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SEO for Websites: Find Out How to Reach the Top Positions

digitalrabbit — Wed, 29 Sep 2021 05:59:56 +0000

Many companies decide to create websites without any notion of what SEO is, and why it’s so important for success. But without the correct optimization techniques, it is near-impossible to reach good positions on Google, or gain customers and leads using this platform, which exists precisely to make these processes easier.

All search engines – from Google to YouTube and mobile app stores – apply rules for SEO best practice that must be adhered to in order to occupy the top positions. Today we’re going to talk specifically about sites, and focus on what’s important to Google.

Companies need to respect the main rules of Google’s algorithm if they are to be taken into consideration by the search engine, and appear to users who search for specific keywords. For this to happen, certain aspects need to be taken into account during the website creation phase.

Essential site elements for ranking highly on Google:

Friendly URLs

The URL is your website’s address, i.e. https://rabbitholedigital.com/criacao-de-sites. It should be objective, short, clear and easy to understand, so that people can find its pages, and the contents of your website are considered relevant by Google.

H1, H2 and H3

Website articles and pages need to include a title (H1), subtitles (H2) and excerpts of highlights which are less relevant than the subtitle (H3). This will help Google to understand that the content of your site is dynamic, properly compartmentalized and easy for readers to understand.

Keywords

Keywords are essential for your site ranking well on Google, but they should be identified and used according to specific criteria. At Rabbit Hole, we use SEMrush a lot for this kind of research, and would recommend it to anyone looking to get started.

The no. 1 tip regarding keyword usage criteria is to analyze your business website’s format and content, and determine whether to use a head tail or a long tail.

In the case of new websites from brands that are entering their market, for example, it is usually more efficient to use more specific long tail keywords. That’s because they are less competitive (i.e. fewer big companies are using them), which increases the chances of your website appearing in searches for them.

If your company sells makeup, and only uses the keyword “shadow palette” in its product descriptions, your content is unlikely to appear prominently, since many major competing companies are probably using it too. Whereas if you use the long tail “neon shadow palette”, your chances of appearing may increase, as the terms get more specific.

Head tails are more general search terms, which are used most often to answer questions. Because they are succinct, their competitiveness is much greater than long tails. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they shouldn’t be used. Ideally, your content should contain a mix of long tails and head tails.

Meta description

When a user conducts a Google search, the meta description will appear directly below the title and link. It’s a summary of what that page is about. Meta descriptions aren’t a ranking factor per se, but they are likely to make a difference to users who are looking for relevant content, and deciding which link to click. So don’t overlook this element!

Backlinks

Backlinks are external and internal links which direct users towards pages with relevant content. They can lead to pages on your own site, and others. Ideally, your pages should contain both types of links, strategically positioned in your text. Backlinks are designed to generate traffic to your website, strengthen your brand’s visibility and show your readers that you are an authority on the subject in question.

Optimized images and links

It’s no use having optimized text if your page’s content contains overly-dense images and videos, with no regard for best practices. Upload your images and videos in the lightest format possible, with objective descriptions and – in the case of videos from YouTube – a correct category classification.

Intuitive navigation

In addition to strong content, users are looking for high-speed sites which are easy to navigate. That’s why it pays to check your pages’ response times, to make sure they’re loading properly. You should also consider whether your site has a responsive design which works on both mobile and desktop devices. Define which items are essential for your website, and which ones only serve to increase your pages’ loading time.

SEO tools

Now that you’re up to speed with the SEO best practices that can help your site to display higher on Google, let’s take a look at the tools that can make this process easier.

Earlier in the article, we talked about SEMrush, which is an SEO tool that delivers data about user searches and Google SERP placement. It can be used to obtain results about both your domain and those of your competitors.

Another tool which we at Rabbit Hole use a lot for SEO projects is DeepCrawl. It covers backlinks and is useful for indexing pages and identifying duplicate content, among other issues. Last but not least, Screaming Frog is a website crawler that helps to improve local SEO by extracting data and checking for SEO issues.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console is another useful tool for marketing and SEO professionals. It’s free to use, and offers services and reports that help you make informed decisions and consider new strategies for your website.

With Google Search Console, you can check which sites have relevant links that lead to your site, whether Google can crawl and find a page on your site, whether your pages are indexed and, crucially, whether they present any issues as far as Google is concerned.

For marketing professionals, Google Search Console’s most interesting function is the data which it displays regarding search traffic and user frequency. This allows professionals to understand what level their website is currently at, and how far it can go.

The Key to SEO Success

These best practices tips for Google should inform your SEO work so that your site’s content is displayed in ever-better positions. Use the right tools, analyze the data, apply relevant keywords and pay attention to changes, and your results will invariably improve. Identifying and creating content which is relevant to Google’s algorithm is not difficult. However, these results will only become truly apparent over time. So be patient, and conduct as much analysis as possible when applying these techniques.

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SEO for YouTube: Learn How Optimization Can Help Your Channels

digitalrabbit — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 01:48:10 +0000

YouTube is a social media platform that works like a search engine, where people seek topics and subjects which interest them, and expect responses in video form. Content creators on the platform earn recognition and money based on the amount of hits, views and time people spend watching their content. SEO for YouTube is crucial because content optimization can help to improve all of these factors.

It makes sense: on Google, a website that appears in the top positions of search results will be seen more and get more clicks, and on YouTube, a channel’s video needs to appear in the top positions too, in order to be more accessible to viewers and generate greater revenue. A specific set of SEO techniques will enable this kind of positioning and growth.

Each platform or search engine requires a different type of SEO, since they each analyze different aspects according to their proprietary algorithm. In the case of YouTube, whose algorithm is more sophisticated than most other search engines, it is important to pay close attention to optimization. Factors to be analyzed include: titles, thumbnails, descriptions, video viewing time, “like” and “dislike” clicks.

The importance of keywords

The first step in SEO work for YouTube is to conduct a keyword search. Find out which ones are trending, and can be used in the title of your video. This keyword research can be done using tools such as Google Trends or SEMrush’s Keyword Tool.

After defining the keyword and including it in the title, it’s crucial to determine a suitable length that works on both desktop and mobile devices. The general rule of thumb is between 50 and 60 characters. A slightly smaller or larger title won’t interfere with the video’s performance as long as it is sufficiently objective and clear, but observing recommended standards will lead to better results every time.

TAGs and descriptions

Many people who start a YouTube channel underestimate the power of tags and descriptions. But these details have a huge influence on a video’s performance. TAGs serve to classify videos according to the subjects they cover, and help people to find relevant videos. Having said that, an excessive use of TAGS can work against your content. That’s why it’s important to use only those which are directly related to your video’s theme.

As for descriptions, many influencers are unsure whether they should be long or short, and whether or not they matter for a video’s performance. While there is no set recommendation for description length, ideally they should be clear, include the keyword from the title, and act as a handy summary of both the subject covered, and what people can expect to find in the video. Descriptions may contain additional information about the topics mentioned in the video, and serve as supporting material too. Knowing how to use them in a way that convinces users to watch the video until the end is one of the keys to YouTube success!

Video thumbnails

Thumbnails are static images that appear before the user presses play, and they need to be chosen carefully. The images should be appealing, and related to the video’s theme and title. A steady posting frequency is essential to success on YouTube, since it helps to increase your channel’s audience.

Metrics Analysis

Once SEO for YouTube is complete and all important aspects have been checked for the algorithm, optimization work will be well underway, and your video will no doubt be performing much better than before. But this isn’t enough to guarantee the best results possible. The rest of the process will depend on the analysis of key metrics.

A lot of the data which helps in this part of the process is supplied by the YouTube platform itself: revenue generated by each video, the content with the best performance and most views, etc. This allows us to identify the themes which are most appealing to our audience, and plan strategies for upcoming videos accordingly. Influencers who work with guests, for example, can analyze which guests are the most successful and generate the most engagement among their followers.

Cards

Cards can and should also be leveraged to improve the performance of your videos on YouTube. They allow creators to place links to other, related videos within the main video. This feature is available in the YouTube editor, where you can choose at what point in the video these links will appear.

Results

It bears mentioning that SEO for YouTube doesn’t yield immediate results. Your figures will improve, but only over time. Revenue and views increase thanks to the implementation of techniques that change video’s positioning, and thus reach more people. And if the content is of high enough quality, users will inevitably check out other videos on the channel, and end up subscribing.

How SEO can help influencers

Influencers on YouTube can expect to gain better positions within the platform by applying SEO techniques. Over time, their audience will increase, and so will their channel’s revenue. Employing an agency can be useful for devising new strategies and reaching new audiences.

Content creators on the platform need to juggle script-writing, filming, lighting, editing, audio work and, occasionally, guest appearances. They don’t always have the time and patience required to cast a more strategic eye on their content. The backing of SEO experts could be the missing piece that is needed for their channel to reach the next level of success.

Tips for those looking to get started on YouTube

To begin creating content on YouTube, it’s not enough to have a decent camera, an attractive backdrop and a good idea. You need to ensure that the theme, category and topics that will be covered are of interest to your audience. You also need to define (or at least consider) who this audience is, their age group and their interests.

Having done so, you need to consider how to make your idea viable, how often to post and how to establish a visual identity for your channel. Are you going to edit the content yourself, or seek professional help?

In the beginning, promoting the channel to your close friends, groups and social networks is key. This will remain the case throughout your time on YouTube, but it can make all the difference in this initial phase.

This article has covered a number of SEO tips for YouTube, all of which are important for a channel’s growth. Anyone with a little extra resources to invest should think of working with an agency that is specialised in SEO. At Rabbit Hole, our professionals love to work with SEO on YouTube and have considerable experience in this area.

Our final tip for influencers or content creators looking to create a YouTube channel is: GET STARTED! Even if your features are not the best and your idea is not yet fully-formed. These things will come with time, and you can always refine and develop your strategies further. But don’t let your fear or insecurities hold you back from fulfilling your vision on an incredible platform like YouTube. Make it happen!

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Website translation: procedures and particularities of each language

digitalrabbit — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 01:41:07 +0000

In this article, we’ll look at the process of website translation and why it pays to observe the particularities of each language, so as not to fall into the trap of translating everything using Google Translate, and losing both credibility and your users’ trust. The free Google tool can be used to support translation, but a basic understanding of the languages involved is essential, otherwise some words may appear out of context, leading to mistakes which users will be sure to pick up on.

At Rabbit Hole, a client of urs was looking to make their website available in three languages: Portuguese, English and Spanish. The client had worked and lived in countries that speak these languages, and wanted to share his content in these locations. To translate and localize the content into three languages, our team relied on the help of translators, as well as Google’s tool.

How the translation process worked:

Step 1: The website content – articles, pages, menus and so on – was originally created in Portuguese.

Step 2: The site already contained some articles in English, produced by our client. However, the pages and structure itself were not yet ready in this language. So our agency team carried out a basic, initial translation using Google Translate.

Step 3: The English-language pages were ready, albeit in a very basic, error-strewn form. We then enlisted the help of a translator, who corrected several errors and adapted the content according to the particularities of the English language.

Step 4: The same procedure was applied when translating the site into Spanish – the pages were initially created using the Google tool, and then we tasked a translator with proofreading, correcting and improving our Spanish-language content.

Main differences between Portuguese and English

The English and Portuguese alphabets are similar, but one major difference is that accents – common in the latter – are non-existent in English. Pronunciation differs across both languages too, although we won’t go into that here.

Nouns and adjectives also work differently in both languages: in Portuguese most of them are feminine or masculine, but this does not occur in English, with some exceptions. Another notable difference is that in English, adjectives should precede nouns (example: “beautiful flower”) and are not inflected in the plural form.

Main differences between Spanish and Portuguese

The Spanish and Portuguese languages, while similar, differ in several significant ways, from particularities in pronunciation and writing to “false friends”: words that have the same appearance but completely different meanings in both languages.

People who understand and speak Portuguese may find it easy to learn and understand Spanish, but not 100%. So translations between the two need to be thorough, to avoid the possibility of a word being used out of context.

Alternative translation tools

Other translation tools are just as effective as Google Translate – for example, Microsoft Translator, which has the additional perk of online or offline usability, via browser or mobile app. Another option is Linguee, which acts more like a dictionary and translation locator. Finally, Reverso translates words and illustrates how they can be used in different contexts. If you are a translator and aren’t yet fully confident in your work, a good tip is to use more than one tool to check whether you’re on the right track.

The most spoken languages worldwide

The languages you choose for your website should be directly related to the leads, customers and target audiences which you are looking to reach. But as a pointer for website creators, let’s examine which are the most widely spoken languages in the world today.

The “universal language”, most widely spoken and typically used in international business, is English, with 1268 million speakers worldwide. The second most common language is Mandarin Chinese with 1120 million speakers, followed by Hindi (637 million speakers) which, together with English, is one of the 22 official languages spoken in India.

Spanish is the fourth most spoken language in the world, with 538 million speakers, as well as the language with the second-most native speakers. French comes next with 277 million speakers, most of whom are not native speakers. And Arabic appears in sixth position with 274 million speakers – notably, this language was an influence on certain European languages, such as Spanish and Portuguese.

Bangladesh’s official language, Bengali, is on the list as well with 265 million speakers. And the eighth most spoken language in the world is Russian (258 million speakers), the official language of four countries and spoken throughout the former Soviet Union. Portuguese is next on the list, with 252 million speakers – during Portugal’s colonial period, the language spread throughout its territories around the world.

Indonesian rounds out the Top 10, with 199 million speakers. Berlitz has an interesting article which goes into more depth for each of these languages. Now that you know the most widely spoken languages worldwide, and understand more about your target audience, you can choose which languages to include on your website, and which supporting tools to use when translating your content. Remember to always pay attention to the details, and the most significant differences in each language.

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Website creation: how to get started, and which elements are important

digitalrabbit — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 01:33:16 +0000

The website is a very important platform for companies, since it allows them to present themselves to target audiences, and compile information about the services or products which they provide. It can make all the difference for businesses looking to increase sales, boost authority, reach new audiences and cultivate a greater online presence.

To create a website, first of all you need to choose and purchase a domain, as well as identify a hosting server. The domain is the URL that will be used to access your website. The choice of domain must be directly related to your company’s name. To check whether the name you want is available, visit GoDaddy or RegistroBR.

The hosting server, on the other hand, is the place where all your website content – images, text and videos – will be stored. Hosting services are typically offered on an annual plan, and in different configurations. You should aim to research and identify the best options for your website before choosing a plan.

Which companies can have websites?

Companies from several different industries can use a website to boost their business; agencies that offer marketing and e-commerce services, to give one example. Bars, restaurants and schools can also have their own websites, showcasing the physical location together with photos, values and background information. Individual professionals can have a personal website too, providing articles and content so that others can get to know their work.

A Rabbit Hole client who works in Digital Marketing asked our help in creating their website, to showcase their work and experience, and make their articles available to interested parties. They wisely opted to create the website in three different languages (Portuguese, English and Spanish), thus expanding its reach on Google.

Whether you are an individual, brand or company, the process for creating a website remains the same. It requires planning, and a visual identity which echoes the style of the company or brand in question. You may need the help of a programmer and a designer. You can set up a website on your own even without these skills, although the results may vary. Establish your budget and your goals beforehand, to determine whether it’s better to hire a professional or do it yourself.

Elements that every website should have

Some elements are crucial for the creation of any website. One such element is the friendly URL: a small, simple and objective domain name. Another essential element is the Menu, which compiles the main sections of the website that the user can navigate through. The menu usually includes handy links to contact information, services, the company blog and portfolio, and more.

Contact Information and Blog

Contact details are crucial for websites, since people who are interested in your business need a way to communicate with you. This information should be easily accessible via the Menu. Another important section is the Blog, a space where you can post articles that are of interest to your site’s visitors.

Portfolio

Let’s not forget the portfolio, which is the space dedicated to showing work for former clients. This section is essential for companies such as marketing agencies, who can use it to showcase the results of their work to date.

Social networks

Social media buttons are essential too. If a user enjoys the content in an article on your site, and wants to share it on their social media channels, these buttons allow them to do so. Including them makes it easier to advertise your business elsewhere.

Responsive Design

Companies hoping to succeed should pay close attention to responsive design, because most Brazilians currently use a mobile device as their primary means of accessing the internet. A layout that works on both desktop and mobile, and displays properly on large and small screens, is essential for any aspiring website.

High speed

Speed plays a big role in user experience. No matter how high the quality of your site’s content, visitors will lose patience if it takes too long to load. With this in mind, try testing each page’s loading time to make sure they are performing as well, and as quickly, as possible.

Content optimization

Content optimization using SEO techniques is important too – not for the creation of the site itself, but for its ensuing performance on Google. Companies create websites to be seen and reached by as many potential customers as possible, and to present their products and services. For this to happen, the website should appear among the top search result positions on Google.

The difference between a website and a landing page

A landing page is a single page which has the objective of converting a visitor into a lead. Unlike a website, which has several pages with different functions and objectives, the landing page is typically a single page containing a value offer, to convince users to sign up via a form. It is usually made up of a title stating the offer, a form and a CTA button.

HTTPS

This element, present on most websites, is a protocol with a security certificate encrypting the communication between a computer and the website, so that nobody can see the data that is being transmitted. This protocol is critical to a website’s security.

Is the company website ready now?

Even with the entire structure of a website in place, work goes on. We’ve already mentioned the importance of SEO for properly positioning a website on Google, and making it easier for the general public to find it. Among the free, easy-to-use tools which website owners can use to ensure strong SEO is Google Search Console.

This tool allows you to index your site’s new content pages, check if Google can crawl and find a page, and generate reports that will help you to make decisions and formulate SEO strategies for your site. While it is an important first step, the creation of a website is not enough to guarantee the success of your business. You will also need to track your site’s performance on Google, especially to find out whether people are visiting, and whether your work is bearing fruit.

Creating a website and following it up will allow your business to grow its visibility, and reach its target audiences. The work involved is multifaceted, so if you have the budget for it, make sure to seek professional help to improve your users’ experience as much as possible, so that they keep coming back to your site.

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