The SEO (Search Engine Optimization) world has come a long way since its early days. With the advent of Google’s ever-evolving algorithms, SEO practices have had to keep up to remain relevant and useful. We all have our own strategies, tactics and insights to ranking on Google and other search engines. Yet, very few of us have access to the Google team directly and an opportunity to ask questions and, more importantly, to listen.
Lucky for me, I had the remarkable chance to interview a Google employee and gain valuable insight on the current state of SEO. After the discussion, I left with a notebook full of notes and more importantly, several lasting key takeaways that can easily be implemented into any successful SEO campaign. As it turns out, some of the best SEO tips come from the pro’s that Google could hire, so here are the 7 biggest lessons I learned from a Google Employee about SEO.
- Keep Track of Your Progress
It is essential to have a handle on your analytics to be able to tell if your SEO work is paying off. Analytic tools, such as On-Page Optimization in Google Analytics, will help you to measure your website, page and content performance. Moreover, staying organized and tracking your progress on an ongoing basis will help keep you on the path to success.
- Engagement Over Clicks
The main focus of any SEO strategy should be engagement with the content, not solely increasing clicks. Customers looking for great content are more likely to stay and shop rather than clicking away for something similar. Keeping visitors engaged means that visitors are more likely to share or revisit the website or content again, and the website will benefit from those organic referrals.
- User Experience and SEO
Designing a website that is tailored for users with a responsive design is crucial to SEO. Google will reward higher rankings to websites that are easier to use on any device, especially in light of the mobile-first approach. Quality content is still king and user experience should never take away from the quality of the content.
- Relevant and Quality Content
Writing content that is not only relevant to your industry, but also of the highest quality will always be beneficial to SEO. Think of the topics that your customers might search for and tailor content specifically to their needs. Quality content is much more important than content quantity and should have the right amount of keywords, but overstuffing with keywords can have the opposite effect.
- Analyze Competitors
It’s important to regularly track at least your top 5 to 10 competitors. A lot can be learned by seeing what others in the same industry or verticals are doing. This data can show you what’s working for them, and if it might be advantageous to your own SEO campaign.
- Leverage Social Networking
Taking advantage of the increasing trend of social networking is essential to SEO. Social media campaigns are part of a larger holistic web strategy. Establishing relationships and acquiring followers is an important part of the mobile-first approach. Moreover, it’s important to post frequently and curate content that is useful and of good quality.
- Focus on Long-Term Solutions
Adding 301 redirects or restructured content to your website may help in the short-term as well as revamping title tags and descriptions. However, more importantly, it’s essential to develop long-term content strategies and SEO-friendly tactics that can result in sustained SEO success.
Overall, the insights I gained from the Google employee were truly beneficial. We all need to continue to stay ahead of the ever-evolving SEO landscape and the tips and lessons I learned will surely help with that objective.