor), where your business is situated (New York City) as well as the exact yoga movement being done.
5. Add relevant links
Finally, a great way to increase your search result ranking is adding relevant and reputable links to your page. The easiest links to add to a website are social media account (Facebook, Instagram etc.) and email address links. Google will recognize social media links as reputable.
Another way is through the blog option we talked about earlier. In these updates/articles, you can include links to statistics you use to prove your point or other resources your customers can use.
E.g.: A yoga studio offering zoom classes can add links to good yoga mats on Amazon that its current at-home customers can purchase.
A wine bar can link videos on fish recipes that pair well with the white wines it currently sells.
Finally, it is always great to get the word out about your business through newspapers articles. When someone writes a digital piece about your business, you can ask them to link your website so Google sees your website mentioned elsewhere. Additionally, you can then also include the link to these articles on your website.
By implementing all these great techniques, your small business website will be at the top of Google’s organic search results in no time!
As a social impact initiative, Rem and Company also offers free consulting services and resources to small businesses and nonprofits impacted by COVID-19. Our pro-bono consulting teams provide small businesses with the opportunity to identify and prioritize issues facing their business, propose innovative strategies, and facilitate execution. If you are a small business or nonprofit in need of assistance, learn more about how we can help.