You’ve thoroughly emptied your coffee pot, typed yourself into a frenzy and finally created a unique piece of content about your technology products that your audience are going to love.
But before you send your little pride and joy out into the world, make sure it’s off to the very best start by optimising it for search engines.
While no SEO tricks can trump great content, publishing your blog without any SEO consideration is like going into battle with nothing but a spoon and jam sandwich.
After all, the internet is a competitive place and if you want to stand out you’ll need an arsenal of weapons.
Before you hit publish, consider your ranking and arm your content with our step by step SEO checklist for technology companies.
1. Put your primary keyword at the very beginning of your title.
We all know keywords play a vital role in our SEO strategy, but keyword placement also affects your page ranking. When boosting your on-page SEO, select your primary keyword and pop it right at the beginning of your title.
2. Tag your title, headings and subheadings in <h1> <h2> <h3>
Tagging your headings is the easiest way to tell Google ‘this is important’. But don’t go overboard. Save <h1> for your title and <h2> for your subheadings, Google will smell a ruse if all your content is of
importance.
Maximise your title
with modifiers
Modifiers, such as ‘How to’ or ‘Complete Guide’ are ideal .additions to your title. Adding the year of publication is especially important for technology company SEO – in the ever-changing world of tech newer = better. These long tailed versions of your keyword help users find your content easier.
4. Pop your primary keyword in your URL
Automatically generated URLs can get long and ugly. Most CMS let your edit your URLs, so make sure your keyword is taking pride and place, and think Kylie Minogue – short and beautiful.
5. Pop your keyword in your
opening paragraph
Again, keyword placement is critical for upping your page’s rank. Make sure your primary keyword comes up in the opening paragraph of your blog.
6. Maximise your meta
descriptions
A well written meta description is the perfect opportunity to attract people to your blog. Use this time to naturally include keywords and give your reader a reason to click. But remember: keep it short. Desktop users see 200 characters, but mobile users will only see 172, to appeal to both stay between 165 – 172.
7. Add internal links
Internal links keep your reader on your site longer by guiding them through different sections of your website. They also strengthen the authority of your content if you link to relevant internal pages surrounding your keywords.
8. Add outbound links
Linking to relevant high authority sources helps Google understand what you content is about. The more Google understands who you are and what you do, the more likely it is to guide users to your site. For technology company SEO, sites such as Wired, Forbes, McKinsey are always good options.
9. Use synonyms throughout
the body of your blog
Google is becoming more sophisticated with every update. Gone are the days of keyword stuffing, the search engine can now understand synonyms and is must better at gauging relevancy. Don’t be shy to sprinkle keyword relevant synonyms throughout your content.
10. Get visual
Bounce rate can be as high as 90 percent for some industries. A beautifully formatted blog, brought to life with images, videos and graphics is much more likely to hold your reader’s attention and decrease bounce rate.
11. Boost site speed
We’re a ‘now now now’ generation, so don’t make us wait. Make sure your page is up to speed by scaling down images, choosing the best hosting platform for your needs and compressing your files. Test your page with Page Speed Insights.
12. Lengthen your content
Studies have found longer content performs better and ranks higher. The average Google first page result contains 1,890 words. Aim for in-depth posts of 1000 words and over.
13. Optimize your images
Images don’t just make your blog pop they’re also the perfect place to push your keywords. Re-name your image files to feature your primary keyword and don’t forget to change your image alt text too.
14. Consider readability
Just like your mom, Google hates clutter and is always right. Jumbled up blogs with little white space, tiny font and huge blocks of text are no fun to read. Prioritise user experience and aim for content that is kind to eyes.
15. Make sharing simple
by adding share buttons
Backlinks to your content are the perfect way to gain authority for your site, and should be every bloggers goal. Make this process easier by adding accessible social share buttons. More shares = higher ranking.
