SEO, backlinks, ranking, domain authority, do all of these words mean nothing to you currently? Well once you’re finished here you should be well versed in the world of backlinks.
Did you know that 55.24% of pages don’t have a single backlink?
This is even more mind-blowing when you hear that the top results on Google’s first SERP have 3.8 times more backlinks than results below them!
Backlinks are alive and kicking and just waiting for you to make the most out of them…
First of all, what is a backlink?
Simply put, backlinks (aka incoming links and inbound links) are links from one page to another.
Backlinks are seen by search engines, such as Google, as “votes” for the page.
The more backlinks a page has, the more likely it is to have high organic search rankings and be found. Here at CREATIVE in TiME, we are alllllll about being FOUND!
So, why are backlinks important?
A backlink can be compared to a positive vote. Each time your website receives a backlink, it tells search engines that your content is useful, relevant and trustworthy.
As you may know, Google makes changes regularly to its algorithm however backlinks have always remained as a key ranking factor, building backlinks isn’t going out of style anytime soon so hop on the trend!
Are all backlinks made equal?
No, having a high number of backlinks is perfect however this is only the case for high quality backlinks.
Quality over quantity.
Having a few high quality backlinks is more desirable than having 100 low quality backlinks. Think of it this way, are you more likely to trust a recommendation from a sketchy guy’s website or from Forbes? Exactly.
What makes a quality backlink?
1. It comes from a trusted website
As we have previously mentioned, the website from which you have a backlink is important. This is called having “domain authority”. Domain authority means that the more authority a website has, the more it can pass onto your site through the link.
Backlinks from authority sites have more weight under Google and can easily boost your organic search traffic. This does mean that quality backlinks are harder to get than low quality links, but they are absolutely worth the effort.
2. Your target keyword is in the link’s anchor text
What is anchor text, I hear you ask? Anchor text is the visible text part of your link which people click on.
If possible, you want the anchor text in your links to include your target keyword. Including your target keyword has been shown to cause higher rankings for said keyword.
If you are thinking “this sounds too good to be true”, well you aren’t totally wrong. You want to be careful not to go overboard with keyword-rich anchor text as this can harm you if you’ve done too much.
3. The webpage linking to your site is topically related to you
This is likely the most obvious of all, Google wants to see a relation between your website and the website which is linking to you.
For example, you have written a blog detailing how to bake a cake.
Google will put significantly more weight on backlinks from websites that are related such as baking, cooking and recipes as opposed to websites about fitness and electronics.
Reach out to other people in your industry, you likely already know people who will have relevant websites and may wish to host each other’s backlinks.
4. The link is from a fresh domain
Backlinks from new websites are more effective than websites who have already linked to you. If a website links to you more than once, all links after the first will have lower returns.
Once you have a link from a domain, do not focus your efforts on being linked to AGAIN.
The number of websites linking to you is more important than the total number of links. 50 links from 50 websites is better than 100 links from 1 website.
How do I GET backlinks?
If you want to get backlinks, then you need something for people to link to. You need something that other people will recognise as being worth linking to.
We would recommend:
Blog posts
Videos
Quizzes
Surveys
Software
And anything else that people will want to link to.
For people to link to your website, it needs to be useful and relevant content. Here’s a tip, when creating your content, look at what other people AREN’T doing.
If you are writing a guide then check out what other people are missing, maybe they haven’t included examples or do not have enough detail. If people are looking for the best guide on a topic, ensure that yours will be the most relevant.
Another way to build backlinks is through guest posting. Writing guest posts for quality sites in the same field as you is ideal. Avoid guest posting for unrelated topics as this can look suspicious to Google.
Find websites in your niche that support guest posting and try reaching out to get the ball rolling.
Now, go forth, and get BACKLINKS!
You should now know what backlinks are, why they are important and what links are most desirable for your website.
If your website has backlinks and is still struggling to be found, get in touch with us now. Our team of SEO experts are just waiting to get stuck in!
At its most basic, WordPress is the simplest and most popular way to create your own website.
Did you know that WordPress contains over 43.0% of all the websites on the Internet? That means that more than one in four websites that you visit are probably powered by WordPress.
What websites can WordPress create?
WordPress is a free, open-source content management system (CMS) which allows the user to create:
eCommerce shops
Blogs
Forums
Social networks
Business sites
And pretty much anything else you can think of!
What is SEO on WordPress?
SEO stands for search engine optimisation; this is the way in which you can get your website found online. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term “SEO”, I would recommend clicking here to read our Beginners Guide to SEO.
WordPress is very SEO-friendly from the beginning, this is vital as when you are creating new pages, you want them to start ranking on Google from the get-go. A webpage is only useful if people are looking at it.
Earlier we mentioned that WordPress is a content management system (CMS), Google has openly said that Google doesn’t consider CMS as a ranking factor however they do care about how accessible and useful your webpages are. WordPress just so happens to be the best CMS for facilitation of accessible and useful webpages.
This is one reason why we favour WordPress!
Why is WordPress the BEST for SEO?
With the wide variety of CMS to use for your business (such as Shopify, Wix and Squarespace just to name a few) you may be wondering why WordPress is superior, let us explain.
We believe that there are 3 important elements of WordPress that contribute to the overall SEO-friendliness.
There is a diverse and high-quality range of SEO WordPress plugins available which improve the functionality of your website.
WordPress has SEO friendly themes that can also aid in improving your SEO.
Finally, the WordPress CMS itself is inherently user-friendly, functional and is a low cost for the features provided.
WordPress SEO Basics
Before we get into the nitty-gritty details on HOW you can properly optimise your SEO on WordPress, there are a few basics that you need to make sure you have covered to be confident that you are working with a concrete build.
Choose a Reliable Hosting Provider: You NEED to make sure your website with a reliable hosting provider. To rank on search engines, fast, reliable web hosting is ESSENTIAL to the success of any SEO campaign. Google’s algorithm has consistently taken the user experience into account, so speedy websites are rewarded with improved Google rankings.
Install an SEO-friendly WordPress Theme: There are thousands of themes to choose from, but how do you know which are SEO-friendly? Many claim to be SEO-friendly but come with a vast array of scripts and plugins that you will not use, and that will slow your site’s performance down. Before installing a theme, run its demo through Google’s web.dev tool to get insights on potential performance and SEO issues.
Install a Free WordPress SEO Plugin: Before you begin to optimise your site, you need an SEO plugin. We recommend Yoast SEO. Install Yoast SEO in the admin panel and navigate to the ‘add new’ plugin page down the left-hand menu. Once it is installed, you need to activate the plugin.
Verify Your Site with Google Search Console & Submit Your XML Sitemap: THIS IS A MUST! Not done it before? Check out this article written by Google on how to verify your site here. Follow the verification steps listed and choose the ‘HTML tag’ method (the easiest method!). A sitemap tells Google which pages and files you think are important in your site, and also provides valuable information about these files so this is a MEGA important step!
Tips for Optimising SEO on WordPress
Once you have implemented the WordPress SEO basics, you are ready to get started optimising your site and working through the things that will make a real difference to how you rank.
Here are our Top 7 ways you can optimise your content and pages:
Carry Out Keyword Research: You can’t optimise your content/pages without doing any keyword research now, can we? This is an ESSENTIAL step to optimising your website.
Set Custom URLs for Pages & Posts: Default URL’s can be lengthy and sometimes be cut off on SERPs. Re-write and shorten your URL’s.
Use Optimised Page Headings: Don’t forget to use your H1, H2, & H3 headings! A page’s H1 heading is intended to give context on what your page is about to both users and search engines.
Craft Unique Optimised Title Tags & Meta Descriptions: Meta descriptions can significantly increase the chance of someone clicking on your content in the search results. If you choose not to add an optimized and intriguing meta description, the search engine will typically add the first sentence of the page. Usually, that will not be enough to pique the interest of the person searching and they might not click.
Use Internal Linking: Internal links help Google to understand the most important pages on your website.
Add Alt Text to Images: The purpose of alt text is to improve accessibility by describing what an image is showing to visitors who do not have the ability to see them. However, it also helps search engine crawlers and so improves SEO. Don’t forget to do this!
Want us to do it for you? 😏 SEO is what we love to do. Click here to book a discovery call now to see how we can help your business.
Want to find out how to check your SEO ranking? Click here.
You can, theoretically, rank for ANYTHING! If people are searching for it, you can rank for it (people can Google some out-of-the-box things). For example, have you ever Googled yourself? I’m sure we’ve all done it, but if you haven’t, I’d strongly recommend doing it after you read this just for a giggle.
If you haven’t started optimising your SEO ranking and want to start, click here to learn HOW to optimise your SEO for your business. If you’re in the process of optimising your SEO, and you’re interested in finding out how to check your SEO ranking, read on!
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the way in which you can help customers to find your site through search engines such as Google. By improving and optimising your SEO you can drive more traffic to your website and therefore generate more sales.
How to Check Where You Rank on Google
How many have you done this? When you want to see where you rank on Google, you type your website into the search bar and then scroll and scroll, hoping your website pops up in the first few results.
DON’T DO THIS.
Do you know there are websites that do this for you? We’ll touch more on this in a second.
Did you know that web pages rank and not websites? Each of your web pages has the potential to rank, this includes blogs and articles if you write them (which you should, click here to find out why!)
What is a website’s ‘SEO Ranking Position’ on Google?
Google ranking systems are designed to sort through hundreds of billions of webpages in their Search index to find the most relevant, useful results in a fraction of a second and present them in a way that helps you find what you’re looking for.
In simple terms, to generate an ‘organic’ search result, Google matches every word or phrase you type in the search box to its index of web pages to find matches. What YOU want to do, is get your website to SHOW UP for your keywords and phrases. You do want to be found, right?!
Google displays these matches as search results which are simply lists of web pages in order of relevance. So, the first organic result is the web page Google believes to be the most relevant to your search, and so on.
The Problem with Searching for Your Keywords
If you do show up on the first page of Google when you search your site, this may be wrong. When you sit down at your own computer or pull out your phone and search for yourself, you may not actually be seeing accurate results. Why is this? Well…
This could be down to:
Your Physical Location: When searching, Google takes the searcher’s location into account to tailor the search results to show businesses near them.
Your Browsing History: To get you the most helpful results, Google prioritises sites you’ve visited before in your search results. It will show those sites higher in the search results in case you’re looking for them again. If you visit your site often, then it will automatically show higher.
So, How Can You Truly See Your Accurate SEO Ranking?
There are a variety of websites which can be used to check your website’s SEO ranking and your websites ranking for specific keywords.
On Ubersuggest, you can add your business website as a ‘project’ which allows you to see a variety of statistics about your website such as backlinks, SEO issues, and site speed.
When using Ubersuggest to view your ranking, you should add the keywords that you are trying to rank for so that you can track where your site ranks on Google and when any changes occur such as moving up or down in the rankings.
Top Tip: Set up a project on UberSuggest and see what keywords you rank for higher and lower over time. If you see your keyword falling in ranking, start posting more content or update your current pages with this keyword. You won’t regret it!
Google Lighthouse
Another great tool for checking out mobile speed and SEO is Google Lighthouse.No, we don’t mean those blinding lights that guide boats!
Lighthouse is a page experience tool built by Google. The tool executes five audits for accessibility, performance, SEO, Progressive Web Apps and an extended list of best practices.
Powered by the new Core Web Vitals, these audits together give you an excellent overview of the quality and performance of your mobile website as well as your desktop site, or web app.
We find that Lighthouse is the BEST for checking out site speed. In 2022, site speed is super important to Google, and a lot of websites still don’t have mobile-optimised experiences.
Top Tip: Take a look on Lighthouse (you can find it by right clicking on your site and inspecting element) and see what you can do to make your speed better. For example, do your images take too long to load? Don’t forget, this will need to be on the Google Chrome Browser and not Safari!
Take it from your personal experience, would you stick on a website that is struggling to load? Or would you bounce out and find a faster one? Site speed for the win!
Google Search Console
Another one we swear by is Google Search Console. Through Google Search Console, you can crawl your website, see what people are searching for when they click on your website, check out which keywords get you the most traffic and clicks and so much more.
Google Search Console is a FREE tool and it’s amazing. Every website SHOULD have it set up already, but if you don’t, click here.
Once you have Search Console set up, navigate to the “Performance” tab on the left. Then click the colourful buttons at the top to turn on Total Clicks, Total Impressions, Average Click-Through-Rate, and Average Position.
Top Tip: Google Search Console is also used for submitting sitemaps. If you haven’t submitted your sitemap to Google yet, then you need to do it. NOW. For SEO, having a sitemap is critical to having your important pages indexed, demonstrating which pages are valuable, and having them indexed regularly to make sure only your most-up-to-date content is appearing in search results.
Why should you check your SEO ranking?
You should check your SEO ranking regularly to see where your website is ranking on Google and which keywords you are ranking for.
If you do not keep up to date with the standard of your website, then you will not be able to improve. Find out what keywords you want to be found for and find which ones you are not currently ranking for; Use this information to include these keywords in your future website improvements and content.
Top Tip: Blogs are a great way to be found for keywords. You do not want your website to become cluttered and disorganised due to too many keywords, blogs are a great way to be found online and for people to visit your website.
If you have started optimising your SEO already, brilliant! If you haven’t started, first of all why? Secondly,click here to learn HOW to optimise your SEO for your business.
If you want to check out your SEO ranking and optimise it for your business but don’t know how, then just get in touch! Digital marketing is what we love to do. Click here to book a discovery call now to see how we can help your business.
Marketing is changing faster than ever. I mean, there are ALWAYS new algorithm and Google updates, which means sometimes it can be hard to keep track of all the new marketing trends.
As we head into the New Year, we thought it would be only fitting to share some of the most important marketing trends that will continue in 2023 to aid you in your long-term marketing planning.
1. Chatbots can Increase Engagement
Many websites have handy chatbots that can answer user queries. Chatbot usage has doubled since 2020 and we can only predict this trend will continue. Chatbot technology is proving to be very successful for many reasons;
Automates customer service
Keeps customers on your webpage for longer
Improves overall website efficiency for users
Creates a better user experience.
Online shopping is one trend that will continue to prevail and grow in 2023 therefore increasing customer engagement is vital.
If you DON’T have an active chatbot on your website, we recommend adding one. If you DO have a chatbot on your website, we recommend optimising your automated messages and ensuring that actual people are available to chat as well.
2. Video is Vital
Video has always been a part of digital marketing, but in this past year, it has come to the forefront and is now one of the most effective forms of marketing.
With TikTok reaching 1 BILLION active users (to put that into perspective, the population of India is 1.3 billion!), it is a hotspot for small businesses to reach new customers, generate engagement and make sales.
Do not underestimate the power of video, video exclusive platforms such as TikTok are ideal for promoting your business via video, however, don’t forget about your trusty favourite social platforms.
For example, reels on Instagram can go viral and produce an extraordinary number of views and engagements. Customers like video content as it is often more personal, informative and shows the real person behind the business.
Want to see this in practice? Click here to visit our Instagram page and see how we use reels in our marketing strategies.
3. Mobile Site Speed can NEVER be too Fast!
Website traffic is overwhelmingly mobile; however, most websites still don’t have fully mobile-optimized experiences.
How often do you surf the web on your phone vs a computer? If you are like the majority, you will search on your phone more than a computer, 50.47% of the time to be exact.
When undertaking website optimisation, you should make sure the user experience is excellent for all devices. To get you started, these are a few things to watch out for:
Check all images fit on a phone screen without needing to scroll
Ensure titles fit fully on the screen
When using moving graphics/text make sure that it does not harm your load speed. Too many movements can harm your speed and visually impact user experience.
4. Step it Up with Social Media Shopping
For most, online shopping has become a staple way to purchase items from the comfort of your own home (whether that is due to the pandemic or just enjoying browsing Amazon from your bed! No judgement here), but how about making purchases through your social media platforms?
With the likes of TikTok and Instagram launching their own shopping features this year, this new way to buy is likely to grow in popularity during 2023.
81% of consumers currently research potential product purchases using social media, and with these features cutting out the process of going to an external website, social media shops should be included in your marketing strategy.
Keep an eye out for any updates, changes or new features available on these shopping sections to make the most out of your consumers. Each additional step your customer has to take is an opportunity for you to lose their custom.
5. Will the Metaverse be Mighty?
When Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook would become ‘Meta’, it caused speculation as to how this would affect the world of social media marketing. With some marketing strategies revolving solely around Facebook, the name change alone was confusing but the unveiling of his plans for a virtual reality world was even more mind-blowing.
This Zuckerbergian digital universe isn’t quite ready yet but we can only imagine how virtual reality worlds could change the face of marketing.
On Twitter, Meta announced, “The metaverse is the next evolution of social connection. It’s a collective project that will be created by people all over the world, and open to everyone. You’ll be able to socialize, learn, collaborate and play in ways that go beyond what’s possible today.”
Marketing may not directly be affected, however, new products and services will be on the horizon which could produce a need for more creative marketing styles.
Summary for marketing in 2023
There are many trends and new developments to the world of digital marketing that we should all watch out for. If you are involved in digital marketing, it is vital that you stay up to date to make the most out of your marketing strategy.
Think about what you want your marketing strategy to achieve, do you want more traffic to your website? More engagement? Do you want sales on other platforms? Use the latest trends and news to reach your goals as hopping on every marketing trend will not help if it is not relevant.
Lastly, don’t forget the basics. Customers still like to read reviews, customer photos will continue to build trust and a sense of personality from your business can go a long way.
Marketing shouldn’t be scary, it should work FOR your business and not AGAINST it. If you find yourself overwhelmed or confused about what marketing strategy is right for you then look no further.
We understand the people, the resources, the processes and tools that go into making your business run smoothly and we get the struggles companies like yours experience with the heady world of marketing.
If you want help with your marketing strategy in 2023 from a marketing agency who will understand you then get in touch now to see if a New Year can mean a new start for your marketing.
Are you looking to get into blogging? Or perhaps you are an experienced blogger looking to refresh your memory, we’ve got you either way!
Blogging is a sure-fire way to keep your website fresh and inviting, it keeps your website active and keeps people on your website for longer. A quality blog gives other sites a reason to link back to your site which can build trust.
Keep reading all about HOW to make your blog the best it can be, and some of our personal favourite tools (shhh…it’s just between us!)
Write About Topics People are Searching For
Once you have decided blogging is for you, you will need to find your blog’s topic. You can write blogs about ANYTHING! If someone is searching for it, you can blog about it. Technically you can blog about something no one is searching for, but no one will see it so…what’s the point?
What do you enjoy? What are you passionate about? Your topic should reflect this. If you are not passionate or even interested in your topic then it will show through in your writing.
Blogging tips:
Use short paragraphs – Short paragraphs invite readers in whereas long paragraphs are daunting.
Include multimedia – Images, GIFs and videos can illustrate your point without more text and can provide relief from reading.
Use short sentences – Most people read in their mind’s voice and using short sentences can be easier to follow.
Read your work out loud – This helps point out areas that your content is boring or doesn’t flow right. Don’t worry, you don’t have to read to anyone else, just yourself!
Your blog title is so important! A brilliant blog title will improve the click-through rate of your blog. What is a click-through rate, I hear you ask. It is the ratio of users who click on a specific link versus the number of total users who view the page.
Here’s an easy way to get the best blog title. First, decide on your topic, then decide what sort of title you are looking for… Is it a guide? An answer to a question? A list of things? Then you can create a basic working title for your blog and develop it into the BEST title.
Check out our examples below!
Example blog titles – Guides
“A Start-To-Finish Guide…”
“…: A Step-By-Step Guide”
“An Experts Guide to…”
Topic: Using WordPress
Okay Title: A Guide to Using WordPress
Great Title: A Simple Guide to Using WordPress
Best Title: An In-Depth Guide to Using WordPress Efficiently
Example blog titles – Listicles
“5 Myths About…”
“10 Reasons Why…”
“The 8 Best Tools For…”
Topic: Writing a Blog
Okay Title: 5 Blogging Tips
Great Title: 5 Blogging Tips Everyone Should Know
Best Title: 5 Amazing Blogging Tips That You Might Not Know
Example blog titles – Questions
“…? Here’s How…”
“What Is… And How Should You…?”
“…? These Tips Will…”
Topic: Social Media
Okay Title: What Social Media Should You Use?
Great Title: What Social Media Should You Use? 10 Questions.
Best Title: What Social Media Should You Use? 10 Questions to Help You Decide
This is not an exhaustive list of titles, there are hundreds of phrases to choose from, the key is to make it catchy yet to the point. Your readers want to know WHAT they are going to read before they even click.
Check Out Our Favourite Tools
Now that you know your topic, it is time to start researching your blog! Before you start writing your blog, you should find out what people are SEARCHING for and what people WANT to know.
If you want your blog to be found, you need to know what people are searching for. Using a tool such as Ubersuggest will allow you to find keywords to use in your blog.
Keywords are what people enter in a search engine to find a website. Using relevant keywords throughout your blog can improve your ranking on Google and increase the chances of your blog being found.
Want to find out more about how blogs help you get found? Click hereto check out our content on how blogging helps SEO.
Another blog writing tool is AnswerThePublic. This tool is used to research what people are searching for on search engines. When you know your blog topic, this tool is useful for deciding what information to include and can be useful for writing subheadings.
Another amazing tool for your blogs, to ensure your grammar and spelling are up to scratch, is Grammarly.If your blogs have spelling errors or grammatical mistakes, people may not trust what you say or can even leave your website all together! Harsh but true.
Now, Go Forth and BLOG!
With your new found knowledge you should be all set to venture into the world of blogging!
We have lots of our own blogs on our website to help with all things blogging, SEO, social media and digital marketing. Click here to visit our website now or click here to have a chat with us!
