Getting Your Website Found On Google

Yes, there are other search engines too, but Google is used by around 90% of us. Now, although SEO is a bit of voodoo, there are proven ways of getting ranked on Google, but it largely depends on your industry. There are also anomalies where some websites are ranking very well that probably shouldn’t…

Google is also always evolving, think about AI search now. Before, one of the best strategies was writing content to answer people’s questions, now with AI search, Google is looking through everyone’s content and providing an answer, rather than sending the asker to the website. With this in mind, we need to be thinking about transactional keywords.

A top-down view of somebody typing copy up on a laptop

What are Keywords?

Keywords are the things people search for on Google, such as "plumbers in Andover" - this is an example of a transactional keyword. Someone searching for this is clearly wanting to get a plumber in, and they live in Andover.

We also have informational keywords, these are slowly going out of fashion with AI search, and things like GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation). An example of informational keywords could be "how to unblock shower drain" - this is a piece of content on a plumber's website. The aim for the plumber would be they find your website and then decide to reach out to you rather than trying to do it themselves, because they found your content and wanted to ask questions.

How do we Treat Google?

One of our favourite analogies is "treat Google like a mate that knows someone for everything". Now, this mate, they only want to recommend people they:

Know can get the job done, and that this is their area of expertise
Know that they are reliable and they hold themselves well
Know are reputable, particularly ones that are recommended by experts in their field

With this in mind, how do Google choose who to organically rank the highest?

On-page SEO

On-page SEO is very easy - what words are on your webpages, helping Google understand what your areas of expertise are. Now, there are 3 things you need to know about:

Page Title - This is what you see in big writing on the SERP (Search Engine Results Page). This is why websites with multiple pages rank well, you can have multiple page titles, such as "Plumber in Andover", "Plumber in Salisbury", giving you more coverage.
Page Description - This is the writing just below the Page Title on the SERP. This should be used to backup the page title, ideally using around 160 characters. Include the keyword you are aiming to rank your page for, and then use it naturally at least once.
Page Content - This is the content on the page that people are going to be reading. It is important to have the keyword on your page, particularly in your heading tags, while also scattering it across the page. You don't want to overuse the keyword though, and you want the content to feel natural.

Doing all 3 of these with your webpages will show Google exactly what your areas of expertise is, helping you rank well for it.

Technical SEO

Technical SEO helps you look professional, while also helping Google understand your website and what you do. The most important thing with Technical SEO is website speed. This is what separates website designers from website developers.

Think about it, if you are slow and sluggish, what will your customers think? Exactly the same with your website.

A great website should be developed properly, and achieve fast load times on Google's own tools. Google PageSpeed Insights gives your website a simple score out of 100 on 4 key metrics:

Performance - How fast does your website load?
Accessibility - Is your website accessible to those with disabilities?
Best Practices - Are you up to date with modern technologies?
SEO - Can Google easily read and interpret your website?

You should aim for 90+ on all metrics if you want to rank well on search engine pages. Another great tool is GTMetrix, where you should be aiming for an A. By doing this, you keep Google and your customers happy.

Off-page SEO

This is where you can take your search engine rankings to the next level, but it's a very tough one to crack. Earning backlinks from reputable sources helps Google see you as trustworthy, but you can't just get links from any random website. You need to make sure they're relevant.

Think of it this way, if you were looking for a place to get your nails done, would you trust the recommendation of a carpenter or a hair salon? Google thinks the same way. Getting backlinks from hair salons is brilliant for other beauty businesses, just like backlinks from other tradies is great for carpenters.

This helps build your domain authority. Now, Google doesn't have a way of tracking this, so you need to use a third party tool, which is never going to be 100% accurate, but gives you a good idea. Something like Ahrefs will score your domain out of 100. For competitive industries you'll want 50+, for less competitive ones sometimes as low as 10+ is enough to see you ranking high for your keywords.

How Much Does SEO Cost?

This is largely down to how competitive your industry is. If you've got loads of competition, you'll likely need to invest thousands each month to build backlinks from trusted sources and get coverage in the media.

If you're in an industry that's mostly small local businesses, you can get strong results through one of our pay monthly websites, without needing to invest in expensive backlinks and content. A great example is the Cotswold Pool Company, who rank well for their industry through our simple Business Package.