SEO – The Real reason you are NOT Ranking – Professional SEO Secrets
If you are paying for SEO and not getting anywhere there is a good chance that you are being ripped off.
Now I know that is a bold statement to make, but believe me, I have been building websites for 25 years, and I have been doing SEO for around 15 years. Never have the words “buyer beware” been more apt. Wherever there is a complicated industry that is unregulated, it will be full of con artists and scammers looking to take your money and then run.
These unscrupulous people rely on the ignorance of their customers. They hope that at best you might have read a few SEO tips and may have heard of backlinks, and keywords, but they rely on the fact that you don’t really understand anything beyond the very basics. You are given pretty reports each month showing your keywords and how you are ranking. It isn’t good news but you are told that it will take several months before you will see any results.
Very much like the dodgy mechanic who loves to sell repairs that are not needed to pretty women, who just believe whatever the mechanic says. This is pretty much how many SEO companies and search optimisation agencies work.
So you might pay anywhere from £80 to £3000 a month for their services and never really get anywhere, why?
Why are you not getting anywhere in Google?
It usually boils down to this: Your Website is not prepared for SEO, and until it is you will never rank for anything with any competition.
To illustrate why, let me tell you about about something I saw during the Covid pandemic when it was a legal requirement to wear a face mask. At the height of the spread of this airborne infection, a girl was walking down the street wearing a pink loosely knitted woollen face mask. The mask was knitted in such a way that the pattern had a large hole every couple of centimetres. Im certain that the girl thought that she looked very pretty in it, but it was entirely useless as a facemask. Whoever made it had no understanding of airborne infectious diseases, and no effort had been made to provide protection, it’s only purpose was to make money for the seller.
A lot of the SEO services being sold today are similar. Before a website can rank well in Google, the website itself has to be optimised. This is basically adjusting the website to meet certain requirements that Google is looking for. It includes well over two hundred different factors, and these factors are constantly changing.
So imagine if your website was being given a score of 0 – 1000 for each of those different factors that Google is looking for, and only those with the very highest scores in all of the factors will get to the top of the list. Now imagine that your website is completing with 500’000 other websites. Only those with the very highest scores will appear near the top of the list, and there is a different list for every single keyword and combination of keywords.
Without first checking and adjusting your website for each of the more than 200 ranking factors, any money that you spend on SEO is wasted. It is like trying to collect water from a stream using a colander instead of a bucket. The water will simply pour straight out of the holes in the bottom, and so too will any money you spend on backlinks or SEO.
Most of the SEO agencies know this full well, and if they were really any good, they would check your website, and tell you what needs to be fixed before you waste money on links and other off site seo. Instead they simply take your money and pocket it for as long as they can string you along.
They will often use a cheap program to churn out automated reports and create cheap worthless links, that in reality will often make your website rank Worse than it would without them!
Now what you are learning here gives you a MASSIVE advantage, because you can now do something about it. Let your competition waste their money paying for SEO services that wont do them any good. While you focus on getting your website tightened up, and optimised onsite and capable of ranking.
Research “Onsite SEO”, and be ready to put in a lot of work. But this is work that will really pay off.
If you want your website optimised for you then contact us and we will take a look. (WhatsApp me on 079 440 62954)
If you would like to do your own SEO then checkout our FREE SEO Course below.
We offer On-site SEO Services – Click the link below to WhatsApp us
So if you want to have a crack at this then you will need to research the following on-site ranking factors that influence Google’s algorithm in 2024, focusing on key elements that can be controlled directly on the website:
Content-Related Factors
1. Content Quality: To please Google and your visitors, it must be original, informative, and have valuable content that satisfies user intent.
2. Keyword Usage: Strategic placement of your target keywords in:
– Title tag
– Meta description
– Headers (H1, H2, etc.)
– Body content (use the keywords naturally, avoiding keyword stuffing)
3. Content Depth: Comprehensive coverage of topics, answering related queries.
4. Content Freshness: Regularly updating content to stay relevant.
5. Readability: Well-structured content that is easy to read and understand.
6. Multimedia Usage: Using images, videos, infographics, and interactive elements to enhance content.
User Experience (UX)
7. Page Load Speed: Fast loading pages (measured by Core Web Vitals: Largest Contentful Paint, First Input Delay, Cumulative Layout Shift).
8. Mobile-Friendliness: Responsive design and usability on mobile devices.
9. Navigation: Clear, intuitive site structure and navigation (breadcrumb menus, logical internal linking).
10. Engagement Metrics: Low bounce rates, high time on page, and interaction signals.
11. Pop-ups/Interstitials: Minimal intrusive interstitials, especially on mobile.
Technical SEO
12. Crawlability: Ensuring that search engines can easily crawl the site (clean robots.txt file, no major crawl errors).
13. Indexability: Correct use of canonical tags, avoiding duplicate content, and ensuring the right pages are indexed.
14. Internal Linking: Strategic internal links to distribute link equity and improve page authority.
15. URL Structure: SEO-friendly, descriptive URLs that include target keywords and avoid excessive length.
16. XML Sitemap: A well-maintained sitemap submitted to Google for indexing.
17. Structured Data/Schema Markup: Implementing schema to help Google better understand the content (e.g., reviews, products, articles).
18. HTTPS/SSL: Secure the site with HTTPS encryption (SSL certificate).
On-Page Elements
19. Title Tags: Descriptive, keyword-rich title tags (optimal length: ~50-60 characters).
20. Meta Descriptions: Concise, engaging, and relevant descriptions (not a direct ranking factor but influences click-through rates).
21. Header Tags (H1, H2, etc.): Proper use of header tags to structure content and include relevant keywords.
22. Image Optimization: Properly optimized images with alt text, descriptive file names, and compressed sizes to improve load speed.
Other On-Site Factors
23. User Engagement Signals: High click-through rates (CTR) from SERPs and positive user signals.
24. Bounce Rate & Dwell Time: Lower bounce rates and higher time spent on page.
25. Content Uniqueness: Avoiding thin, duplicate, or low-value content.
Bonus Factor: Natural Human Speech: check your websites content to see what it scores on a Fleshe reading test, the higher the score the better.
These are just a handful of the factors that Google takes in to consideration. But it is a lot of work to address them all, wwhich means that most people wont bother, so if you do, then you will give yourself a massive advantage.
Ive done everything above - What Else Can I Do?
Once you have worked through the list above you are ready to look at other things. Here’s an overview of key strategies and how I would think about SEO at the highest level:
Core Algorithm Knowledge
Google’s search algorithms are incredibly complex, using over 200 ranking signals, with major updates like RankBrain, BERT, and Helpful Content continuing to evolve. Understanding the pillars of these systems is critical for SEO:
– Content Quality: Google prioritises high-quality, original, and relevant content. It’s not just about keywords but intent matching. Does the content satisfy the user’s query? If the searcher is looking to buy, he wants prices and specifications not long detailed research articles on the subject.
– User Experience: This includes everything from page load speed (measured by Core Web Vitals), to mobile-friendliness, interactivity, and a site’s overall navigability.
– E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness): Content that demonstrates clear expertise in a subject area, from a credible source, with robust trust signals (like backlinks from reputable websites) will perform better. This is especially important for YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) content.
SEO Trends and Google’s Vision
I should emphasise that Google is moving towards a more human-like understanding of content. AI is a huge driver here, with natural language processing being central to understanding not just the words in a query but the meaning behind it.
– Semantic Search: It’s not about exact match keywords anymore but about context. Optimising for semantic search involves using related phrases, answering latent needs, and ensuring content addresses a broader range of user intents.
– Zero-click searches: With more answers appearing directly in SERP features (such as featured snippets, knowledge panels, etc.), a strategy would also focus on how to claim those spaces.
Technical SEO
While content is king, technical SEO is the foundation. My strategies would focus on:
– Indexability: Ensuring that all critical pages are easily crawled and indexed by Googlebot.
– Structured Data (Schema Markup): Schema markup would be a primary focus, enabling Google to better understand page content and providing opportunities for rich snippets.
– Mobile-first indexing: As most users now browse on mobile, it’s essential that websites perform exceptionally well on smaller screens.
Content Strategy: The Role of AI in Google’s algorithms
Google has shown a strong preference for conversational and helpful content, and thanks to the rise of Generative AI (like Bard) and machine learning in search. In response, I’d encourage content that:
– Solves user pain points in detailed, digestible formats.
– Outperforms competitors by answering secondary and tertiary questions that users may not even know they had.
– Incorporates multimedia (videos, infographics, podcasts) to enhance engagement metrics.
Link Building and Authority Building
Although Google has downplayed the importance of backlinks compared to earlier eras, they still remain one of the best ways to build domain authority. I would recommend that you focus on:
– Natural link-building through exceptional content and relationship-building with other authoritative sites.
– Avoiding any tactics that may trigger spam-related penalties, like over-optimised anchor text or purchasing links.
Future-Proofing for Algorithm Updates
Google releases multiple updates every year, some small, some major like Core Updates. My goal would be to future-proof SEO strategies:
– Content Refresh Strategy: Regularly auditing and updating existing content to align with new ranking signals and improve relevance.
– User Experience Optimisation: Continuously enhancing Core Web Vitals, mobile usability, and accessibility to ensure a long-term advantage.
– Competitor Analysis: Using data-driven tools to benchmark competitors’ strategies and uncover gaps where we can outperform.
Focus on Voice Search and AI-driven Queries
The future of search is conversational. With the increasing prevalence of smart assistants, optimising for voice queries will be crucial. This would require:
– Writing in a more conversational tone.
– Focusing on long-tail keywords that align with how people speak, not type.
– Anticipating micro-moments (i.e., users searching for immediate answers) and crafting content to serve that need.
Measuring Success and KPIs
I’d recommend that you rely heavily on performance metrics to guide your strategy:
– Organic traffic growth.
– Search visibility: Tracking improvements in rankings for target keywords.
– Conversion rate optimisation (CRO): Ensuring that SEO efforts result in measurable business outcomes (sales, sign-ups).
– Engagement metrics: Analysing bounce rates, dwell time, and user behavior for insights into content effectiveness.
—
So focus on blending technical proficiency, user-centric content, and adaptability to Google’s evolving algorithms. Your approach should be rooted in providing value to users first, as that’s what Google is really looking for.
Measuring Success and KPIs
I’d recommend that you rely heavily on performance metrics to guide your strategy:
– Organic traffic growth.
– Search visibility: Tracking improvements in rankings for target keywords.
– Conversion rate optimisation (CRO): Ensuring that SEO efforts result in measurable business outcomes (sales, sign-ups).
– Engagement metrics: Analysing bounce rates, dwell time, and user behavior for insights into content effectiveness.
—
So focus on blending technical proficiency, user-centric content, and adaptability to Google’s evolving algorithms. Your approach should be rooted in providing value to users first, as that’s what Google is really looking for.
Free Small business SEO Course – Understanding SEO in 2024
If you have enrolled in our “Understanding SEO in 2024” Course and would like to access the course materials you can request access to a copy of the course below.
Need help? - Get a Quote in under a minute
Stephanie & Joseph are Award Winning London Web Designers at The UK Web Design Company who are ready to help you with your website today.
Just take a couple of seconds to fill out this quick easy form and we will contact you right back
Need help? - Get a Quote in under a minute from the best web designers near you
SEO – The Real reason you are NOT Ranking – Professional SEO Secrets
If you are paying for SEO and not getting anywhere there is a good chance that you are being ripped off.
Now I know that is a bold statement to make, but believe me, I have been building websites for 25 years, and I have been doing SEO for around 15 years. Never have the words “buyer beware” been more apt. Wherever there is a complicated industry that is unregulated, it will be full of con artists and scammers looking to take your money and then run.
These unscrupulous people rely on the ignorance of their customers. They hope that at best you might have read a few SEO tips and may have heard of backlinks, and keywords, but they rely on the fact that you don’t really understand anything beyond the very basics. You are given pretty reports each month showing your keywords and how you are ranking. It isn’t good news but you are told that it will take several months before you will see any results.
Very much like the dodgy mechanic who loves to sell repairs that are not needed to pretty women, who just believe whatever the mechanic says. This is pretty much how many SEO companies and search optimisation agencies work.
So you might pay anywhere from £80 to £3000 a month for their services and never really get anywhere, why?
Why are you not getting anywhere in Google?
It usually boils down to this: Your Website is not prepared for SEO, and until it is you will never rank for anything with any competition.
To illustrate why, let me tell you about about something I saw during the Covid pandemic when it was a legal requirement to wear a face mask. At the height of the spread of this airborne infection, a girl was walking down the street wearing a pink loosely knitted woollen face mask. The mask was knitted in such a way that the pattern had a large hole every couple of centimetres. Im certain that the girl thought that she looked very pretty in it, but it was entirely useless as a facemask. Whoever made it had no understanding of airborne infectious diseases, and no effort had been made to provide protection, it’s only purpose was to make money for the seller.
A lot of the SEO services being sold today are similar. Before a website can rank well in Google, the website itself has to be optimised. This is basically adjusting the website to meet certain requirements that Google is looking for. It includes well over two hundred different factors, and these factors are constantly changing.
So imagine if your website was being given a score of 0 – 1000 for each of those different factors that Google is looking for, and only those with the very highest scores in all of the factors will get to the top of the list. Now imagine that your website is completing with 500’000 other websites. Only those with the very highest scores will appear near the top of the list, and there is a different list for every single keyword and combination of keywords.
Without first checking and adjusting your website for each of the more than 200 ranking factors, any money that you spend on SEO is wasted. It is like trying to collect water from a stream using a colander instead of a bucket. The water will simply pour straight out of the holes in the bottom, and so too will any money you spend on backlinks or SEO.
Most of the SEO agencies know this full well, and if they were really any good, they would check your website, and tell you what needs to be fixed before you waste money on links and other off site seo. Instead they simply take your money and pocket it for as long as they can string you along.
They will often use a cheap program to churn out automated reports and create cheap worthless links, that in reality will often make your website rank Worse than it would without them!
Now what you are learning here gives you a MASSIVE advantage, because you can now do something about it. Let your competition waste their money paying for SEO services that wont do them any good. While you focus on getting your website tightened up, and optimised onsite and capable of ranking.
Research “Onsite SEO”, and be ready to put in a lot of work. But this is work that will really pay off.
If you want your website optimised for you then contact us and we will take a look. (WhatsApp me on 079 440 62954)
If you would like to do your own SEO then checkout our FREE SEO Course below.
We offer On-site SEO Services – Click the link below to WhatsApp us
So if you want to have a crack at this then you will need to research the following on-site ranking factors that influence Google’s algorithm in 2024, focusing on key elements that can be controlled directly on the website:
Content-Related Factors
1. Content Quality: To please Google and your visitors, it must be original, informative, and have valuable content that satisfies user intent.
2. Keyword Usage: Strategic placement of your target keywords in:
– Title tag
– Meta description
– Headers (H1, H2, etc.)
– Body content (use the keywords naturally, avoiding keyword stuffing)
3. Content Depth: Comprehensive coverage of topics, answering related queries.
4. Content Freshness: Regularly updating content to stay relevant.
5. Readability: Well-structured content that is easy to read and understand.
6. Multimedia Usage: Using images, videos, infographics, and interactive elements to enhance content.
User Experience (UX)
7. Page Load Speed: Fast loading pages (measured by Core Web Vitals: Largest Contentful Paint, First Input Delay, Cumulative Layout Shift).
8. Mobile-Friendliness: Responsive design and usability on mobile devices.
9. Navigation: Clear, intuitive site structure and navigation (breadcrumb menus, logical internal linking).
10. Engagement Metrics: Low bounce rates, high time on page, and interaction signals.
11. Pop-ups/Interstitials: Minimal intrusive interstitials, especially on mobile.
Technical SEO
12. Crawlability: Ensuring that search engines can easily crawl the site (clean robots.txt file, no major crawl errors).
13. Indexability: Correct use of canonical tags, avoiding duplicate content, and ensuring the right pages are indexed.
14. Internal Linking: Strategic internal links to distribute link equity and improve page authority.
15. URL Structure: SEO-friendly, descriptive URLs that include target keywords and avoid excessive length.
16. XML Sitemap: A well-maintained sitemap submitted to Google for indexing.
17. Structured Data/Schema Markup: Implementing schema to help Google better understand the content (e.g., reviews, products, articles).
18. HTTPS/SSL: Secure the site with HTTPS encryption (SSL certificate).
On-Page Elements
19. Title Tags: Descriptive, keyword-rich title tags (optimal length: ~50-60 characters).
20. Meta Descriptions: Concise, engaging, and relevant descriptions (not a direct ranking factor but influences click-through rates).
21. Header Tags (H1, H2, etc.): Proper use of header tags to structure content and include relevant keywords.
22. Image Optimization: Properly optimized images with alt text, descriptive file names, and compressed sizes to improve load speed.
Other On-Site Factors
23. User Engagement Signals: High click-through rates (CTR) from SERPs and positive user signals.
24. Bounce Rate & Dwell Time: Lower bounce rates and higher time spent on page.
25. Content Uniqueness: Avoiding thin, duplicate, or low-value content.
Bonus Factor: Natural Human Speech: check your websites content to see what it scores on a Fleshe reading test, the higher the score the better.
These are just a handful of the factors that Google takes in to consideration. But it is a lot of work to address them all, wwhich means that most people wont bother, so if you do, then you will give yourself a massive advantage.
Ive done everything above - What Else Can I Do?
Once you have worked through the list above you are ready to look at other things. Here’s an overview of key strategies and how I would think about SEO at the highest level:
Core Algorithm Knowledge
Google’s search algorithms are incredibly complex, using over 200 ranking signals, with major updates like RankBrain, BERT, and Helpful Content continuing to evolve. Understanding the pillars of these systems is critical for SEO:
– Content Quality: Google prioritises high-quality, original, and relevant content. It’s not just about keywords but intent matching. Does the content satisfy the user’s query? If the searcher is looking to buy, he wants prices and specifications not long detailed research articles on the subject.
– User Experience: This includes everything from page load speed (measured by Core Web Vitals), to mobile-friendliness, interactivity, and a site’s overall navigability.
– E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness): Content that demonstrates clear expertise in a subject area, from a credible source, with robust trust signals (like backlinks from reputable websites) will perform better. This is especially important for YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) content.
SEO Trends and Google’s Vision
I should emphasise that Google is moving towards a more human-like understanding of content. AI is a huge driver here, with natural language processing being central to understanding not just the words in a query but the meaning behind it.
– Semantic Search: It’s not about exact match keywords anymore but about context. Optimising for semantic search involves using related phrases, answering latent needs, and ensuring content addresses a broader range of user intents.
– Zero-click searches: With more answers appearing directly in SERP features (such as featured snippets, knowledge panels, etc.), a strategy would also focus on how to claim those spaces.
Technical SEO
While content is king, technical SEO is the foundation. My strategies would focus on:
– Indexability: Ensuring that all critical pages are easily crawled and indexed by Googlebot.
– Structured Data (Schema Markup): Schema markup would be a primary focus, enabling Google to better understand page content and providing opportunities for rich snippets.
– Mobile-first indexing: As most users now browse on mobile, it’s essential that websites perform exceptionally well on smaller screens.
Content Strategy: The Role of AI in Google’s algorithms
Google has shown a strong preference for conversational and helpful content, and thanks to the rise of Generative AI (like Bard) and machine learning in search. In response, I’d encourage content that:
– Solves user pain points in detailed, digestible formats.
– Outperforms competitors by answering secondary and tertiary questions that users may not even know they had.
– Incorporates multimedia (videos, infographics, podcasts) to enhance engagement metrics.
Link Building and Authority Building
Although Google has downplayed the importance of backlinks compared to earlier eras, they still remain one of the best ways to build domain authority. I would recommend that you focus on:
– Natural link-building through exceptional content and relationship-building with other authoritative sites.
– Avoiding any tactics that may trigger spam-related penalties, like over-optimised anchor text or purchasing links.
Future-Proofing for Algorithm Updates
Google releases multiple updates every year, some small, some major like Core Updates. My goal would be to future-proof SEO strategies:
– Content Refresh Strategy: Regularly auditing and updating existing content to align with new ranking signals and improve relevance.
– User Experience Optimisation: Continuously enhancing Core Web Vitals, mobile usability, and accessibility to ensure a long-term advantage.
– Competitor Analysis: Using data-driven tools to benchmark competitors’ strategies and uncover gaps where we can outperform.
Focus on Voice Search and AI-driven Queries
The future of search is conversational. With the increasing prevalence of smart assistants, optimising for voice queries will be crucial. This would require:
– Writing in a more conversational tone.
– Focusing on long-tail keywords that align with how people speak, not type.
– Anticipating micro-moments (i.e., users searching for immediate answers) and crafting content to serve that need.
Measuring Success and KPIs
I’d recommend that you rely heavily on performance metrics to guide your strategy:
– Organic traffic growth.
– Search visibility: Tracking improvements in rankings for target keywords.
– Conversion rate optimisation (CRO): Ensuring that SEO efforts result in measurable business outcomes (sales, sign-ups).
– Engagement metrics: Analysing bounce rates, dwell time, and user behavior for insights into content effectiveness.
—
So focus on blending technical proficiency, user-centric content, and adaptability to Google’s evolving algorithms. Your approach should be rooted in providing value to users first, as that’s what Google is really looking for.
Measuring Success and KPIs
I’d recommend that you rely heavily on performance metrics to guide your strategy:
– Organic traffic growth.
– Search visibility: Tracking improvements in rankings for target keywords.
– Conversion rate optimisation (CRO): Ensuring that SEO efforts result in measurable business outcomes (sales, sign-ups).
– Engagement metrics: Analysing bounce rates, dwell time, and user behavior for insights into content effectiveness.
—
So focus on blending technical proficiency, user-centric content, and adaptability to Google’s evolving algorithms. Your approach should be rooted in providing value to users first, as that’s what Google is really looking for.
Free Small business SEO Course – Understanding SEO in 2024
If you have enrolled in our “Understanding SEO in 2024” Course and would like to access the course materials you can request access to a copy of the course below.
Need help? - Get a Quote in under a minute
Need help? - Get a Quote in under a minute
Stephanie & Joseph Award Winning London Web Designers at
The UK Web Design Company are ready to help you with your website
Just take a couple of seconds to fill out this quick easy form and we will contact you right back
Need help? - Get a Quote in under a minute from the best web designers near you