Search Engine Visibility | Links, Keywords, and Conversions

There are many ways to increase your search engine visibility. The main way to achieve this is to ensure you have a consistent and quality SEO content strategy. Online marketing is more important than ever so it’s essential to keep up with the trends. Analysing what works for your business will ensure you are using the perfect marketing strategy. Having a link strategy for your website content is a great way to engage your customers. It will also increase your visibility on search engine result pages (SERPs). It’s important to understand the types of content you should link to help drive your link development strategy. With this in mind, we’ve put together a concise overview of what you need.  

It is no secret that when it comes to your website, content is one of, if not, the most important thing on there. Not only is it the voice of your brand but content and links are also the driving forces behind Google’s search ranking algorithm. So how exactly do you optimise your content to make sure you are being recognised by Google? And how do you still make sure the content still makes sense to your customers?

The biggest thing to remember when executing content is to write with the audience in mind. The customer is your priority. If you’re producing well written, informative content then you’re already half way there. After that, it’s time to take a look at link acquisition, keyword improvement and conversion assistance. Here’s a brief insight into what you need to know about links, keywords and conversions.

Increase search engine visibility with linkable content

The key to search engine visibility is quality content and links. Google has made it loud and clear that its search algorithm places a lot of weight on these two factors. To be at the top of the search engine results page, you need to be considering links within your content. You can’t leave finding your website to chance, especially if you’re in a competitive market. You need a strategic content and link strategy to stay in the game. 

If you’re not familiar with linking, the problem you will face is that not all content is link-worthy. Promoting the right pages is key to link building success. A firm understanding of what types of content are linkable will help your link development strategy. So how do you know if your content is link-worthy?

Linkable content aims to target your audience at the first point of engagement with your brand. This means your content must be relevant and informative on a broad scale. It also needs to apply to as many people as possible. If it’s not, people will not click through; to be link-worthy it has to be of interest or value to your audience. 

Some great examples of linkable content include:

• Definitional or foundational content.
• Well-designed, visually compelling content.
• Controversial, opinionated content.
• Engaging, interactive content.
• Trendy, newsworthy content. 

The above is just an example; you might produce other link-worthy content that doesn’t fit into any of these categories. But what makes the above type of content perfect for link building campaigns is that they all cater to large audiences, they’re not too specific. 

However, due to their broad topic, it’s difficult to get these linkable pages to rank in search results. This is because they are often competing for visibility in highly competitive SERPs. But, competing successfully in these results enables you to earn links passively via reference from other websites with content on the same topics. 

The great thing about link building is that even if you don’t rank highly in the SERPs they will still benefit you. You’ll still be able to build topical authority and credibility for your brand. In turn, this will help other more keyword focused content rank higher.

Optimise content with topical keywords for increased visibility

So we have established that you should implement a link strategy to support your ranking (even if the linkable content doesn’t rank highly), but you also need to look at keywords. Keyword focused content will help increase your search engine visibility in SERPs, which helps increase your brand awareness. 

The sole focus of a keyword strategy is to increase your visibility in the SERPs using topical keywords and themes. The main difference from linkable content being that it is often very targeted and specific in its direction. 

For your keyword strategy to be successful, you will need to research and analyse your industry. If you don’t use the right keywords, you won’t be found in the SERPs. This can be a daunting process if you haven’t done it before, but here are a few ways to get you started:  

• Think about which terms and phrases are associated with your products and services?
• Look at Google’s related searches for your associated terms and phrases. 
• When searching, what terms does your audience use? 
• Are there other alternative spellings, words or phrases on the current ranking pages?
• What terms and phrases are your competitors using?

By no means is this a comprehensive list, but it’s a good place to start if you want to give it a go yourself. 

Whilst filtering relevant keywords you should also consider the viability of them. Can you create valuable content that will rank well using them? What is the search opportunity associated with each keyword? If competition on a particular keyword is high, it may not be the most beneficial keyword option. But, you want a word with high search volume. Ideally you need high search volume for more traffic but low competition for better chance of ranking higher. 

Tools like SEMrush can help you determine search volume; you can also use tools such as Moz to help you discover keywords for your industry. But be mindful of the fact that search volume tools may not be entirely accurate. This is because they only provide volume for that specific phrase. However, a page that ranks well for one term means is likely to rank well for the associated long-tail keywords. This means a greater total search volume. 

Admittedly, it’s not easy to secure links to keyword focused content due to it being more targeted and specific in nature. But by these pages ranking higher in the SERPs you create the opportunity to earn passive links through content creators covering the same topics. Having other relevant content on your site will also help your rankings. 

Create content that converts visitors into customers 

Linkable content and keyword focused content go hand in hand to help increase your website’s search engine visibility in the SERPs. But the hard work doesn’t end there. You need to somehow ensure that the people who arrive on your site convert into paying customers.

Linkable content targets people at the top of your marketing funnel (broad topic = larger target audience). However, converting content targets visitors at the bottom of your marketing funnel. This content should encourage potential customers to follow a call to action. Calls to action could be signing up to your newsletter, calling, or purchasing. Other sites will often be reluctant to link these pages as they aim to convert the customer. For that exact reason, Google will only show these pages in searches that are commercial and specific to your product or service. Generally these are the most competitive search results.

However, you can combat this with internal linking. By using internal linking correctly, you can support rankings for your converting pages by transferring authority from your linkable pages. Internal links are also a great way to guide organic visitors to converting pages from high-ranking keyword focused content.

Converting content is a non-negotiable when it comes to the success of your business online. So it’s important know how to write converting pages and optimise your site for conversions. If you don’t, we recommend calling in the experts, as this will save you a lot of time and money. We also recommend reading the following articles: 

• How to Convert Your Blog Readers Into Customers
• What is SEO? And How Does It Work?

Create a comprehensive marketing strategy and you can’t go wrong

Any content you create you should have a goal in mind, this will ensure your writing has a clear direction and message. But, when creating content always keep in mind the importance of links, keywords and conversions. To build a successful website, you need to address all three of these strategies with your content.

For a strategy that works it’s important to take into account all of the above KPIs with a range of content, both specific and broad, but always relevant. The linkable content you create will build trust and authority for your brand. This which in turn, will encourage a higher ranking for your keyword focused content. The same quality content will garner more visibility in the SERPs. This will see an increase in organic visitors to your website. The internal links from those pages will journey those visitors to converting pages and, VOILA! You have a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that works. Links, keywords and conversion content all work to support each other, all you need to do is ensure each one is covered. 

Content truly is King when it comes to the success of your website and improving search engine visibility. If you’d like to discuss a holistic marketing strategy to ensure your digital success then get in touch with AIM Internet today on 0870 062 8760. Or, email us at [email protected]. Find out here how working with an agency can help your business.