As I’ve mentioned numerous times in the past: SEO is never a one-and-done deal. It is an ongoing, ever-evolving process that has the power to make or break your chances at good ranking on local search platforms. I don’t think I really need to get into the reasons why that’s important, but if you need convincing, here – read this.
With the information in that article in mind (or just your trust in me as an authority within my own industry), I want to take some time today and share a few key reasons why you should maintain good SEO practices. I’ll even explain the whys and wherefores as we go.
The Final Takeaway (A Little Ahead of Schedule)
Normally, this kind of wrap-up would come at the end of the article, but I really just want to set the stage a little here. If it’ll make you feel better, skip the next few paragraphs and come back and read them last. I won’t mind.
SEO ranking matters because you have lots of competition. Even if yours is an extreme niche market, someone else out there has likely already had the same idea and is marketing it aggressively.
How you approach SEO will determine whether your website is seen first. It will also determine whether your prospects stay on your site long enough to become clients or customers. Well-structured sites lead to more page views and conversions, both of which are determining factors in your rankings.
Your SEO Auditing Checklist
So how do you know if your site’s SEO health is optimal? By performing regular content audits. That means looking at a number of key areas, including:
Keywords – Timeliness, density, and proper, organic usage are a must, as is perpetual research to determine current search trends within your target market.
Responsiveness – How well does your site adapt to views on various devices? When was the last time you checked? Right behind keywords, this is the most important element to good rankings.
Page Load Times – Three to five seconds is your window. If it’s taking longer, you need to look into several things:
File Sizes – Large images and videos take longer to load and will slow down page loads.
Your Hosting Plan – Does your site have enough bandwidth to serve pages quickly?
File Hosting – Hosting large files on your provider’s servers can also slow things down. If you use lots of multimedia, you should consider cloud hosting as an alternative to decrease page load times.
Why All This Matters
Finally, we arrive at the heart of the article! Let’s talk about why the items on the above list matter, shall we?
First, regular content audits attract the attention of the major search platforms. Anytime something on your site changes, it leaves a data trail that determines how your pages will rank. Make good changes, and it will impact your rankings in a positive way.
Second, content auditing helps you determine how well you understand what your target market actually wants and clarifies where changes are necessary. The auditing process can be a real eye-opener, so it’s necessary to keep an open mind. Put your personal likes and dislikes on the back burner and deliver content that satisfies the wants of your key audience, particularly your ideal buyer avatar.
Third, your competitors are probably not doing this. At a minimum, they aren’t doing it often enough. Invest the time and money necessary in quarterly audits, and you will find it much easier to compete, even with much larger players in your industry or niche.
Your Content Creation and Auditing Battle Plan
So, how do you keep up the momentum necessary to make content auditing work in your favor? It’s not all that complicated.
It starts by understanding that your content – all of it – matters. Serving a steady stream of high-quality, optimized content will, in and of itself, increase your rankings quickly. That is, in part, where your friendly neighborhood copywriting company comes into play.
Responsible agencies and freelancers always do their homework before writing articles, social media posts, press releases, and more. This is done to ensure that keywords, keyword density, and article formatting are all SEO friendly.
Agencies dedicated to SEO can also help tremendously in the process. With the tools to scan and audit entire sites quickly, they can also make valuable recommendations on ways to tweak and present your content in a manner that will keep things moving forward.
Lastly, you want to promote your content wisely. Social media is a great platform, but it isn’t the only one that matters. I have posted a library of articles on how to manage marketing your content and how to get it seen, so feel free to browse through the archives for some helpful hints.
As a final note, please remember that content auditing isn’t just a good idea. It is 100 percent mandatory if you want to have consistently good rankings. Seek help from the right entities for both content creation and content management, and those smart decisions are likely to net you the results you desire in page rankings.