SEO Ranking Factors for 2015

If you have a website, then you want to be found. Found by those who are using search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo. And you want to be found on the first page of the options that are displayed. So what SEO factors do the big search engines, like Google, look for when ranking your website? That is a good question. Here are some of the factors that go into SEO ranking.

Mobile Optimization

Mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, are taking over the world. Most searches that are performed on a daily basis are accomplished on a mobile device. But, many websites still are not designed to take into consideration different screen sizes and load times. When your website is mobile optimized, your site design, structure, page speed and more are looked at to make sure you are not turning your mobile visitors away from your site. What mobile SEO best practices look at are:

  • Page Speed
  • That you are not blocking CSS, JavaScript or Images
  • Don’t use Flash or Pop-Ups
  • Designed for a “Fat Finger”
  • Optimized Titles and Meta Descriptions
  • Optimized for Local Search
  • Need for Speed

Search engines, like Google, want to make sure that they are recommending the right sites for their visitors. If you click on a site that takes 20-30 seconds to load, Google knows that you are going to be very UNHAPPY with this recommendation and you’re going to leave the site. Therefore, if your site is slow to load, your SEO ranking is going to drop a bit.

Best Link Building Strategies

When you are posting items to your webpage; post items that are useful instead of just something to put on your page. Gone are the days of being fake and posting links that will just get you a higher SEO ranking. Today, you have to be real, don’t fake being real. Post links that will allow you to become the expert that the world wants to hear from. There are a variety of ways in which you can be that experts, such as:

  • Providing a good analysis
  • Write interesting research that others want/need to know
  • Display data in a visually appealing and new way
  • Provide your interesting perspective that draws other to read what you have linked
  • White Hat Link Building

 

White Hat link building refers to the usage of optimization strategies, techniques and procedures that focus entirely on the human audience as opposed to search engines. This strategy completely follows the rules and policies that are set forth by search engines. Think of it this way… If you optimize your website for search engines and you focus on the relevancy of your material and its organic ranking, then you are optimizing your website using White Hat SEO practices. When you use these practices, then you are intending to make a long-term investment in your website. Some White Hat SEO techniques include:

  • Using Keywords
  • Keyword Analysis
  • Backlinking
  • Link Building to Improve Link Popularity
  • Writing Content for Human Readers