The question “How can I get my website to show up on Google?” is one we hear a lot. Firstly, if you have a website, it WILL be on Google somewhere! So what you really mean is “How can I get my website on the first page of Google?” 

That’s something different altogether, because being on the first page is going to make a big difference to your business. However, you need to ask yourself what you want to be on the first page of Google for. What search terms do you want to appear in?

Be patient

Rome wasn’t built in a day. To get to that elusive first page of Google you need to arm yourself with some determination, and patience. Expecting your website to show up on Google as soon as you launch it a mistake that many people make. Be patient, and continue with the steps below, and slowly but surely you will start to see results.

What do you want to rank highly for?

Saying you want to “show up on the first page of Google” is quite vague. You have to work out specifically what you want to rank well for. Some phrases are very competitive and are much harder to rank for than others.

If there are hundreds, if not thousands, of websites battling to rank well for the same search term you want to rank well for, you could be up against sites with a much higher domain authority than yours. You’ll have to put in a LOT of time and effort to rank well.

Some phrases will bring you more qualified, specific visitors than others.

The term “handbag” for example, would get a high number of hits, but it’s not very descriptive. “Black leather handbag” on the other hans is more specific. You’ll get a smaller volume of searches, but the searches you do get will be from people looking for something more specific. That makes them more likely to be ready to buy!

Do your research (or get someone to help you), and work out the best phrases to target that you’ll be capable of ranking for and that will bring you the right type of visitors. In other words, pick your battles!

What about paid advertisements?

Paid advertisements will always be shown at the very top of a results page (unless Google decides to change the way it presents ads). However, research has shown that organic listings that rank high up get roughly double the number of clicks than a paid advertisement does.

Think about searching for something yourself. How often do you click on a paid ad versus skipping past the ads and going to the first few organic listings you see? It’s worth putting in the effort to rank highly without paying for an ad.

How to give your website the best possible chance

There are so many things you can do to enhance your websites SEO. Search for ‘advanced SEO methods’ and you’ll be blown away by the things you can do (that is, if you understand it!). But first things first, you have to get the basic tactics under control. Here are some things you can work on.

1) Content

Create quality content

The quality of your content makes a big difference i.e.: the written content, images, design and the Google preview you write. The website you created through a free program in 1996 that hasn’t been touched since, isn’t going to fare well compared to a recently built and frequently updated site that’s full of professionally created content.

Use the right keywords

Putting the right keywords in the right places throughout your website will help your rankings. This is important for the on-page content as well as the off-page content such as SEO titles and meta-descriptions.

Create original content

Google’s robots frequently check for duplicate content, so copying and pasting entire pages from another website may result in some hefty repercussions from Google (you’ll disappear from all rankings). Write and create your own useful content and you’ll be fine.

Use suitable images

The Google bots also search for images. They can’t see photos, so make sure your alt text tells them what the photo is of. Take your own photos or use stock images you have permission to use.

2) Code

Optimise your domain name

If you can fit one of your keywords into your domain name, this is great. But if you can’t don’t stress. You can include keywords in your page and post URLs, e.g.: www.yourdomain.com.au/keywordphrase

Use descriptions

Website code allows you to add descriptions for images and pages, so use these to your advantage. Your website developer can help with this (or us if you don’t have a developer).

Use heading tags

You might have heard of ‘heading tags’ on websites. This refers to the H1, H2, H3 etc. code that is given to a heading. Fitting your keywords into a heading with the right tag can help your rankings.

3) Create a linking network

Build some quality backlinks

A backlink is when another website creates a link back to your website. You generally get some of their SEO juice flowing on, so a website that gets more traffic than yours is a great target. Ask relevant businesses if they’d like to do a cross promotion, or ask if you can write a guest blog. Steer clear of paid backlinks because they are usually low quality (i.e.: dodgy) and Google will recognise this.

Use social media

Social media interaction is a great way to drive traffic back to your website. You can interact with fans on your pages and join online communities to network and show your expertise, then include a link to your website if they want to know more.

Write blogs

Blogs allow you to target longer keyword phrases and are a great way to increase the traffic your website sees, which in turn is good for SEO. Getting to page one or even position one of a search engine results page can be a challenge. Traffic is never guaranteed, and once you get there you have to work hard to maintain that position. But it’s not impossible. Someone has to be there, so why not make it you?