Adopt a long-term SEO strategy to fight back against Google’s recent changes

We no longer consider changes to Google’s algorithm (ones that make SEO specialists scream their heads off) as “improvements”. While the most dishonest people will use these changes as an excuse to be less transparent to their customers (“It’s not me it’s, it’s 100% Google that set up this “not provided” filter), others have understood that long-term SEO strategies are the best way to fight against any and all changes made to Google. We could talk about all the reasons why Google give us a hard time, however we find it more useful to concentrate on solutions. Google will surely throw us more ‘pleasant’ surprises so it’s best to learn how to adapt your SEO strategy today :).

Google gives us less information but customers always want more

While it is difficult to gather information about people who have mentioned your company in newspapers, promotional shows, word of mouth or any form of offline-advertising, it is relatively simple to receive and analyze online customer-based data given the visibility of search engines as well as the ability to track visits on your website. Even if Google continues to look for valuable information regarding keywords searched by users, the basic rules of SEO do not change and various information about your customer base is always available to you.

Citing “Google” as an excuse for why you stopped sharing information with customers is likely to harm the reputation of many honest SEO experts, especially when many others can give them the exact information they need. Customers do not always understand SEO culture even though they know that good SEO is an important component in generating traffic. However, they are entitled to know where the money they are investing goes when they hire the services of an Internet communication agency. You need to find all the information needed in order to best respond to your customers' requests and to openly share this information in order to retain your customers.

Stay focused on your long-term goals

What is SEO?

→ My website deals with a particular topic and I want people who are looking for information on this topic to find my site easily: Nothing more and nothing less. In an ideal world, sites that offer content that is relevant to users' research should rank first in search results. However, in reality It is not enough to simply offer the best content on Earth, it is also necessary that search engines can access to your content, judge its relevance, and decide its rank in the search results.

As robots are devoid of any "analytical brain", they respond to the precise (and often complex) rules that most people are not familiar with. This is where the SEO specialists come in, whose goal it is to understand the different variables that will propel a website into the top 3 positions on search results.

What is the goal of your website?

The number of websites on the Internet is constantly growing, and positioning your own website at the top of (natural) search results for a specific keyword requires more and more effort at the SEO level. As a result, we have found that companies want to position themselves in the top positions at all costs but are not as committed to offering their visitors quality content and a unique web experience. As we find ourselves saying over and over again:  attracting visitors to your site is one thing, making them stay and come back is another.

We advise you to concentrate first on optimizing your content and the user experience visitors will have, instead of doing everything with the main goal of pleasing Google. Indeed, if Internet users don’t like what they find when they arrive on your website, your super SEO will surely bring you (unique) visitors but your bounce rate will be all the more important. Offer a unique atmosphere, or special blog template rather than making everything black and white. Your site will stand out and Internet users will probably want to come back.

Google’s goal

The goal of Google is to make money (who said that?) to meet the needs of Internet users by offering them relevant content that relates to their search terms. The more popular a website is (for humans ≠ robots), the more Google will have an interest in making it more known and therefore better reference it. Indeed, Google is increasingly taking into account the rate of visitors in its SEO calculations. Consequently, the bounce rate (percentage of visitors who did not perform any action on the site), the average time per visit, the percentage of new visitors, and the number of pages visited will all influence the position of a site in search results.

Whoever said above that the goal of Google is to earn money is not, however, entirely wrong. Keyword data is no longer available on Google Analytics, but it is now available in Google AdWords. Google requires you to have an AdWords account and run at least one pay-per-click campaign to give you information regarding search keywords.

You will get this information by clicking on the “variables” tab and then “Commercial links and natural search result.”

Google Webmaster Tools: your new best friend for long term SEO strategy

This tool is dedicated to website publishers and constitutes an essential aid in terms of SEO. It gives us access to information regarding keywords as well as data sent to robots, link analysis and web page positioning.

However, its use requires the creation of a Gmail address and you have to register your website in order to start. Although creating a Gmail address requires as much computer knowledge as a technophobe just emerging from a 30-year coma would possess, understanding the analysis of your website using this tool will require a bit more knowledge (nothing that insurmountable however).

Once you have proven to Google that you are the owner of the site you want to be analyzed, you will have access to essential information regarding the health of your site, the traffic it receives, and ways to optimize results.

Conclusion

No, the end of the world is not coming just yet and we will still be able to continue to rack our brains to find ways to improve the referencing of our websites or those of our customers. The exact way in which things work may change but the basic rules do not. Google does not make it easy for us to collect information, but data is always available through other tools. Keep in mind though that if your site meets the needs of visitors, its reputation will surely ensure a good position in the search results. Therefore, if you focus on the quality of your content and the expectations of your visitors, it will be the search engines that work for you and not the other way around.

If you liked this article, you might like this one- SEO Agency: how to choose the right one?

Do not hesitate to contact us at 514 572 7758 or via our contact form if you wish to speak with an expert who will answer all your questions.

Eugénie Delhaye

Cofondatrice et Spécialiste Marketing Internet et Référencement Naturel (SEO) Ma maîtrise des techniques de référencement, combinée à une analyse minutieuse des tendances du marché, me permet de créer des stratégies SEO sur mesure, efficaces et durables.