SEO techniques are rapidly changing and Google is getting smarter over time as well. It seems that being on top of the search engine is getting more difficult. We need to work harder to be able to outrun competitors—retain basic SEO techniques that will still work and incorporate more advanced ones. Here are basic ways to boost your rankings using SEO so that you can be on top of the search engine results:

Relevant Content

There is no better way to improve your search engine rankings than publishing great quality and relevant content that magnets and engages your audience. Content that provides answers to your user’s queries will impact traffic, authority, and relevance of your site.

It is the most influential on search engine rankings. Make sure that you use a writing style to read naturally and is written for your users.

Regularly Update Your Content

Search engines feel strongly about content and they are smart enough to detect which content on a site deserves to bring the site on top of the search pages. When you update your content regularly, it will be viewed by the search engine as relevant. Be sure to provide fresh content after every scheduled content audit so that you will not miss this important task.

Clean Metadata and URLs

A website always contains a space between the head tags to insert metadata. Metadata contains relevant information about the contents of your page. Your URL also helps Google understand what your content is about. Include updating and reviewing your metadata in your regular and scheduled updates.  Here are useful tips on making your metadata and URL as clear and concise as possible:

• Keep the structure similar and consistent.
• Use short and to-the-point language. Avoid being superfluous.
• Include the keyword or keywords that you are targeting.

Have a Diverse Backlink Portfolio

High-authority sites have quality backlinks. You can add authority to your site with backlink diversity on the type of backlink and the site where the backlink originates. Grow your backlink in different ways like:

• Reaching out to the “best of” lists in your niche with high-quality content that you have created.
• Making sure that the content that you create is easily shared on multiple platforms.
• Creating data-driven and newsworthy content that tells a story and shares it with publishers who will want to feature your data and give you credits with a link.

Use Alt Tags in Describing Your Visual and Media

Alternative text description usage is one of the best ways to boost your rankings using SEO. These descriptions allow search engines to locate your page and this is crucial if you use text-only browsers or screen readers.

Alt text on your images will also provide a better user experience because it boosts your site’s web accessibility and helps you earn both explicit and implicit SEO benefits. They provide better image context for search engine crawlers so that your image will be indexed properly.

Improve User Experience On Your Site

Make sure that your site is trustworthy, updated, high-quality and will load fast. When you have low bounce rates because your users stay on your site, Google will rank you higher. Google will understand that your low bounce rates are because your users find your site useful and meaningful.

Use a Program to Track Metrics

Your metrics will help you a lot in determining the best ways to improve your site’s Google search ranking. Use Google Analytics to help you understand what is happening on your site and the success of your strategies. Hence, you can make more intelligent data-based decisions to improve your SEO tactics so that user experience will likewise be improved. You can start by answering questions such as:

• What content was appealing to users?
• What part of the website experienced the most UX issues and what issues were they?
• Which page of the site was least visited and most visited by users and why?
• Which changes on your on-site SEO placed your site on the highest rankings?
• Which type of keywords should you use in the future?

Give Your Site the Edge 

These are just some of the ways you can improve search engine ranking for your site. There are a lot more to consider but you can start with those mentioned. Make an increased effort on creating relevant content and all other ways to boost your ranking using SEO.  It won’t happen overnight but it will be worth the time.