My Website Is New – What Can I Do For Some Speedy SEO Wins?
Congratulations – you’ve got your new website off the ground. That should always be considered no small achievement in itself. Now you may be wondering how you can enjoy a return on the resources and money you have invested, especially in terms of SEO. The reality is that it can take time for a new site to gain authority status from external linking and through relevant content which search engines assess as being better than the competition. However, that doesn’t mean kicking back and doing nothing while you wait to see results. Here’s our guide to quick SEO wins from a new site so that you can assess how visible it is to the search engines and position it so that it succeeds.
Internal linking structure – think strategically
If you want your site to have authority, you need inbound links. However, internal linking is just as important. Stay focused and only link from one page to another where you really need to – this means having a well organised site architecture.
Creating top-notch content
It’s always a good idea to have a lot of high-quality, relevant content to help your audience. Consider lengthening existing pages, adding new ones or going into particular topics in greater detail. A new website is a great chance to reassess all your content and eliminate any duplication.
Optimise page speed
You can use tools including Google Chrome Lighthouse to check out page speed. Other efforts can potentially be jeopardised if you are not, well, up to speed! Go for the optimal speed you can reasonably achieve.
Coding: keep it clean
If you have too many plug-ins or bloated coding, that may not be helping you. Keep your code clean and minimalists throughout to make the most of the quick wins described in this article.
Set up analytic and diagnostic tools
Have Google Analytics or similar in place to understand your site’s performance and measure how you’re doing. This will also help you to track visitors and how they behave once they are on your site. You’ll additionally have a benchmark from which to look at traffic, content, conversions and the like. Other tools for further details include Google Search Console and/or Bing Webmaster Tools.
Optimal mapping of your site architecture
Think about how you want to arrange your content. Organise topics in a way that makes sense and which goes from the general to the specific. Never try to have too much information on one page. Where you need them, add topics, sub-pages and sub-topics. For longer-form content, add links so the visitor can delve more deeply as they wish. Search engines will also note this vertical depth of your content.
Building citations and links
Consider how you could increase links to your site and the partnerships you could build which would give your website greater credibility. This might include work with charities to whom you could link from your website, or credible trade associations and directories you could be part of and whose credentials you could use. However, don’t just buy links – that won’t work.
Monitor and troubleshoot indexing
Again, Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools will ensure the sitemap is validated, while indexing the pages in the priority order you’d expect. Overall, monitor indexing to be sure it’s working well and addressing any errors straight away.
Talk to us
Be proactive to bring about these quick wins and gain the visibility your new site deserves rapidly. At Front Page, we can help you pull your fledgling website up in the search engine rankings. Get in touch today and we’ll take it from there.