There are multiple ways to increase traffic to your website.  The one we will discuss today is writing for SEO 2018 style.  I say 2018 style because there are people out there still using old techniques from a decade ago that no longer work and make a website look dodgy.

So here we go.

1.  Solving the searcher's problem is all important.

Search engines get better every day, even Bing.  Google and Bing understand the majority of searchers are asking questions.  They have got pretty good at returning the websites that answer those questions.  Solving the searcher's problem is now the best way to get to the top of the search engine results.

2.  Matching the Searchers Intent Instead of targeting exact match keywords.

The easy days of targeting one keyword, and over using it throughout your copy are over.

It will serve you well to understand the intent of the searcher and to use the relevant keywords and phrases, where it makes sense to do so, that represents the searchers intent.

3.  Only a few tags are now absolutely crucial for SEO purposes

The only two places you really need to make sure your words and phrases are visible is in the title element and the body content.  One it's the easiest way to get your content to rank within the search engines, and two, people are more likely to click on headlines that include their keywords.

A few other tags are still 'nice' to have:-

• The headline tags (H1 and H2)
• URL, if you can include your words and phrases in your URL, people are more likely to click into your website if they spot the website URL matches what they want.  It's also handy because some people will copy a URL and paste it into social media or their website just as it is, so if you have dradept.com/expert-web-developer then straight away people can see what the website is about. 
• The meta description, if people can see some of the answer they are looking for in your meta description they are more likely to click through to your site to see the full content.  The more people who click into your website the better your rankings will be.
• The image alt attribute, this is particularly helpful for Google Images.  They get a tremendous amount of search traffic all on their own.

4.  Using words, phrases, and concepts that Google has identified as commonly associated with the query

This is quite effective, if you have a web page that is doing OK but isn't quite making it above others in the search results, then take a look at the words and phrases they are using and incorporate them into your content.  You should receive a boost quite quickly. 

It can work quite well where Google associates two words together.  If a searcher is looking for pizza delivery, they are likely to look for 'pizza delivery in Bury St Edmunds'.  By adding the place name to your content you should do better than content with just pizza delivery.

5.  Because of engagement metrics, the user experience is far more important than ever before.

Google can see who is staying on what content, if the user is engaging with your content and not clicking on the back button, Google views this as a good sign and they want to rank those types of websites higher in the search results.

So in brief, do at least the following, and you should notice a change in your websites positioning in the search results.

• Make a list of all the keywords your page is targeting
• Now list what the searchers are actually trying to accomplish when they search for those keywords
• Create a visual layout of your page and where you are going to place your keywords
• Write your content first, then add in your keywords and the related terms, phrases, concepts and topics that you want on your page.
• Links are still important, create content that influential people and/or publications in your industry will want to share and link to.

How to improve your SEO ranking and attract more customers
Can SEO help you grow your small business?
The complete guide to a landing page
What is a meta description and how you can create your own
6 steps to rank your website higher on Google
How to troubleshoot and fix a drop in website traffic
Why does your business need SEO?
10 common reasons your website traffic is dropping
How to choose a good seo company
What is SEO and how does it help your online business
Why is great seo expensive
Why basic SEO strategies will fail
How revamping your website can negatively impact search engine rankings

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