To get results as quickly as possible it is important to know your SEO low hanging fruit options. In our work with hundreds of websites we have found these areas to be the starting point for your SEO efforts, alongside creating a holistic, longer term SEO strategy.
Let’s start with Google’s E.E.A.T.
Experience, Expertise, Authority and Trust (E.E.A.T.)
You get SEO results by following Google’s E.E.A.T. content guidelines.
- Experience – Digital content that shows you have relevant experience in your field, industry or marketplace.
- Expertise – This content shows you know what you are doing and have a track record of success because you are an expert at what you do.
- Authority – Not only do you know what you are doing, you also are an authority and thought leader in your marketplace or industry.
- Trust – Your company can be trusted. People refer to your business, leave excellent reviews and seek you out to become customers.
Working on E.E.A.T. must always be considered as you determine SEO low hanging fruit.
Let’s take a look at SEO low hanging fruit ideas along with the specifics of E.E.A.T., including a comprehensive list of content types and formats to best meet E.E.A.T. guidelines.
Get Your Rankings from the Google Search Console – Make the Top 10
Part of SEO low hanging fruit is gaining awareness of how well your website is performing in search results. Understanding the Google Search Console must be part of your awareness as it is the best available free SEO tool to know how you are ranking in Google.
Review your Google Search Console and look for the search terms where you are ranking outside the top 10. Google already recognizes your website as an authority in these key search areas and you can work on SEO updates and E.E.A.T. focused content to move up in the search rankings. Oftentimes, this will get more traffic to your website faster than targeting new search terms for which you don’t currently rank in Google.
By focusing your attention on the queries that are ranking outside the top 10, you prioritize work on search queries that Google recognizes as related to your domain name. This is a strong first step to getting on page one.
Oftentimes, this tactic will get more traffic to your website faster than targeting new search terms for which you don’t currently rank for by leveraging Google’s existing understanding of your relevance to the topic.
Know Your Keyword Volume
You must know the keyword volume for keywords used to currently find your website. These are the keywords for which you want to get found and often the keywords driving traffic to your competitors. This is a key part of our Intuitive Websites’ SEO audit and can be found using the Google Search Console and tools like SEMRush.
The Sitemap and Website Navigation
Google is looking to rank websites that have easy-to-use navigation menus higher in search results than those websites that have complex and cryptic navigation. Google wants your website navigation to make sense to website users and be well organized. This allows the Google crawlers to properly index the website in search results.
User Experience (UX) is a non direct ranking factor used by search engines. Complex and cryptic navigation is frustrating to users, and Google will notice if most people landing on your site leave out of frustration.
Google is looking to rank websites that have easy-to-use navigation menus higher in search results than those complex and cryptic websites. Clear website navigation that makes sense to users and is well organized strengthens brand trust with prospects as well.
Clean navigation also allows Google to properly crawl the site so it can be indexed in search results.
It’s like when you go to a restaurant and have an easy to read and follow menu. This results in a better experience. The same is true for your website’s navigation structure. Making these improvements can impact SEO results quickly.
The Google Domain Authority Score
You can find this score using tools like SEMRush and the simple act of uncovering your score starts the process of getting your SEO on the right track. What is in your awareness gets done, and having a low Google authority score against your competitors should move you to action.
Tag Photos, Images and Videos with Great Metadata
We see websites every week that have not properly tagged their photos, images or videos with keywords. This is SEO low hanging fruit and a must have to drive search results and build authority.
While alt text should be created for screen readers for the visually impaired first, including target keywords when they semantically make sense is another way to indicate to search engines what your page is about. Image file names are an often overlooked place to slide in some extra keywords as well. This is SEO low hanging fruit and a must have to drive search results and build authority.
Build a Digital Content Calendar
You will get content done when you make a commitment to a content calendar. Your content calendar should include website content updates, social media content and email marketing content topics. It should also include written content, graphics and video.
A content calendar for your website is a way to get your SEO improvements started right away as any content used to improve E.E.A.T. will improve your authority score and get you more targeted and qualified website traffic from Google.
Get Started on E.E.A.T.
Your content calendar should be filled from a variety of topics and content sources to help you drive E.E.A.T. I have broken down content topics into each part of E.E.A.T. Keep in mind, there is crossover and each area supports your overall growth in Google search results, along with your social media content.
Experience
- Team bios with career details on the key players on your team.
- Many content-rich blogs and a thorough resources section.
- Content on your “About Us” web page that talks about the number of years in business and how long you have been active in your marketplace or industry.
- A listing of recent projects, a listing of clients and experience in various industries.
- Case studies from real clients.
- Use studies that may not include a specific client’s name, but tell the story of how you work in certain markets or industries.
Expertise
- An industry leading resources section with blogs, articles, white papers, eBooks, webinars, infographics, videos, presentation slides, spec sheets, website calculators, interactive tools and more.
- A clear understanding of where you are thought leaders and what you are the best in class at doing for your clients and customers.
- A “How We Do It” section on your website that explains how things work and how you help customers and clients. Explaining how you work sets you apart and showcases your expertise.
- Content about how you do business and what customers can expect in working with you.
- Detailed product and services content that showcases the real benefits of buying from your company.
- Use AI tools to share your digital content through website chat and with AI clones of your key thought leaders.
Authority
The content driving expertise and showcasing your experience drives authority, but you also need to brag a bit about your accomplishments on your “About Us” web page as well.
- List publications that feature your content.
- List awards and recognition you have received in your marketplace or industry and use logos.
- Write about client wins and tell the story of how you guide your customers or clients.
- Build authority in your team bios by showing the team’s accomplishments with both qualitative and quantitative content. Give your team meaning job titles.
- Include a client list and your key partners.
- Showcase your accreditations and memberships to relevant organizations.
- Use authorship bylines for all content written by your team with links to their bios.
- Include press releases and any media mentions of your team or your company.
- Endorsements from influencers and others with authority in your industry.
Trust
- Use real photos of your team and your company and tag them with keywords.
- Make sure your website is secure using HTTPS.
- Host your website at a leading hosting company that can give you fast load times.
- Design an easy to use website, with an intuitive navigation structure.
- Have a plan for regular content updates on your website and other digital channels.
- Make sure to have website ADA compliance in place using tools like AccessiBe.
- Build trust with customer testimonials and reviews of your products and services.
- Work to build brand authority so your name is connected to customer satisfaction.
- Build links to your website from credible sources with high authority.
- Include a detailed privacy policy on your website and link it in the footer on all pages.
- Make sure to have a contact us page on your website and an easy to find phone number and physics address for your company.
- Build and write an excellent “About Us” page on your company website.
- Include a link to customer service so people can easily reach you with questions.
- Write about your charitable giving and community support efforts using photos.
- Include a robust contact page on your website that is linked in the main navigation.
Conclusion
SEO is important to your growth. About 50% of your online researchers will be looking for solutions and to buy or inquire following a search in Google. This will change over time as AI tools become more powerful and start to replace Google (remember Yahoo or AOL?). When this happens, you will benefit highly from maintaining E.E.A.T. because the AI search tools to come will also emphasize E.E.A.T. in their content results and as they select the appropriate response to users’ questions and dialogue.
Reach out to us for a digital marketing assessment and SEO audit to identify low hanging fruit for your website that can help your company grow sales.
