We’ve discussed at length the inner workings of Google’s Algorithm and the SEO tips you can use to hit page one at Wildfire Marketing. Indeed, at times we’re sure our readers wonder: “What DOESN’T affect SEO?”
Let’s find out! Today, our digital marketing experts walk you through aspects of your site that are unlikely to affect your overall SEO. We’ll also cover why that is and if you still need to focus on them to improve your overall site experience.
Customer Reviews
This one comes straight from the horse’s mouth! According to John Mueller, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google, customer reviews do not affect your search ranking in the slightest. To some, this may come as a surprise after Google’s heavy push and subsequent scaling back of their prominence in results.
Google reviews have little effect on your ranking but will undoubtedly hurt customer trust if a bad review is displayed.
Here at Wildfire Marketing, we focus on GMB as a social platform rather than an SEO tool. Linking and summarising newsletters and blogs is a great way to improve your GMB. In addition, responding to the reviews it contains is a guaranteed path to customer trust. Learn more about responding to criticism as a part of Digital Marketing here.
Content Quality
There are numerous factors relating to the quality of your written word that do affect your SEO ranking. Stuffing too many keywords into a page will mark you down, as will grammar and spelling mistakes. As long as these are in check, your blog can be as terrible as you like!
Not really. Customers aren’t going to read a blog that doesn’t interest them. As google’s algorithm gets more intelligent, don’t be surprised when a big hit to your ranking comes in. Already Google picks out vital chunks of well-written content for the coveted ‘Featured Snippet’ spot. So spend time on your blogs. The brilliant MUM algorithm will be sure to thank you when it is introduced soon.
Meta Tags and Alt Text
We’ve put these together due to the similar opinions many SEO experts share on them. Many still believe that stuffing the unseen meta tags and alt tags of your blog posts and pages is the key to earning your spot as the number one result. However, this is proven to have, at best, no effect. When overdone, it can even be detrimental to your ranking.
Meta tags must be precise, describing the content you’re covering accurately. A long time ago, it was entirely possible to stuff this with keywords and rise to the top, but those days are long gone.
Alt tags are not what Google’s algorithm is ranking you for. Alt Tags are included on images for accessibility, and needless stuffing is frustrating for those with visual impairments or slow connections. Optimize your image titles, make sure your alt tags are accurate descriptions of the image. Accessibility is better for your customers and better for the algorithm.
There you have it! Four factors that don’t affect the SEO performance of your site. As you can see, Search Engine Optimization is a confusing and challenging field, requiring a lot of hard work to get the best results. If you want to top page one of Google without the struggle, leave it to the experts.
Trust Wildfire Marketing, the number one SEO Agency in Leeds and a leading Digital Marketing startup, to ignite your digital marketing today. Enquire about our SEO optimization services here, or read more of our in-depth blogs for more information on all aspects of Digital Marketing.