DALEY RESOURCES
3 Smart Ways to Quickly Boost Your Google Search Ranking
Maureen Daley
One of the most important things a website should do is to help people find your business. It’s one thing for current customers to search your business name, but if people don’t already know who you are and what you do, boosting your ranking in Google’s search results is an important step toward getting your name in front of your prospects.
The specifics behind exactly how Google moves websites up and down the rankings tend to be pretty hush-hush. Fortunately, there are several simple ways you start making a positive impact on your site’s search rank:
1. Take Advantage of Google Maps
2. Cultivate Google Testimonials
3. Plan Your SEO for Humans
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1. Take Advantage of Google Maps
For anyone with a physical business location, boosting your search engine presence through Google Maps should be a no-brainer. And that’s true even for businesses that don’t rely on walk-in traffic – Google will often show the top-ranked local businesses on Maps on the regular search results page.
So how do you improve your Maps ranking? If your business isn’t already listed when you search in Google Maps, you’ll need to add it. If the listing already exists, or once you’ve added it, you should be able to claim the listing as the business owner.
At that point, ranking is all about making your listing as useful as possible for customers and prospects. Add photos that show your location or products, confirm your hours and contact information, and answer questions. Be sure to verify that your business name, address, and phone number matches the information on your website exactly – it will indicate to Google that your site and Maps listing are trustworthy, and it will also be less confusing for your customers.
2. Cultivate Google Testimonials
Another benefit of claiming your Google Maps listing is that your ranking and reviews will show up on the listing itself, adding both social proof and a quick rankings boost. Of course, this step will be a lot more effective if you actually have reviews for your business on Google itself.
Fortunately, getting these reviews isn’t as hard as it might seem. Don’t be afraid to ask! You can create a direct link to leave a review from the dashboard of your Google Maps listing. Negative experiences tend to produce more “urgency” when it comes to leaving a review, but if you make it easy, your satisfied customers will be delighted to offer a testimonial for your business as well.
3. Plan Your SEO for Humans
This last step is the simplest, but also often the one that trips up business owners who are trying to improve their Google search ranking. Understanding keywords and optimizing your site for search engines is important, but only in so far as it makes your website more useful, attractive, and effective for the communicating with your customers.
Ultimately, when you design and create content for your website, it’s not Google you’re trying to impress – it’s the people who are interested in your business. And if you’re looking for expert guidance in making that happen, Daley Design is here to help. Interested in building or relaunching a site that appeals to your ideal clients? Let’s chat.