SEO Canberra – 15 Expert Tips To Rank On Page One In 2023
Updated: Dec 30, 2022
SEO can be a bit of a mystery, but there are some simple things you can do to help your website rank higher in search engine results. Canberra’s population of close to half a million people means there are thousands of people searching for the products, services, and information your business or website can offer. With SEO Canberra, you can put your website right in front of those searchers.
We have compiled some of the best tips to get your website ranking quicker, so you can get more visitors from people searching for your specific business or service in Canberra. If you don’t have enough time to implement all of these tips into your website, we would love to help! Let’s get your website in front of the right people and start driving traffic (and sales!) today.
#1 Tip For SEO Canberra: Make your pages
informative and clear
Whether you’re writing service descriptions or blog posts, you want to be clear and direct. Some websites fail to mention where they are located, what type of services they offer and other critical pieces of information that people need to know before taking action. Google can recognise this and therefore penalise the site and keep them from ranking higher in the search results. Don’t believe me? Search for any service located in Canberra, and the first page of results will be filled with well-written and detailed service pages that will inform visitors. Visitors want to know what they’re getting when they click through and want enough information on your page that they won’t have to continue searching for it. The humble FAQ section is a perfect addition to most service or product websites. It shows that you are aware of these common questions and that you can also guide that visitor to the solution.
#2 Tip For SEO Canberra: Make your site easy to navigate
Help visitors by making it easy for them to find what they’re looking for. Using subheadings in your content, and linking to other pages within your site, will help visitors navigate your site more quickly. Google ranks websites based on user experience, so if your visitors take action and stay on your site for longer than on your competitor's site, you will outrank them. You should also ensure that your design is easy to navigate: Make sure buttons are big enough and pages load quickly. There is no need to reinvent the wheel regarding website layout, especially for local visitors who want something fast. Make your website easy to scan through and make the action easy to take. If your business needs contact information from the visitor, make that clear; if you want them to give you a call, make that clear.
#3 Tip For SEO Canberra: Use relevant and local keywords
Keywords are the words that people use when searching for products or services online. You want your site to show up in the search engine results whenever possible, so include the terms people are likely to use when searching for what you have to offer. You can do some basic keyword research for free and make a simple list of keywords to include in your content. Ensure your keywords are appropriate for your site and don’t overuse them, as Google can penalise your rankings. You can include long-tail keywords for an extra boost because they are usually less competitive to rank for. Tools for keyword research that are based on actual search data include Google's Keyword Tool, Semrush or Answer the Public. You should also incorporate location phrases into your writing or page headings, these are keywords that inform Google where your company is located. Words like "Canberra CBD," "Canberra," or "in Forrest" are examples of this. Although it can seem like a straightforward procedure, many companies fail to use local keywords and their websites are lost in Google oblivion.
#4 Tip For SEO Canberra: Don’t forget-mobile users
Mobile devices are the most popular way to access the internet, so you should make sure your site is mobile-friendly. If your site isn’t responsive, you’re losing traffic from millions of people trying to access it but being sent to a version that doesn’t work for them. Making your site responsive is also a requirement by Google, and sites that don’t load into a mobile format will not only be stopped from ranking but also give your business an unprofessional look. Here are some quick checks you can take to see if your website is mobile-friendly
· Does it load quickly? · Is the design responsive (Mobile Format) · Can users see what steps they need to take? (Call Button, Buy Now Button) · Do users have to scroll through a mountain of text to take action?
#5 Tip For SEO Canberra: Create Long-Form Content Consistently
It’s important to remember that SEO isn’t the only way to get traffic to your site. However, it’s the most reliable way to get visitors over the long term. The best way to get people to visit your site, again and again is to create unique, quality content that solves people’s problems and delights them. This includes long-form blogs, informative lists, videos or other helpful information. This is also an area overlooked by most SEO agencies and consultants and can give your website an amazing ranking boost. Don't forget to incorporate local relevancy by including suburb names or the City name. For example, “How To Hire The Best Plumber In Canberra ” and include a list of tips that will help visitors, and definitely include your own details too! By creating quality content consistently, your business will be seen as an authority by both your visitors and Google (a win-win situation) You can explore the various different types of long-form content and compare what performs best.
· How to guides
· Ultimate guides
· Tutorials
· Resource lists
· Industry definitions
· Case studies
Most people are curious about the way things might be done differently in your business, you can inform them and convert them at the same time with high-quality long-form content.
#6 Tip For SEO Canberra: Add your business to directories
Search engines like to see “social proof” that your business has real customers. One way to get this is to add your business to directories. Make sure you submit your site to the correct category. Even though Canberra may be a big city, you can still get your business in front of potential customers' eyes. Keep your NAP or Name, Address and Phone number consistent across any directory that you add your business. Google regularly crawls these directories for updates; conflicting information will make those listings worthless in helping your website rank. Examples of directories include
How can you rank your website even quicker? This is the Secret Sauce That SEO Agencies Charge So Much For
Apart from implementing the best practice tips you read above, agencies must also undertake the long technical search engine optimisation process. Keep reading, and we will provide you with all the information you need as a beginner regarding SEO Canberra. You can learn more about technical SEO, how it can help your website rank even faster, the various sub-categories of technical SEO and much more.
What is Technical SEO?
“Technical SEO” refers to SEO practices related to your website’s code and functionality. Technical SEO is an inclusive term that encompasses everything that you’re doing as a business owner or marketer to make your website more SEO-friendly.
To optimise your website correctly, you'll need to be familiar with many different sub-categories within Technical SEO. These include Technical Architecture, URL Path, URL Structure, HTML and CSS, Server-Side Rendering, Web Crawlers, Mobile-friendliness and more.
How can Technical SEO help your website rank quicker in Canberra?
Most people will only click on organic search results on the first page of Google. You can test that theory on yourself; when was the last time you browsed the second and third pages of Google? So that’s a massive chunk of people you can get to visit your website if you rank on top of search engine results pages (SERPs). You need a properly optimised website that follows all of Google’s rules and guidelines to rank quickly.
#7 Tip For SEO Canberra: On-page SEO
Before diving into the specifics, it’s important to get a general idea of how your website’s code is structured. The most important aspect of code quality is how easily it is crawled by search engines. This process is known as “markup”, which involves tagging specific elements on your website with specific information. The goal here is to make it easy for search engines to identify and understand the content on your website. This includes URL structure, title tags, description tags, ALT tags, meta descriptions, content, images and more. SEO experts often break down on-page SEO into two sub-categories: “above-the-fold” and “below-the-fold.” The above-the-fold content refers to the elements seen when someone first opens your website. The below-the-fold content relates to elements that are shown after someone scrolls down. Regarding on-page SEO, the most important aspects are your title tags, URL structure and ALT tags.
#8 Tip For SEO Canberra: Title Tags
Google uses title tags to summarise your content and inform users about your page. Using the right keywords in your title tags is crucial to rank high in Google’s search results. The best way to write title tags is to use your target keywords once at the beginning of the title tag and make it relevant to the specific search intent. For example, if your website is for your service business, for instance, plumbing or roofing, your title tag could be “Service Business Canberra | Highest Rated Service In Canberra.”
#9 Tip For SEO Canberra: URL Structure
While title tags are used to summarise your content, URL structure is used to help Google’s crawlers understand your website structure and hierarchy. For Google’s crawlers to understand your website structure, you need to have a top-level domain (TLD) that is one word and easy to understand. For example, “Canberrabusinessname. com” is a good URL structure, while “Canberrabusinessnamebestever. biz” is not a good URL structure. You should also ensure that your URL structure is simple and easy to understand.
#10 Tip For SEO Canberra: ALT Tags
ALT tags are also known as “image tags.” They are the text that appears when you include images on your posts and pages. The best way to use ALT tags is to use synonyms for your target keywords. You can incorporate these tags throughout your content, including on blogs “Canberra Business Tips” or in images that you upload to your website “Local Canberra Business”. These little tags will help your images rank on the Images section of Google and can serve as an extra avenue of traffic.
#11 Tip For SEO Canberra: Meta Descriptions
Meta descriptions are a few sentences in search engine results pages below your title tags. This is the text people will see when your search result appears on Google. You have to be very careful when it comes to meta descriptions. While you can use keywords in your meta descriptions, you shouldn’t over-optimise them and stuff too many in one description. An example that you shouldn’t follow is “Accountant in Canberra, Best Accountant in Canberra Coast That Does Account Services”. Adding too many keywords alerts Google, and your page will be marked as spam and can result in Google penalising your website and your rankings.
# 12 Tip For SEO Canberra: Content (That informative content we discussed earlier)
The content you write on your website is just as important as the title and ALT tags. The rule of thumb when it comes to content is to write for your audience, not yourself. Your content should be written in a way that resonates with your customers. If you are a service business, your content should be written in a way that resonates with people who are curious about that service and potential customers. If you’re looking for inspiration on what kind of content you should be creating for your business, you can explore other high search ranking results, and more often than not, they will be long-form content that people actively search for and enjoy reading.
# 13 Tip For SEO Canberra: Images
Image source is one thing you need to be careful about when it comes to images. It would be best if you made sure that the images on your website were licensed correctly. If you use images you haven’t properly licensed, you risk being penalised by Google. You also need to make sure that you are optimising your images. This means ensuring that your images are appropriately sized and have relevant alt text. This means including descriptions of what the image contains so that Google can read it out for visually impaired visitors to your site.
#14 Tip For SEO Canberra: Website Elements
There are other elements you need to consider when optimising your website for search engines. These include your website’s loading speed, the amount of bandwidth that your website uses and more. You also need to make sure that you are using your website’s language settings, which is not a common problem for Canberra businesses but is still essential if you have specific visitors in mind. Similarly, you must ensure that your website has a DOM (Document Object Model). A DOM is a way that browsers understand your website and its elements.
#15 Tip For SEO Canberra: Backend SEO
While On-Page SEO refers to elements that show up on your website, Backend SEO refers to server-side code. For Google’s crawlers to understand your website, they need to be able to crawl it. This means they need to be able to access and navigate your website without any issues. When Google’s crawlers visit your website, they look for a few things. They look for a sitemap, which is a map of your website. They also look for your website to be mobile-friendly and for your website to have a good server speed. A stable hosting provider and standard security should cover you in this regard.
#16 Secret Tip: Don’t forget about penalties, and don’t use black-hat SEO
While Technical SEO is important for your business, it’s also an area that some business owners want to speed up, which is understandable. Using black-hat seo may seem like an easy solution. You can pay some money and rank your website in weeks instead of months. One thing that tends to be overlooked is that Google is a trillion-dollar corporation that takes its search engine ranking seriously. What does this mean? It means that a couple of hundred dollars spent on black hat practices can cost you tens of thousands in legal fees and fines from Google. So do it the right way, don’t fall for black hat SEO.
Start Ranking Your Website Today
When it comes to SEO, you have to ensure that you are optimising your site in a way that allows Google’s crawlers to understand your site structure and your visitors to get all the information they need to take action. This fine balance can be learned over a few years of study, or we can help you complete it in a few months.
How much does Canberra SEO cost?
Each website will have a different cost to rank in Canberra; however, a good starting point would be around $1500+ per month for an Australian SEO Agency. SEO is the perfect investment because, unlike PPC or Ads, which won’t give you results once you stop spending, it will continue to deliver an ROI.
Focus on partnering with a qualified and experienced partner versus the cheapest provider available. Low-Cost SEO won’t benefit your business and can actually cause more harm than good.
How long does it take to rank your website in Canberra?
Your business, industry and competition all play a role in ranking times. Another key factor is location size; for example, getting your website to the top of the search for all of Canberra would take longer (4-6 Months) than it would to rank in a Canberra suburb like Forrest or Barton (3 Months +)
Should you do SEO yourself or hire a Canberra SEO Agency?
This is the question that most business owners face once they realise the benefits that search engine optimisation can bring to their business. In order to start moving forward you need to ask yourself a few more questions about your time, effort and money.
-Do you have time to plan, strategise, and execute SEO strategies in-house? Most successful SEO campaigns take around 12-18 hours of work a month for strategy, execution and optimisation. This may increase depending on your industry and your goals, whether you want to rank in a suburb, city or nationally.
-Do You Have Access to the Right Technology? SEO is dependent on data and analytics, and without them, you would be working in the dark. You can definitely find free alternatives to software that an SEO Agency uses. However, it would be limited in its use and require even more investment to get to the same level.
-What Are Your Long-Term Goals? If you are planning on growing your business quickly and getting your website to the top of the search results then you need a professional SEO growth agency. If you want to keep everything as it is, and add a few more customers to your business over a few years, then you can do it yourself.
We would always recommend that you get to know SEO basics, even if you plan on outsourcing it. We outsource our accounts and bookkeeping (because we hate it), but that doesn’t mean we don’t know what our profit is every month. So the choice is yours, maybe you can start off doing your SEO yourself, and then get an SEO agency to help your company get even better results.
How can you measure the results that Seo can bring for your Canberra business?
Monitoring your results and identifying what works and what doesn't is a key aspect of SEO. We provide business owners with accurate and detailed reports on their SEO results based on the goals they set. Things like traffic and visitors don’t mean all that much if they are not converting to more calls, leads and sales for business owners. Our technology and reporting stack may be quite expensive for those that are just learning about SEO, so we recommend free or low-cost alternatives like Google Search Console, Google Analytics or free trials of SEMrush. You can use these tools to recognise chances to rank, what queries your website is showing up for and more!