There are three things that every website manager should be reviewing
on a quarterly basis (or even more frequently). Unfortunately, it’s Sherpa’s
experience that few of our customers perform the required reviews to optimize
their website’s performance.
So, if you are looking to ensure your websites are effective and you are
maximizing your return on investment, the following three analytical techniques
are important to consider:
Habit 1: Organic SERP Ranking
Approximately 33% of searchers will click the top result displayed on
the search engine, fall-off is exponential from there: the second position
secures about 18% of click-throughs with the third position garnering only 11% of
the clicks. Less than 1 out of 10 users will proceed to the second page of
search results.
With this in mind, monitoring and tracking your Search Engine ResultPage (SERP) ranking is critical in understanding whether your website is being
lost in the crowd. More importantly, this tactic provides a means to evaluate
your ongoing SEO activities and review your performance against your
competitors.
There are tools (and marketing agencies like Sherpa) that can provide
you this detail, but steps to keep in mind are:
- A.
Create a baseline to establish SERP rankings for
your important keywords. Review against the baseline on a quarterly basis.
- B.
In addition to your baseline keywords, select
your top three competitors and review how they performed.
- C.
Define your geographic boundaries: i.e. are they
provincial? International? Search results will differ depending on the user’s geographic
location.
An example of an organic SERP ranking matrix showing the rank (and
change) across a number of keywords would be as follows:
Google Canada:
Keyword
|
Your Website’s SERP Rank (and Change)
|
Competitor 1
|
Competitor 2
|
Competitor 3
|
Florist shop
|
4 (+2)
|
9 (+3)
|
6 (+2)
|
4 (-)
|
Flower delivery
|
- (-)
|
14 (-3)
|
9 (-18)
|
3 (-1)
|
Etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Google USA:
Keyword
|
Your Website’s SERP Rank (and Change)
|
Competitor 1
|
Competitor 2
|
Competitor 3
|
Florist shop
|
6 (-1)
|
7 (+5)
|
5 (-3)
|
- (-)
|
Flower delivery
|
- (-)
|
21 (+2)
|
19 (+5)
|
4 (+12)
|
Etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Habit 2: Comparison of Mobile versus
PC Browsing Behaviour
As mobile devices’ share of internet traffic grows and more and more
websites implement a responsive design to improve user experience, it is
important to periodically review browser behaviour between different devices
(desktop/mobile (tablet, hand-held)).
The key here is to identify pages visited or particular custom
functionality sections that one technology platform embraces far greater than
the other. For instance, if mobile browsers have a high percentage of abandoned
shopping carts versus a traditional desktop browser, perhaps your design and
user experience for the e-commerce portion of your website needs to be
improved.
Comparisons should, of course, be based on share of pageviews within
each technology source, and not total pageviews. Nevertheless, a regular review
of what your customers are doing across their browsing platform of choice will
ensure an opportunity to create an optimized experience for all types of users.
Habit 3: Content and Keyword
Analyses
Content is king, but in addition to quality content being added on a
regular basis, it is important to keep an eye on the important keywords that
should be included in your website’s copy.
For instance, if one would write an article on the importance of
monitoring your website’s SERP, in addition to your own voice and vernacular, you
should ensure keywords like search engine
rankings, serp tracker, marketing seo, etc. are integrated into
your website’s copy. One person’s SERP is another’s Search Engine Ranking.
Understanding what these important keywords are can be performed through
a number of portals:
- A.
Google Analytics: Through your Analytics
accounts, look what keywords are being used to find your website.
- B.
Google AdWords keyword tool: This tool is
excellent for reviewing keywords and their related monthly counts. In the
example below, important keywords for Canadian browsers interested in
advertising and marketing service agencies are as follows. Is your website
missing important keywords?
- C.
Your own best judgement: No one knows your
business like you do and some of the best keyword lists are generated straight
from those “in the know”. Taking keywords recommended by your staff and
comparing them to what currently exists on your website can also unearth some
important traffic opportunities that are currently being missed.
Try integrating some of these above habits into your ongoing website analyses.
Your website will secure additional organic traffic and will be more effective in
helping you reach your business objectives.
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