5 Ways to Boost Your Business on Google in 2020
Why are you not showing up on the top of Google Results?
Why am I not showing up at the top of Google Search Results?
The question of the century. There could be various reasons and several complex answers to this million-dollar question, but the truth is… no one knows. Well that’s not completely true.
You can purchase several training programs, talk to a computer automated system for three hours, or even delve into the YouTube abyss and learn the same thing from twenty different “experts”, but that’s a story for another time. The moral of this story is that Google is changing every day, just like Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, and any other advertising-based platform. You have to learn what works for you and your business.
What I meant earlier by “no one knows” is that each platform uses a learning Artificial Intelligence system to program its algorithm… or a fancy computer for those who have not mastered the tech guru terminology. What we do know is that Google likes “Algorithm Friendly” websites.
Which brings us to our original question: Why am I not showing up at the top of Google Search Results? Let’s take a look at some of the trade secrets.
Search Engine Optimization
Think of a website like a car. You can change the color, add new lights, upgrade the tires, make it shine and show it off, but what about the engine?
In simple terms, Search Engine Land describes it as, the process of improving your site to increase its visibility for relevant searches. The better visibility your pages have in search results, the more likely you are to garner attention and attract prospective and existing customers to your business.
The way we check our “Website Engine” is by cleaning up our Metadata – The Metadata is everything in your website that your clients do not see directly. This can range from the website taglines, link or image descriptions, key words, etc. It is essentially what Search Engines use to categorize your website. Since computers are not people, they can’t look at your website and find out what you do, they go into the “bones” of the pages and organize it by Key Phrases you have listed.
One way the main algorithm is programmed, is by choosing short-exact key phrases, instead of long generic ones.
Example: If you were looking for the best tanning salon in your area, which would you Google?
Option 1 – “I am looking for the best tanning salon near me, I am looking for someone with friendly customer service, affordable prices, and clean beds.”
Or
Option 2 – “Best Tanning Salon Dallas”
If you chose Option 2 you are CORRECT!
Google prefers short key phrases that are 4-6 words. You can take “Best Tanning Salon Dallas” and add it throughout the meta data of your website, and every time someone searches “Best Tanning Salon Dallas” you will jump right up to the top.
Reviews
Remember earlier when I said Google does not like it when you search “Tanning Salon with friendly customer service”? That’s because it automatically filters search results with every business that has top-rated reviews.
Ask your clients to leave a constructive review on your Social Media Page or Google after their service. Send them a reminder a few days after they have left. Do whatever it takes to make sure that your Business gets promoted after they leave those doors.
Google likes to show results that have more than 2 or 3 reviews. They like when clients felt something after their service, whether it was positive or constructive. Make service your number one priority and Google will start showcasing you to potential clients.
Connect Your Socials
Another Business must have, is a Social Media page. You probably have a Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube or any
of the hundred other Social Medias that exist. If you don’t, well then get with the program! Google likes Social Media.
They especially like it when you connect and link your social media pages throughout your website and metadata (there goes that fancy word again). Google likes to know that you are staying active and have a nice flowing ecosystem on each platform. At the end of the day, everything involving your business should have the same goal in mind.
By keeping yourself active and connected, Google will boost you to the top!
High Quality
Keep your website pretty. I know what you’re thinking, “but you said Google is not a person and can’t look at my website.” Correct, BUT they can see if you have high quality images, videos, and content on your page by looking at the pixel size and rendering qualities of each graphic on your page. If it looks a little grainy or fuzzy to you, chances are, it looks grainy and fuzzy to everyone else, Google included.
However, there is such a thing as too big, when it comes to content. Make sure you are uploading the perfect size, because if it takes too long to download your image or PDF’s from your website, Google does not like to showcase results or websites that require too much energy to download.
Which takes us to our final tip:
Speed
When it comes to internet, speed is the number one concern. No one likes slow internet, not even Google.
An annual study called the Retailer Website Performance Evaluation, breaks down the amount of times a client has “bounced” or left a webpage because of the speed of a retail website.
The study shows that 5 out of 6 people left a website because it took “too long” to load. When asked how long that was, the average answer was between 3-5 seconds. SECONDS.
You could be losing clients if your website is not loading in 3-5 seconds. As mind boggling as that sounds, it is true, and although it is debatable that the internet has reduced our attention span, Google seems to take that into a huge accountability when showcasing you off on their search results.
Luckily for you, Google has its own speed test that you can try, and it even gives you tips on how to improve your score here: https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
At the end of the day, Google’s algorithm is impossible to crack down. There isn’t a single thing you can do that will magically boost you to the top. Unless of course we want to get into the discussion of Google Ads, but as much as we would love to be here another hour or so to discuss those, we will save that for another time.
One FREE thing you can do today, is clean up your website from the inside out. Make sure your metadata is up to date with the most popular key phrases around the area, and please check on it monthly, if not weekly. Just like the algorithm is changing, so should your metadata. If the last time you checked it was a year ago… maybe those Key Phrases aren’t working anymore. I promise you will hit the Google Jackpot soon!
Resources: “What Is SEO / Search Engine Optimization?” Search Engine Land, 17 Aug. 2020, searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-seo.