Picture this: Months of tireless collaboration have gone into building your local company's website. Now that it's finally live and ready to appear on search engines, those coveted top spots on Google's first result page are proving to be quite elusive. Frustrating, isn't it? This is where a digital marketing agency in Egypt with SEO expertise can help!
Ranking your website on Google’s first results page means your business will:
Dominate Traffic: The top 3 web results ranking organically on Google claim a staggering 68.5% of all clicks compared to the modest 3.5% that top paid websites have. This proves SEO is the most cost-effective way to earn website traffic.
Establish Brand Authority: Frequently appearing at the top of search results organically will familiarize your visitors with your brand and instill trust in them, thanks to the mere exposure effect.
In a previous article, we discussed the importance of pre-launch SEO. Today, we're giving you a roadmap that’ll help you finally reach the top of Google's first results page!
Step 1: Keyword Research
At face value, having your webpage land at the top of a Search Engine Result Page (SERP) for a keyword sounds great.
In reality, it offers little to no value if that keyword is rarely being searched for in the first place. It could even be misleading if your website shows up when users search using keywords that have nothing to do with what you offer.
This is why keyword research is important; it helps businesses identify which keywords they need to target to attract their ideal customers. An SEO agency in Egypt can assist with this.
Keyword Research Step-by-Step:
1. Brainstorming
As a business owner, when you want your website to rank at the top of a SERP, you first need to ask: What do my customers search for when they are looking for what I offer?
Coming up with a wide pool of keywords involves the following:
- Understanding Your Audience: Identify your ideal customer’s demographics, challenges, goals, and interests (Buyer Persona) and the reason behind their search query (User Intent)
- Competitive Research: Identify who your competitors are and the keywords they’re targeting and discover valuable keywords they might be missing out on.
- Google Features: Utilize Google Autocomplete and People Also Ask features for more suggestions to add to your keyword list.
- Online Communities: Public forums like Quora and Reddit, as well as social media communities, can offer some insight into what your audience is currently looking for.
- Paid Keyword Research Tools: Semrush and Moz have paid plans that offer deeper insights into search volume, competition, and keyword trends.
2. Refining
You now have hundreds of potential keywords to help you achieve your ranking goal. Targeting them all, however, will spread your efforts thin.
You will need to filter which keywords to use based on:
- Search Volume: The average number of monthly searches for a keyword. An SEO agency in Egypt can provide this data.
- Competition Level: How difficult it is to rank for a keyword.
- Relevance: Ensure each keyword aligns with your business and your target audience.
- Long-tail Keywords: They are keywords that contain three words or more. While they may not bring in a lot of visitors, thanks to their specificity, they will attract those who are more likely to convert.
3. Implementing
Now that your keyword list is refined and ready, it's time to put it to good use! An SEO agency in Egypt can assist with this.
- Content Creation: Integrate your selected keywords into your content strategy. Use these keywords naturally in your blog posts or product descriptions. We will talk more about Key Content Strategies below.
- On-Page Optimization: Title tags and meta descriptions should be clear, concise, and keyword-rich. Image alt tags should have relevant and descriptive keywords to improve user accessibility and search engine understanding.
4. Monitoring & Adapting
Use the keyword analysis tools mentioned earlier to check the ranking progress for your target keywords. Based on the results of your analysis, you might consider adding new trending keywords, optimizing existing content, or even creating additional content for well-performing keywords. No matter what choice you make, it’ll be well-informed and result-driven. An SEO agency in Egypt can assist with this.
5. Repeat
Keyword research is an ongoing process. Search trends and user behavior are constantly evolving. Regularly revisiting your keyword strategy ensures that your website remains relevant and attracts the right audience. An SEO agency in Egypt can help keep your strategy up-to-date.
Step 2: Content Strategy
To this day, content stands the test of time as the most important element that could make or break your website’s chances of landing first on search results.
Your website could be visually impeccable, structurally sound, and running smooth like butter, but if that article you wrote or that video you published on your website is deemed irrelevant by Google or uninteresting by visitors, those previous efforts will bear little to no fruit in the long run. An SEO agency in Egypt can help ensure your content is relevant and engaging.
Content Practices To Be Mindful Of:
- Relevance: Align your content with targeted keywords and user intent.
- Uniqueness: Offer fresh perspectives and valuable insights and avoid duplicate content at all costs.
- Keyword Harmony: Integrate your targeted keywords naturally throughout your content.
- Readability: Ensure your content is well-formatted, easy to read, and mobile-friendly.
- Length: Aim for longer content like articles and in-depth guides, as these perform better in search results.
- Repurposing: Give your pre-existing content a new look by switching up its format. You can also utilize other marketing channels at your disposal, including your business’ social media, to maximize your reach.
- Consistency: Create a content calendar and publish regularly. This solidifies your position as a thought leader in your niche to both Google and your visitors.
- Bridging Gaps: Routinely check your content for outdated information. Update existing pieces or create new content to fill knowledge gaps.
Step 3: User Experience
Nearly 80% of online shoppers who experience a dissatisfying website visit are less likely to buy from that site again. Shockingly, 27% are less likely to buy from that website’s physical store. This means the impact of a bad online experience could even translate into lost store sales.
Good User Experience Checklist:
Speed
Utilize tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to measure your website’s loading speed and identify areas for improvement that your web developer can work on. Ideally, your website should load in under 3 seconds.
Mobile-friendliness & Adaptability
Google commands a staggering 95.4% of the global mobile search engine market. So, your company’s website should run seamlessly on all mobile devices of different models. It should never feel like a slower desktop version shrunk down.
Intuitive UI
A website with an intuitive layout, a simple navigation menu and a clear call to action (CTA) will guide its visitors to find what they're looking for quite easily. Such websites enjoy healthy user engagement rates and low bounce rates.
Step 4: Google Features
Google has a variety of features that offer additional ways to increase your website's visibility on their search results. Since these features appear at the top of Google's search page, they can grab your users' attention and lead them to your website, even if you're not ranking number one organically.
YouTube
YouTube is the second-largest search engine and is also owned by Google. Upload any video content your website has to Youtube. Then, make sure to optimize those videos using relevant keywords, titles, descriptions, and tags to increase your visibility on search pages.
Google Business Profile
This is a free tool that allows businesses to manage how they appear in Google Search and Google Maps. Set up your Google Business Profile and make sure all information regarding your business (name, address, phone number, etc...) is accurate. Upload high-quality images of your products and respond to your customers’ reviews and inquiries.
Google Images
Make sure the images on your website have a descriptive file name and a proper file size. Pay close attention to your alt texts, as they are what appears to users if your images fail to load. Use relevant keywords in your alt text to provide context for both users and search engines.
People Also Ask
This section appears among Google's top search results, and it contains related questions that users frequently ask. Aim to answer these questions in your content to increase your website's chances of appearing in this valuable section.
Step 5: Link Networks
Essential Link-Building Checklist:
Backlinks
Links that your website gains from other websites act as endorsements for your content. The more high-quality websites link to your webpage, the higher your domain authority is to Google and the higher your chances are of ranking in search pages. An SEO agency in Egypt can help you gain valuable backlinks.
You can gain valuable backlinks by:
- Guest blogging: Writing blog posts for other relevant websites in your niche
- Collaborations: Partnering with complementary businesses to create mutually beneficial content
- Broken link building: Finding broken links on relevant websites and suggesting your own content as a replacement
- Skyscraping: Finding highly linked content on a similar topic and creating a superior version
Internal Links
A well-structured internal linking system helps visitors navigate your website seamlessly and keeps them engaged by directing them to content that interests them. An SEO agency in Egypt can help improve your website’s internal linking system.
Improve your website’s internal linking system by:
- Regularly checking broken links: Encountering these will result in higher bounce rates from your website, negatively affecting your chances of ranking on Google.
- Linking to high-quality content from your website: This will strengthen your website’s authority in Google’s eyes.
Step 6: Audit and Analysis
As you’re probably aware by now, SEO is an ongoing process. Reaching the top of Google’s search results page is only the beginning. To stay there, you need to continuously monitor your ranking, adapt to new trends, and look out for potential competition. An SEO agency in Egypt can help with this.
SEO Audit & Analytics Tools:
To perform a well-rounded SEO audit, it’s best to utilize a combination of free and paid tools:
Free Tools
- Google Search Console: Unveils valuable insights about your website's search traffic, indexing status, and potential issues.
- Google Analytics: Provides a comprehensive view of your website's traffic sources, user behavior, and conversions.
Paid Tools
- SEMrush, Ahrefs, Moz Pro: Offer advanced features for in-depth keyword research, competitor analysis, and backlink tracking.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to Track:
- Organic Traffic: The number of visitors that come to your website from search engines.
- Keyword Ranking: Your website's position in a search engine page for a specific keyword.
- Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors that take the desired action on your website.
- Time on Page: The amount of time a visitor spends on a particular web page.
- Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors that leave your website after viewing only one page.
Build It Right, Not Fast
As a rule, you should be skeptical of all shortcuts to higher organic rankings. These tactics could provide a temporary increase in traffic, but they will be detrimental to your website’s success in the end.
Search engines are constantly improving their algorithms to detect these practices (called Black Hat SEO). So not only do Black Hat perpetrators risk getting penalized by search engines, but they will also alienate visitors when they find misleading and spammy content.
Avoid These:
Cloaking
Showing different content to search engines than what the actual visitors see.
Keyword Stuffing
Cramming a large number of keywords into content to the point where that content becomes unreadable and nonsensical.
Scraping
Copying content from other websites word-for-word or slightly modifying them and publishing them as their own with no permission.
Link Farming
Creating a network of low-quality websites that excessively link to each in an attempt to trick search engines into thinking these websites are trustworthy
Road9 Media: A Powerhouse SEO Agency In Egypt
Keeping up with Google’s trends and algorithms while maintaining top-notch business practices could be a daunting task for business owners, especially those short on experience or time.
Our advice? Consider partnering with an SEO agency
- An SEO agency has the advantage of a complete team of specialists, unlike a single SEO expert who may excel in certain areas only.
- Hiring an SEO agency also saves you time and money that would have otherwise been spent hiring and training a full-time team internally.
At Road9 Media, we offer a team of seasoned professionals with over 15 years of industry knowledge and proven methods for conquering search rankings:
- SEO Specialists: We use proven techniques to optimize your website for search engine ranking.
- Content Creators: We craft content that resonates with your audience and boosts organic growth.
- Link Building Strategists: We secure high-quality backlinks to increase your website's credibility and search authority.
- Data Analysts: We translate data insights into actionable strategies that optimize your SEO.
- Account Manager: We'll be your dedicated partner, ensuring clear communication and exceeding your expectations.
Let our SEO team help you dominate search results.
