SEO is a crucial part of digital marketing that can help you achieve top visibility on search engines like Google. However, if not done correctly, it can negatively affect your website’s performance.
Some of the most common SEO mistakes businesses make include not updating old content, using too many keywords, and having a slow-loading website. To avoid these mistakes, read on for 9 Common SEO Mistakes and How to Fix Them.
1. Not Optimizing Your Metadata
One of the biggest mistakes many sites make is not optimizing their metadata. This involves integrating keywords into your meta titles and descriptions, as well as using header tags effectively. It also includes using alt text to provide context for images on your page.
A lack of a meta description leaves it up to search engines to auto-generate the snippet, which can be less relevant than a well-written one. Meta descriptions that are too short or too long risk being truncated in the search results.
Finally, not using header tags properly makes it difficult for search engines to understand the structure and organization of your site. This can lead to poor indexing, and can impact your site’s performance in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
2. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Website
If you don’t have a mobile-friendly website, you’re missing out on a huge chunk of your audience. This mistake can be easily fixed by ensuring that your content is optimized for mobile devices, including making sure the links are clickable and separating page elements like text, images and videos so they load quickly.
When people visit your website on their phones, they want to see information that is relevant to them and can be used in the most convenient manner possible. This means making your website mobile-friendly and using design elements that make it easy to navigate on a small screen, such as making buttons oversized so they are easier to click with thumbs instead of fingers and ensuring that the layout is clean, organized and intuitive.
Since 2015, Google has been favoring websites that are mobile-friendly in search results. As a result, not optimizing your website for mobile users can be detrimental to your ranking.
3. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Contact Form
In a mobile-first world, it’s more important than ever to have your website optimized for mobile devices. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, you could lose visitors and potential customers.
This also applies to your site’s pages, including your contact forms. If your website’s forms aren’t responsive, they will not display correctly on mobile devices.
If a user is on a mobile device and they encounter a non-responsive contact form, they may postpone contacting you until they get on a computer. This can be frustrating for them and they may end up forgetting about your business altogether. By making your contact form mobile-friendly, you can avoid this common SEO mistake and increase your chances of getting more leads and customers.
4. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Landing Page
A mobile-friendly landing page is essential for attracting and keeping visitors, as seen here. In fact, 37% of people will leave a site if it’s difficult to use on a mobile device.
Having a landing page that isn’t mobile-friendly can result in fewer conversions and negatively impact your SEO. To avoid this, make sure your landing page is responsive and follows best practices for mobile design.
For example, limit the amount of text users have to read and break up chunks of copy with visual elements. Also, optimize visuals for mobile – keep them small, ensure they’re sized correctly, and use a color palette that works well on different screen sizes.
Additionally, consider using hamburger navigation (the three lines in the top right or left corner of your website) to simplify your landing page and give visitors a clean, uncluttered experience. Lastly, be sure to include clear CTAs and repeat them throughout the page.
5. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly URL
Having a website that isn’t mobile-friendly is one of the biggest SEO mistakes that you can make. With the increasing number of people accessing the internet on their smartphones, it’s essential that your site is compatible with mobile devices.
The most common way to make a website mobile-friendly is by using responsive design. This allows you to serve the same code to both desktop and mobile users, but the page will display differently depending on the device. Another option is to use separate URLs for desktop and mobile versions of the same page, but this can create duplicate content and cause a lot of confusion.
If you want to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, then you should test it regularly on different devices. This will help you identify any issues that need fixing, such as broken images or contact forms that don’t function correctly. By fixing these issues, you can ensure that your website is mobile-friendly and that it will rank well in search engines.
6. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Image
The internet has become a mobile-first world and having a website that isn’t optimized for mobile users will negatively impact your SEO. Luckily, there are a lot of easy ways to optimize your visual content for mobile users. For example, you can use responsive web design techniques, image optimization services, and mobile-ready stock photos.
In addition, you can use tools like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test Tool to see how your site or individual pages rank. This will give you a good idea of whether your site is ready for mobile searchers and can help you fix any issues that may be hindering your SEO.
SEO can be a complicated field, but with the right knowledge and tools, it can be easy to get started. By avoiding these common SEO mistakes, you can ensure that your online content is optimized for mobile users and has the highest possible chance of being found in searches.
7. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Video
Half of all web traffic is mobile, which makes optimizing video for mobile a must. Using video marketing to engage your audience will result in more leads and sales, but it is important to do it right! A sloppy video will only frustrate viewers and turn them off.
When it comes to mobile, it is best to keep videos short and concise. Two minutes is a good rule of thumb to follow. This will keep users engaged and increase retention. It is also a good idea to include subtitles or captions in your video to make it accessible to mobile users who don’t have audio.
Finally, be sure to incorporate a Call to Action (CTA) in your video. This will help drive traffic to your website or online store, and it will also boost SEO performance. It is also important to use a video hosting site that is mobile-friendly.
8. Not Having a Mobile-Friendly Map
Having a mobile-friendly map is important because users are usually looking for specific information or trying to complete a task when they are using their mobile devices. They are typically time-constrained and expect to get what they want quickly and efficiently. If your website is not mobile-friendly, you may be missing out on visitors and potential customers.
Mobile-friendliness has become a major ranking signal for Google, and it is essential to make sure that your site is optimized for mobile users. This includes having a responsive design that allows your site to shrink down to fit any screen size and being free of intrusive interstitial ads.
Another way to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly is to use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test and the Mobile Usability Report in Search Console. This tool will help you identify any errors that are preventing your site from being mobile-friendly and provide suggestions for how to fix them.