Search engine optimization is the attempt of every marketer to rank their website higher on the search engine.
SEO is crucial to rank your website higher in the SERP (Search Engine Results Page). Statistically, there are approximately more than 1.8 billion websites on the internet.
In such a case, how can you rank your website on the first page of the search results? The key to it is through SEO efforts.
It makes your website visible, generates traffic, and creates customers.
A study suggests that the SEO market will reach $1.6 billion by 2027. Along with the growth, the trends and techniques are also bound to change. However, it is not uncommon for marketers to forget the basics while chasing the latest. Hence here is a list of those common mistakes that every marketer should avoid –
- Target audience – The basic rule no marketer should ever forget is understanding their target audience. Digital marketing strategies are based on the buyer persona. The content generated and the platforms used are all planned according to the audience’s preferences. Hence use the right messaging language and relevant keywords.
- On-page SEO – It is the effort taken to rank the website higher by making changes to it. These changes help the algorithm detect the website and rank it higher depending on the relevance to the search query. Simply creating a website is not enough constantly updating it to match the requirements or specifications of the search engine crawlers is essential. It is done by-
- Optimizing the Meta Title, Meta Description, Keywords, Alt tag, Canonical tag, H1 Tag, sitemap, Title tags, and robot.txt.
- Integrating relevant keywords and anchor text into your pages
- Creating user-friendly content
- Off-page SEO – These are the external efforts taken to generate backlinks and drive more traffic to the website.
This includes – Social Bookmarking, Directory Submission, Blog commenting, Q/A, PPT Submission, PDF Submission, Image Submission, Classifieds, Social Media Creative (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram), Infographic Submission, YouTube SEO, and Video submissions. Backlinks build the credibility of your site and grow traffic. Hence ensure you are taking efforts to generate adequate backlinks and fix the broken links.
Another important aspect is the SEO audit. It is done to measure the website load speed & page load time. The higher the speed, the higher the probability of retaining and engaging the audience.
- Content – Creating authentic, unique, and engaging content is the first step of building any website. Using words that the viewer feels a connection to, are engaging, and relevant to the search intent is the key to converting the user to potential customers.
Avoid stuffing keywords in your content. Create content for humans rather than robots. Through AI and ML, the algorithms have become smarter and can easily identify if the content is plagiarized, stuffed with keywords, or irrelevant. Hence always generate high-quality content that will rank.
- Device compatibility – A study reveals that 59% of web traffic comprises mobile devices in 2022. This proves that mobile-compatible websites will help ensure more search traffic, improve visibility, enhanced user experience, and boost sales. Hence, marketers need to keep in mind that a trendy or attractive design or a well-planned layout for the website is not enough; it has to be compatible with various devices and should deliver the desired impact.
The digital marketing universe is undergoing multiple changes. It hence becomes necessary for marketers to constantly update their knowledge and skill set to stay ahead of the competition.
MIT School of Distance Education (MITSDE) understands the current skills gap in the market and strives hard to reduce it. Hence, MITSDE brings you PG Certificate in Digital Marketing (PGCM Digital Marketing).
The course covers the latest concepts & tools in digital marketing and teaches you to analyse data, design campaigns, and create a strong virtual brand.