With search engine optimization changing rapidly, what is the secret in how to succeed at SEO in 2018?
Everyday people are searching for a product, service, or life’s deepest questions through search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing. Search engines provide us an opportunity to find answers to problems we encounter every day.
The question becomes, how to succeed in this rapidly growing world of search engine optimization? The answer? It’s pretty simple really. All you need to do is follow a proven process.
There are fundamental elements in all businesses, and SEO is no different. We put together some of the best on-page SEO fundamentals to follow, if you want to rank your website to the top of search engines.
SEO Success Starts With Your Website First
If your website isn’t optimized the correct way, you’ll have trouble ranking for any keyword in 2018.
Where should you start?
First, you need a good Content Management System. We recommend WordPress, but you can confidently go with any CMS that you can easily control your UMAC.
What is UMAC?
If you’re looking to find out how to succeed at SEO in 2018, then you need to know what UMAC means.
UMAC stand for URL, Meta, Anchor and Content. You can control all of these elements on your own website, and you need to do them the correct way to ensure that your site is fully optimized.
Setting up your URL is the first step to any good SEO campaign. You should consider adding specific keywords into the URL whenever possible. This will help you rank a lot easier when you start your linking campaign.
Meta Data is Important for Success
Meta data is a way for search engines to figure out what your website is about. Google, for example, has robots that crawl your website and part of the information that these bots pick up, is the Meta data.
You can control your Meta data with plugins on WordPress, such as Yoast, or All in One SEO plugin. These plugins help you fill in the Title and Description for each URL on your site. It’s important to get the right keywords in these areas, if you want to rank successfully in 2018.
Anchor Text
Anchor text is the next letter in UMAC. It is the text that appears in the hyperlink, also known as clickable text. Anchor text can be used to your advantage, if you follow proper guidelines.
Search engines use anchor text as a ranking factor. If you have keywords in your anchor text, you get extra credit for that keyword. As long as you don’t overdo it and keyword stuff your anchors, Google will reward you for it.
When it comes to anchor text, we follow the 40% / 40% / 20% rule. That is, 40% branded anchor text (your company brand), 40% generic anchor text (click here, website, etc) and 20% keyword anchor.
Last on the list of UMAC is Content. You know what everyone is saying these days, “Content is king!”
We like to think of content as providing value to the user that visits your site. If someone lands on your website, are they finding the answer or solution to their problem?
There are ways you can optimize your content by understanding what certain elements are. Elements such as, H-Tags, alt text, and keyword density. Using images and videos to give a better user experience is a plus as well.
Search engine optimization will always be changing. It’s up to you to not take short cuts. Follow these basic fundamentals and you will know exactly how to succeed at SEO in 2018.