As an SEO consultant in Vancouver, it seems more businesses are looking at solutions at increasing organic traffic through their websites. If your website is a relevantly important source of new customers, and revenue you’re probably familiar with the terminology of SEO, also known as Search Engine Optimization.

Today, many web design agencies will work with an SEO consultant in Vancouver. It’s necessary for businesses looking for websites that are strategically designed and written to rank on Google (as well as other search engines). Search Engine Optimization isn’t so much a job as an ongoing process. In competitive markets, businesses can shell out thousands of dollars to SEO consultants every month. But the good news is—it is possible to do yourself.

SEO is based on multiple factors. Like Maslow’s hierarchy, search engines have a hierarchy of needs—the content won’t matter if, for example, the search engine can’t read/index your website. Based on an article from Moz, five of the priorities for high website rankings, from most to least important are:

1. Crawl accessibility so engines can read your website
2. Relevant keywords
3. Optimized content strategy
4. UX and navigation
5. Link Building

Crawl Accessibility

It’s a bit technical, but making your site accessible to Google is one of the most important factors for SEO. If the site contains robots.txt file blocks the crawler, Google will not come to your website or specific web page. It’s important to be aware of any status codes or page blocks that may prevent search engines from smoothly accessing the website. If the site (or a page) isn’t easily crawled—the rest of the factors won’t matter. It’s like a closed door.

Relevant keywords

What phrases are people using when they go looking for your business? Are these the best words? What keywords are being used by competitors? Optimizing your site for the right keywords is another vital aspect of optimization. Some SEO consultants say it’s the most important.

Optimized content strategy

Once you have your keywords, you need to decide where they go. The usual practice for SEO consultants is to dedicate one page to a keyword/phrase. Then content must be strategically and prominently used around the page in areas like headers, pictures, URLs, and body text. If you’re using a WordPress website, a plugin like YOAST SEO can help you understand how to optimize different pages for the relevant keyword.

UX and navigation

Building a site isn’t just about branding and beauty. Google’s business is referring users to the best and most relevant websites on the Internet. A sire that hasn’t been touched in 5 years isn’t going to stack up. Google is going to consider factors like how quickly the site loads, ease of use, navigation, and many other factors. This is where good programming and code come into play. Compromising between style and usability can be a delicate balance. It’s important to create a strong branded experience while ensuring the site is quick and easy to use—on any platform.

Link building

Links are key when it comes to SEO. Is your content relevant and worth sharing? The links coming into your website are one of the factors Google uses to assess the quality of your website. Do you blog? Do you post your content on social media? All these factors will come into play. A great SEO consultant will help you come up with a relevant strategy to produce new content every month.

There are a lot of ways to ensure your website is Google-friendly. Creating websites that are attractive, straight-forward, and user-friendly goes a long way towards creating a site that Google will recognize as valuable and relevant to people searching for your keywords.

SEO isn’t hard but it does require strategy and ongoing effort. Try it yourself or reach out to speak with an SEO consultant in Vancouver.