Search Engine Optimisation
What Is Search Engine Optimisation?
Search engine optimization, or SEO, involves strategies to increase a website’s visibility in search engine results naturally. Organic search is a key method for people to find content online, so appearing higher in these rankings can lead to more visitors to a site.
SEO combines both the technical aspects and content development tailored to meet search engine algorithms’ criteria. Typical SEO activities include producing high-quality content, focusing content around certain keywords, and earning backlinks to your site.
Importance Of Local SEO
Local SEO is super important, especially for small businesses or those without a marketing team. Often, businesses like these rely on people talking about them to get customers. But being easy to find online can make a huge difference in whether someone discovers your business or ends up going to a competitor’s site.
Sure, you could pay for ads on Google to jump higher in search results, but some people might not trust ads as much as they trust natural search results. That’s where being at the top of the search results the old-fashioned way, or “organically,” really matters.
The best way to climb up those search results without paying for ads is to have a website that perfectly matches what people are searching for. This mostly means having the right words on your site—both in the main text and in headings—that match what people type into the search bar. But it’s not just about the words. The behind-the-scenes stuff, like your website’s code, how many other websites link to yours, and making sure your site looks good on phones and tablets, all play a big part too.
Local SEO helps your business stand out in specific areas, making it more likely for nearby customers to find you when they’re searching for what you offer. It’s about making sure your website shouts, “I’m here and exactly what you’re looking for!” to anyone searching nearby.
68% of online experiences begin with a search engine
An impressive 68% of online experiences start with a search engine. This statistic highlights the pivotal role search engines play in how we discover information, products, and services on the internet. It underscores the importance of optimizing websites to appear prominently in search engine results, as this is often the first step in a user’s online journey. Whether people are looking for answers, shopping, or exploring new topics, their experience typically begins with typing a query into a search engine like Google.
Why Does SEO Take So Long?
SEO takes a while to show results, unlike other digital marketing methods that can quickly get you more visitors. Here’s why:
First off, Google needs time to find, check out, and list your website’s pages. When you update your site or add new stuff, Google looks over this content to understand what it’s about and who might want to see it. This process isn’t something you can speed up; it happens on its own time.
Putting SEO good practices into place across your website also doesn’t happen overnight. You might wish you could update everything at once, but it’s better to make these changes gradually. This way, you show Google that your site is trustworthy. Plus, regularly adding new content takes time too, from coming up with ideas to writing, editing, and finally publishing them.
What Determines The Time It Takes For SEO To Work?
SEO results don’t show up overnight, but you can track progress. How long SEO takes depends on several things:
How old your website is: Older websites might rank better because they’ve been around longer, giving Google more time to notice and index them. However, new websites can also rank well if Google quickly learns a lot about them.
Competition: If many others are trying to rank for the same things as you, it might take longer to see your SEO efforts pay off. This is especially true in busy markets. Understanding your competition can help you figure out how long it might take to improve your ranking.
How much you put into SEO: Your progress in SEO depends on how much effort and resources you invest. The more you can invest in SEO strategies, the better your chances of ranking higher. But, not every company can afford to focus all their resources on SEO and wait for the results.
Google uses over 200 factors in their algorithm for ranking websites
People are on their smartphones a lot—about 70% of their internet time. So, having a website that looks good on phones is super important. It means people are more likely to come back to your site. With so many using their phones and tablets all the time, you want to make sure your website is easy to use on these devices. Making everything look nice and work well on mobile can really help keep visitors interested.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly does SEO involve?
SEO involves optimizing your website to improve its visibility in search engine results pages. This includes tweaking your site’s content to include relevant keywords, improving site speed, ensuring it’s mobile-friendly, and acquiring backlinks from other reputable sites. The goal is to make your site more attractive to search engines and users.
Why do search engines use so many factors to rank websites?
Search engines use a wide range of factors to ensure they deliver the most relevant, useful, and high-quality results to users. By considering factors like content quality, user experience, and site authority, they aim to provide searchers with the best possible answers to their queries.
Can I do SEO on my own, or do I need to hire a professional?
Tackling the fundamentals of SEO, such as incorporating relevant keywords into your content, ensuring your website is mobile-friendly, and improving your site’s loading speed, is definitely something you can start on your own. However, SEO is a complex field that extends beyond just content optimization. It includes making crucial web design changes and optimizing page speed, tasks that often require specialised skills and tools.
What should I expect in terms of SEO progress over time?
SEO progress is generally gradual and requires patience. Initially, small but significant improvements might be observed, such as better rankings for less competitive keywords. Over time, with consistent effort and optimization, more substantial gains, including higher traffic and improved rankings for more competitive terms, can be achieved. It’s a long-term investment rather than a quick fix.
Responsive Web Design
Your website acts as the online storefront for your business, serving as a key point of contact for both new and existing customers. It's an essential platform where you can share your story, detail the services you offer, and demonstrate what sets you apart. Having a website is pretty much a necessity for businesses now.
Search Engine Optimisation
SEO helps your website rank higher in the search results, increases natural traffic and the end goal is that it will lead to more sales. We are professionals in delivering long term results for our clients via SEO. Our SEO knowledge is used to create online solutions to meet the individual requirements of clients.
Google Adwords
Google Ads PPC adverts increase the amount of clicks your website will get in the search results pretty much instantly, driving targeted visitors to specific pages on your website in a short time frame. Our PPC experts create targeted campaigns and manage client accounts to ensure advert spend is optimised.
Why Choose Us?
If you’re on the hunt for a Web Designer in Hull and pondering the question, “Why should I choose you?” here are a few reasons.
Responsive Design
Our websites are crafted with responsive design, ensuring a seamless experience across all devices - smartphones, tablets, and desktops. This adaptability significantly improves the user experience, making navigation and interaction smooth and intuitive for everyone, regardless of how they access your site.
Attention To Detail
Our designs captivate and hold your audience's attention, thanks to our keen eye for detail and visually appealing layouts. We craft websites that reflect your unique brand, incorporating elements like your logo and brand colors to forge a professional online presence. This tailored approach ensures your site resonates with visitors, encouraging them to stay longer and engage more deeply with your content.
Support & Upkeep
We're here to listen to your needs and offer clear, straightforward advice and solutions that offer real value. Whether you need occasional updates or regular maintenance, our flexible packages are designed to fit your budget and requirements. Before we start any work, we'll give you a clear quote, so you know exactly what to expect. Our goal is to keep your website running smoothly, without any surprises.
Transparent Pricing
We believe in fairness and clarity in our pricing. That's why we ask for 50% of the total cost upfront, ensuring our commitment to your project. The remaining 50% is due upon completion, allowing you to be fully satisfied with the website before it goes live. This approach ensures that you're happy with the final product, offering peace of mind and confidence in your investment.
Our Process
We focus on streamlining the web design process to ensure you’re well-informed about each step. This approach guarantees you know exactly what to expect and when, making the entire journey transparent and straightforward.
1. Kick Off Meeting
Our journey begins with a crucial first step: a discovery session. Whether it's face-to-face in a cafe in Hull or online via Teams or Zoom, this meeting is where we dive deep. Our experts ask targeted questions to grasp your business's essence, your goals, and your desired visual style. This foundational step ensures we're aligned with your vision right from the start.
2. Developing Your Website Blueprint
Before diving into design, we strategize. This involves mapping out your customer's journey using sitemaps and wireframes to structure your site effectively. Sitemaps outline the navigation and page hierarchy, while wireframes lay the groundwork for the site's layout, focusing on content placement, functionality, and user interactions.
3. Gathering Assets
We'll collaborate with you to gather all necessary assets for your website. This includes your brand guidelines for a consistent look and feel, any high-quality images or videos you want to feature, and your own written content if you choose to provide it. If there are no specific brand guidelines, we'll craft a color palette based on your existing brand colors. Should you lack images, we'll select suitable stock options to complement your site's design.
4. Creation Of The Website
Our design phase begins once wireframes are approved. We blend your brand guidelines, visual research, and user journey insights to create the website. Our designs are responsive, ensuring your site looks great and functions well on all devices. We'll present the first draft in both desktop and mobile views for your feedback. After discussing our vision and incorporating your input, we'll refine the design until your happy.
5. Launching Your Website
After incorporating your feedback and making the final tweaks, we'll conduct a thorough check and allow a short settling period for accurate analytics setup. This step is standard procedure to ensure everything is running smoothly. Once completed, your website will officially go live.
6. Competition Meeting
This is our last chance to make sure everything on your website is correct. We'll answer any questions you have and give you the login details to edit your site. Plus, we'll set you up with access to Google Search Console, so you can keep track of how many people are clicking on your site, how often it's showing up in searches, and where it ranks.
Get In Touch
If you’re looking for Local Web Design services in Hull and would like to find out more about how we can help you please get in touch.
LOCATION
304 Park Avenue West, Chanterlands Avenue, Kingston Upon Hull
Phone
07753 884395
contact@alphawebdesignhull.co.uk
Contact Info
- Park Avenue West, Kingston Upon Hull, HU5 4DQ
- 07753 884395
Services
Get In Touch
If you want to learn more about our website design packages, feel free to contact us so we can discuss your needs further.