We recently conducted an experiment. It wasn’t the kind of experiment you read about in the daily news. It was more of a “oops, I wonder how long that tub of yogurt has been hiding at the back of the fridge” sort of experiment.
Several years ago, I had a bit of spare time, and a few ideas, so I started writing articles for the Black Cap Design website. A few months later, I noticed a big improvement in our page rank on all the major search engines. At the time, I didn’t put the two together. (I had also been playing around with Google AdWords and a few other SEO tools, so I knew it wasn’t a case of 1+1=2.)
For a long time, the Black Cap Design site did remarkably well in search results – page 1 or 2 for most search terms that I tested. Then things got busy (life happens) which left less time for creating articles for the site.
Fast-forward to Fall 2013. We were in the process of re-doing our site and started really paying attention to our search rank. In our tests, we were no longer coming up on page 1 or 2 (or 3 or 4 or 5)! In some of our search rank tests we were showing up on page 8! How did that happen!?
What happened is this: while we were busy happily doing work for our clients, we forgot to pay attention to the written content on our own website.
Here comes the experiment part. Since the launch of our new site in October 2013, we started publishing new articles related to Web Design & Development, and we have been conducting regular tests using a series of search queries. In less than 60 days, we have been able to bump our search rank up from page 8 for a number of search queries to page 1 or 2.
Write Well. Write Often.
So, in a nutshell, if I could recommend doing just 1 thing to improve your SEO, it would be “write well, write often!”. Ok, so technically that’s 2 things, but you get the idea.
What do I mean when I say “write well”? It’s not good enough to just plunk down any old content. You need to make sure you’re including material that’s relevant to the core message of your website. It’s also important to include words you think people may be likely to use when searching for a site like yours.
For example, if your site is geared to selling vacuum cleaners, consider writing an article that has something to do with, well, vacuum cleaners, or household dirt. And be sure to use lots of descriptive language, including some technical terms, or the particular manufacturers and models your store carries.
What do I mean (exactly) by “write often”? There is no formula or magic bullet here. Some people blog or write on a daily basis. Most people create content when time allows and inspiration strikes. Obviously, the more often you add content to your website the better, but in the end, as long as you’re adding content on a regular basis – whether it’s daily, weekly or even monthly – search engines will take note and reward your site accordingly.
Good advice but I suck at writing!
Let’s face it, not everyone aspires to write like Ernest Hemingway. And there are many skilled writers who simply don’t have the time or the interest in creating website content.
Ta-da! Black Cap Design to the rescue. If you’re interested in boosting your SEO and keeping your website content up-to-date, but you’re not in a position to do it yourself – we can help. It’s as simple as spending a few minutes in person or on the phone discussing the products or services you provide. We’ll put your ideas in print and make you and your business or organization look great in the process!
For more information regarding content creation and SEO, contact us by phone at 1-705-927-2308 or send email to .