How does Google’s Search Algorithm and Ranking System work?

By | Date posted: | Last updated: April 30, 2021
Google Search Algorithm

1,000,000,000 – One Billion – That is roughly the same magnitude as the results on Google when you enter search terms such as “online marketing” or “language”. But once you pay attention to the order of the results, they are not just played out somehow. For example, Google search shows you high-quality websites and companies in your area. This is because the result list follows certain rules and processes. In short: an algorithm, as the core program of the search engine Google, determines the order of the results. In the following, we have summarized for you what defines the Google algorithm and what it does.

This is how the Google algorithm came about!

After the use of the Internet conquered the world and more and more results were displayed in Google searches, a system was needed that made the display of the results clearer. This was the hour of birth of the Google algorithm. After that, it is easier for Google users to find the right answer to their question. So even if a billion results appear for the search term “online marketing“, Google will show you the most relevant to you today.

What is the Google algorithm?

An algorithm is a procedure that uses formulas and processes to perform various transformations. This procedure includes a large number of formulas (also called ranking factors) that Google assigns to the algorithm. The transformation of the algorithm is the position of a website in the Google search, which can change due to the formulas/factors. Since the algorithm’s finest hour, Google has been making adjustments to the associated ranking factors almost daily. This is entirely in line with the user experience: this enables users to always find the most relevant and high-quality content when searching. The changes do not always mean for website owners that drastic losses are noticeable in the findability on Google, but this can certainly be the case. For this reason, appropriate SEO measures are advantageous because they optimize visibility on Google by taking Google factors into account.

How does Google algorithm work?

Right at the beginning, when asked about how the Google algorithm works, the answer must be that Google is largely silent in this regard. Understandable, since disclosure of the exact working method would lead to falsified results and manipulation of the Google search. However, there are some known details that website owners should consider for their visibility on Google.

In its beginnings, the algorithm was limited to the task of evaluating websites using only external links. If other high-quality websites often linked to your own, this brought better results on Google. Today, Google takes into account a total of around 200 factors that span the entire bandwidth of the website.

Some of the Google Ranking factors are:

  • Website Architecture: Does the page have a good HTML structure?
  • Content: How is the quality & originality of the language?
  • Visitor behaviour: What is the bounce rate?
  • Mobile responsive: Is the website easy to use on a mobile device?
  • Page Loading Speed: How much fast your website can be loaded?
  • Grammar and Spelling: Google Search uses the grammar and spelling as the quality signals.

Today’s Google algorithm, which is adapted almost daily by Google, takes into account all components of a good website. This starts with the choice of the domain name. The structure of the entire website is also taken into account, both in its programmed HTML form and in its design. In addition to the cleanliness of the HTML code, the website should be modern and user-friendly. The content is also an important component, i.e. the quality of the advertising and information texts and the originality of the language. So-called duplicate content is not welcome on Google. Also, the backlinks are important & the behaviour of visitors to the website is now also regarded as a quality feature. Mobile Friendly websites are must for achieving top rankings!

Google algorithm updates

Numerous updates to the Google algorithm, including the well-known Panda update, implement important filters at regular intervals, such as the content quality filter. Bad websites with thin content lose their ranking positions as a result. Websites with high-quality content, on the other hand, rise. Today’s algorithm also filters the search results based on the topicality of the search term and the location of the searcher. This means that current websites of service providers in the area appear. Word analysis of the entered keyword (search term) also carries out for the search. The word analysis is based on different language models and synonym systems.

The Google algorithm at a glance!

In summary, today’s Google algorithm is subject to countless small and large factors as well as a large number of processes that all relate to the quality of the website. If they are taken into account, Google rewards them with good ranking positions. But if you are now wondering why your own good website does not end up on page one of the Google results, you have to consider that the effective implementation of all the factors of the algorithm and the resulting rise on Google takes a lot of time. The multitude of algorithm factors and the multitude of websites make visibility on Google a real challenge and a competition that can and can be mastered!

Do you require more traffic for your website or got any questions? If you are looking for more traffic, more sales, quality SEO Strategies, search engine optimization services, content marketing strategies, SEO content optimization, online marketing, social media marketing, digital marketing services, PPC campaign management services and more, Please Explore our SEO Packages!

If you have any questions or would like to know more about how Skynet Technologies can help your business to reach one step ahead, Reach out us through below form & We'll get back to you soon!

Top 8 Email Marketing Tips to get more subscribers quickly!

By | Date posted: | Last updated: May 31, 2021
Email Marketing Tips

Whether it is the communication of new company information or as a teaser or summery email for articles on your company blog or to report interesting offers to your customers – with a newsletter or email marketing you can reach potentially interested customers in a targeted manner, quickly and, above all, almost free of charge. So that the effort of creating is not in vain, you would of course also want to reach an appealing number of subscribers.

The following 8 practical email marketing tips should help you to get more email or newsletter subscribers.

1. Adapt the design to the brand/company

Regardless of whether you send invoice documents or appear with your company at a trade fair – you will always present yourself in your company colors and also incorporate your logo or your brand. Correct? The same rule also applies to your email traffic. You should therefore integrate your company-typical colors and certain design elements into the newsletter design. This allows your readers to recognize that the newsletter came from you and ensures a long-term basis of trust.

2. Optimize technology and design

Writing a newsletter is not exactly the same as writing an email – thanks to programs. However, it is no more difficult. With the help of the programs, you collect your e-mail addresses in lists that enable you to send them with just one click. The programs also have various tools available for the design of your newsletter, which simplify the design using images, colors and different fonts. Upgrade your newsletter accordingly to make it easier to read and to please your subscribers. Check out more email marketing tips for your ecommerce store.

3. Advertise

Anyone who takes the trouble to create a newsletter also wants it to be read regularly and with pleasure. Be it via the integration on your blog or on your website or on your Instagram and Facebook page. Communicate the existence of your newsletter as well as current and interesting content to potential customers on a regular basis.

4. Offer something

Hand on heart – if you can win something, the willingness to deal with something is much greater. Therefore, offer your customers something for subscription. Be it a small price or a voucher code – if you are rewarded for your “effort” and receive a small goodie in addition to an interesting newsletter, you will dare to register more quickly.

5. Adjust the registration form

Speaking of registration – an intuitive, quick and trustworthy registration ensures even more newsletter subscribers. Therefore, make the registration as easy as possible by asking only the most necessary information from the interested party. You can also design the fields appropriately by using legible font and inserting the fields appropriately. In addition, always adhere to the data protection guidelines and be transparent about what happens to the data.

6. Place the newsletter correctly

A small icon or a button can often have a big effect – draw attention to your newsletter, sometimes creatively. Small integrations such as in the sidebar of your website or at the end of every post on your blog ensure increasing subscription numbers.

7. Communicate rotation

Not hourly, not daily, but possibly weekly or monthly – depending on the content and industry or customers, a different rhythm is recommended for sending the newsletter. Always determine this in consideration of the communicated content and also in relation to the necessity for your branch. It is best to communicate the cycle when registering for the newsletter so that subscribers know what to expect.

8. Make unsubscribing easy

Even if you “lose” subscribers, they should always be viewed as a reputable source. Therefore, not only make the registration for the newsletter, but also the unsubscribe as easy and quick as possible. You can do this, for example, by giving subscribers the option to unsubscribe from every e-mail and by removing the e-mail address from your system without entering a lot of information.

Online marketing: particularly effective with an agency!

Online marketing opens up countless opportunities for companies to target new customers and to increase their own awareness in the region. Small and medium-sized companies in particular often lack the time and expertise to successfully lead their business into the online world. This is where we at Skynet Technologies come in and find the right solution for your company.

Reach thousands of your customers instantly with our email marketing campaigns. If you are looking for email marketing, content marketing strategies, search engine optimization services, digital marketing services, PPC campaign management services and more, Please explore our SEO Services!

If you have any questions or would like to know more about how Skynet Technologies can help your business to reach one step ahead, Reach out us through below form & We'll get back to you soon!

Top 13 Common SEO Myths and its Facts you must know for Best SEO Practice!

By | Date posted: | Last updated: April 14, 2021
SEO Myths and Facts

Every website operator wants their page to be found and therefore more or less inevitably deals with search engine optimization. This is how SEO myths arise that you should look at critically if you want your website to be found on the Internet as easily as possible. The Google updates Panda, Penguin and Hummingbird repeatedly punish existing SEO tactics, so that you often no longer know exactly which ones are actually out of date and which ones should be used.

Myth 1 – SEO is all about ranking

Fact: Of course, it is important that your website with the keywords that are important to you ideally appears in the first three positions of the organic search results on Google. Good click-through rates may mean a lot of visitors to your website, but not necessarily that these visitors also achieve the goal of the website, e.g. order something, fill out the contact form or watch a product video (this goal achievement is called “conversion”). Search engine optimization affects many areas: usability, i.e. the user guidance and the user experience (how the users experience the website), the website structure, content marketing etc. The ranking of individual keywords is only an SEO goal and is often overrated. Often it is not the relevant keywords for which the ranking is analysed. If there are very generic keywords, then of course, there are usually very strong competitors. So always take a look at which websites are listed on Google among the top 10 for the search term or phrase that is relevant to you. This gives you a good overview of how you can optimize your website.

Myth 2 – The most important thing is on-page SEO

Fact: On-page SEO, i.e. all SEO measures directly on the website, is unfortunately only part of the job. In addition to keyword research, image optimization, content creation, etc., there are many other factors to consider, such as page performance, link building or social media optimization. SEO is a holistic project. It’s always about the website being coherent, the positioning clearly recognizable and the overall concept “round”. Find out more SEO tips here.

Myth 3 – SEO can also be done by the IT department or the web designer

Fact: Yes, of course, SEO also has a lot of technical aspects and the IT department can often help with redirects, the robots.txt or the loading times of the site. But neither the web designer nor the IT department will deal intensively with keyword research or content marketing. That is why it is good if an SEO manager takes care of getting the many different aspects under one roof and makes the specifications for the others.

Myth 4 – Keywords must match exactly and be typed everywhere

Fact: Keyword stuffing, i.e. entering many keywords in one text or in the footer, is mega-out. Above all, you don’t need to enter anything in the metatag , this is completely irrelevant for Google. You don’t have to force the keyword or long-tail keywords into the text. Today, modern SEO means more to find keyword themes, i.e. keywords, synonyms and variants that go with them. Write a good and catchy headline and user-relevant content. Because what is good for users is also good for Google.

Myth 5 – There is an ideal keyword density

Fact: Keyword density is a myth that keeps popping up. There is no indication of how often the keyword should be mentioned. And if the text sounds unnatural when you read it out loud, it certainly doesn’t make sense. But it makes sense to mention the keyword in the headline. It is best to include the keyword in the (not too long) URL and at the beginning of the text. Don’t over-optimize, then the text will be read with pleasure.

Myth 6 – It is good when a lot of links point to my website

Fact: Yes, it’s good to have backlinks pointing to your site from well-respected thematic pages. And no, because link building is about quality, not quantity. The times of link buying and link exchange are clearly over, Google immediately recognizes this as spam. Even meaningless entry in all possible web catalogues, web directories, etc. does not help to strengthen the authority of a website. And you definitely shouldn’t buy links. You can invest this money better if you (have) write good content, e.g. posts for your blog, interesting offers or guest posts on other sites. This is how you gradually build natural links.

Myth 7 – Good content is enough, I don’t need SEO

Fact: Good content is important, of course. It is also important that something new is always added to the website. But of course, you should also check which keywords got visitors to your website, where these visitors came from and which posts were the best. This research can also be used to find new topics for your website. Now that’s search engine optimization again;)! Content and SEO are inevitably linked.

Incidentally, Google does not want to display the website in the top positions that are best optimized for search engines, but rather show the website that contains relevant content for the search term. Good content is therefore, a prerequisite and a meaningful on-page optimization supports the work of the crawlers in understanding the topic of your page.

Myth 8 – Website need a lot of content and therefore, absolutely it contains blog

Fact: No, it’s not about beating the user down with content, but rather that you present your company and your unique selling proposition correctly and that it is clear to the user what the user do next on your site. You don’t need hundreds of pages to do this. Better pay attention to the quality of the content. Just a few lines with company news is rather uninteresting for users and is rated by Google as “thin content” that offers no added value. So, when you add new content, make sure that the new page creates because you have something to say and it really benefits the user.

But it doesn’t necessarily have to be a blog that attracts user attention. It can also be pages that provide advice, FAQs or small useful tools.

Myth 9 – Social media and SEO have nothing to do with each other

Fact: Just to come straight to the point: just because you have a company profile on Facebook, Twitter or any other social network doesn’t automatically rank your website better. This is because Google cannot necessarily access the content of the networks. But still, a social media marketing strategy and search engine optimization belong together. You don’t have to be represented everywhere, but if you do, you have to be right, because high-quality content is also shared.

Myth 10 – For Local SEO, I just have to include the city

Fact: If it were that easy: then you just had to add your city or region in the text on your website and you would appear at the top of the search results. Of course, if you want to be found locally, it makes sense to mention where you can be found on the website. But when it comes to local search engine optimization, also think of review. A company profile on Google MyBusiness is particularly important because here you can appear in Google Maps and thus rank better in the search results. The company can also receive reviews, receive customer messages, or post. Find out more, how to promote your business with local online marketing!

Myth 11 – I have to submit my website to Google

Fact: No, Google will find your website faster than you think. Google will index the pages before you even go online. But you should submit a sitemap.xml in the Google Search Console so that Google has a table of contents of your website. This is how Google understands the structure of your website faster and better. Make sure to enter the correct format in the Search Console, namely xml and not html.

Myth 12 – When I run Google Ads, I get a better ranking in organic search results

Fact: No, that’s not correct. Google Ads and the search engine are two separate Google products and you won’t get a better ranking by placing ads. However, your website may then appear at the top of the search results, which will generate more traffic for your website. However, Google Ads is a complex product that you shouldn’t use in a hurry, otherwise, it will quickly become expensive.

Myth 13 – SEO is free!

Fact: If you’re doing SEO yourself and don’t really need an advertising budget, SEO might be free (except that you spend time on it). And if you like to create content for your website anyway, for example, blogging or creating video tutorials, then don’t do this for SEO, but for your users. The time factor is an argument because it takes a lot of time to get used to it and to stay up to date. SEO is an online marketing tool like advertising and therefore budget must be available for it.

Conclusion

SEO always has a holistic aspect and many adjustments. Which one to shoot depends on your goals and priorities, time and resources. First of all, it is important that you deal with the topic at all and no longer use outdated SEO techniques.

If you are looking for quality SEO Strategies, search engine optimization services, content marketing strategies, SEO content optimization, Local search engine optimization, local online marketing, social media marketing, digital marketing services, PPC campaign management services and more, Please Explore our SEO Services!

If you have any questions or would like to know more about how Skynet Technologies can help your business to reach one step ahead, Reach out us through below form & We'll get back to you soon!

How User Experience (UX) fits into SEO? Top 3 Things to boost your Website Conversion Rate!

By | Date posted: | Last updated: May 28, 2021
ux and seo

We picked out three points that we think stood out on the topic of search engine optimization.

1. How SEO and online marketing have changed?

  • The social media platforms have severely restricted outbound traffic to websites
  • Google sends less organic traffic to the websites
  • Influencer marketing brings less than the current hype promises
  • The return on investment of many online advertising measures is almost zero.

Up until a few years ago, it was possible to research keywords with a high search volume and then write “good content” and then share it on social networks. In this way, fans and follower numbers could be increased and backlinks generated. The various advertising platforms were and are used to generate conversions.

This is what search engine optimization whole process looked like:

SEO Process

The problem is that using keywords with high search volumes: the website no longer receives enough visitors as they are often far too generic. And basically, less and less organic traffic comes through Google. Google is increasingly aggregating data and already providing answers in the search results so that users no longer have to go to websites to get the information they are looking for (“no-click searches”). These answers push the organic search results down with the advertisements so that the click rates have often dropped significantly. Even with local searches, the traffic does not go to the website, but the Google Maps entry or Google MyBusiness.

Also, it’s fair to say that the content is often just not good enough. Too short, too superficial, too sloppy researched and there may be many articles that are simply much better and more useful for the visitor. But SEO and content are directly dependent on one another.
A lot has happened in social networks as well. They are primarily interested in keeping users on their own platforms and have very limited reach for links. Instagram doesn’t offer any linking option at all. For example, those who share links to their own website on Facebook often only get a shockingly low reach. The problem is as follows: If a post on Facebook has little reach, the next post will also be “punished”. A downward spiral, which may make posting on Facebook for fan pages rather unattractive because hardly any traffic through it reaches the website.

Due to the lack of reach, you may hardly feel like posting, which means that the number of followers is still growing and backlinks are increasingly difficult to get. In addition, the advertising prices on advertising platforms such as Google Ads and Facebook have risen significantly in recent years, although Google Ads is still an extremely attractive advertising option, especially for smaller companies.

Influencer marketing is overrated, many companies are also not interested in specific metrics of what the campaigns have brought them. In 2012 influencer marketing was still the discovery of “sources” that influence users and do marketing there accordingly. Influencer marketing goes much further, because these sources can also be podcasts, newsletters, white papers, blogs, Facebook groups, YouTube channels, guerrilla marketing, events and much more. In fact, many companies only include YouTube and Instagram in their considerations.

So, how can you continue to do online marketing successfully?

  • Instead of focusing on keywords and high search volumes, make the website the online marketing flagship again and get back to email marketing. Yes, good old-school e-marketing! 10 new email list subscriptions and 100 website visitors are worth more than 10,000 followers.
  • Focus on real customers and encourage engagement. Again, see more value in 100 real fans than in 100,000 website visitors.
  • Away from generic keywords and towards more specific (long-tail) keywords with less search volume in order to prevent Google from providing the answers to the user’s search queries itself. It is essential to pay attention to the user’s intent, what is the user really looking for?
  • Instead of focusing on Instagram and YouTube, where the competition is already bustling, other marketing opportunities and other platforms should also be considered.
  • Instead of relying on link posts in social networks, non-promotional posts with high engagement rates make sense. These pay for direct traffic.
  • Address not only your own target groups but also multipliers. There is a lot of potential here. The more difficult content is to produce, the more it can stand out from the competition.
  • Show ads with Google Ads (and other platforms)? Yes – but first the company and the brand must be organically visible and trust must be built. In this way, users who already know the company or the brand can also be addressed (remarketing). Otherwise, the return on investment of the ads is simply too high.

2. Five types of navigation that every SEO must know

Many website operators are not at all clear how important it is for search engine optimization to have a clear structure and good user guidance (usability) on the website. This is to ensure good user experience. Often it is only with usability tests that it is possible to find out why users are not taking one route or another on the website that is intended for them. Or whether they are confused about where to go and where to find what.

It has long been my concern to convey that search engine optimization is not about mentioning keywords in any place. And elsewhere on this website, SEO is not a patch for a website that does not offer a positive user experience.

Google attaches great importance to the user experience and has now improved its algorithms so that it can very well assess whether a user has a good search experience when they visit a website. That is why usability, i.e. user guidance and the user experience of how the user “experiences” the website, is an important ranking factor. This includes, for example, the following points:

  • A logical structure of the website with clear naming of the menu items
  • Expected items in the right place
  • Legible font
  • No error messages or broken links
  • Clear text structure

Why is website navigation so important?

The navigation/menu structure should enable users (and also search engine crawlers) to efficiently achieve their goals (finding information, completing an order, etc.). According to usability, 77% of the reason why the website does not achieve its goal is a lack of information structure.

Top five types of navigation on a website:

1. The global navigation – the main navigation (where am I now?)

The main menu is used to allow users to move back and forth between main topics, even if they did not come to the website from the start page.

2. Local navigation – matching menu items (what belongs to the main topic, the submenu).

More specific information relevant to the topic is listed here, e.g. as a drop-down, in the sidebar or as a second menu bar

3. The “Utilities” – useful elements, e.g. login, shopping cart, help etc.

These usually located at the top right. Since only one icon often used, it makes sense to stick to common designs or to include a text.

4. The supplementary navigation – e.g. Further links in the footer or in the sidebar

These intended to convey to users and search engines which content on the website is the most important. The footers are often in a contrasting colour, preferably in light grey. But that is often difficult to read. The following readability tools to test if the contrast is good enough.

Recommended readability tools:

  • WAVE Evaluation Tool
  • Lighthouse Accessibility Audit tool
  • JAWS® (Job Access With Speech)
  • NonVisual Desktop Access (NVDA)
  • VoiceOver

Using a sitemap in the footer if there are a lot of pages on the website. But, don’t just show all the pages of the website in a tree view, but a clear presentation of the most important pages sorted by topic.

5. Context navigation – what does this content include?

This is navigation through similar content. This is where the connection is established between the pages so that users can find other interesting pages. This is also known as internal linking and is very important for SEO!

So, this is not about navigation or a menu, but about guided navigation in the text. This form of linking is effective to ensure that long texts can be found, e.g. as a table of contents at the beginning of the article. The type of user guidance is a relief for the user, especially when the screens get smaller.

It is important to ensure that the anchor text (the text to be linked) makes sense.

An example:
Bad: You can find further information here.
Better: Here you can find further information on the subject of internal linking.

Ultimately, however, it is always a matter of weighing up user expectations on the one hand and business goals on the other.

3. The user experience with a website and real customer focus

We give a keynote on the subject of customer focus – real customer centricity. This holistic orientation of the company towards the customer does not mean that texts can be found on the website, such as “we focus on the customer”.

Is the customer really the focus on your website?

  • People want to come to your site every day, but they don’t! (= the click rates keep falling).
  • Every day people want to become your customers, but they don’t, they buy elsewhere.
  • According to a study, 68% of customers believe the company doesn’t care. Even if a website is convincing, easy to navigate and offers all the prerequisites for prospective customers to become customers, the question that concerns customers is whether the company is really committed to the interests of customers.
  • It is not because of digital disruption when companies disappear, but because they lose touch with their customers. Not being customer-centric is the greatest danger for companies. Many companies claim that they are customer-oriented – only customers don’t see it that way.

How do your customer buy?

What is missing is a deep understanding of what makes customers to buy your products. Why do customers buy? Why don’t they buy What do you already know, what point are you at? What is your motivation, your emotions? Many companies collect feedback from customers, but only 1/3 uses the knowledge and very few changes anything. Check out how SEO and User Experience team to bring value & achieve your business goals.

Questions about opinions and future behaviour are pointless.

  • Don’t talk about yourself, talk about the customer
  • Which customer problem can you solve?
  • Wonder why customers don’t buy?

When asked what is stopping people from buying the premium version, the answer was actually simple: users were concerned about whether the texts they had already entered would copy. Try to remove the barriers that may exist in the customer’s mind. A website is something that people want to use, not just look at. So, the text is very important on a website and the design should support the user in achieving his goal.

Do you need any help to improve your website usability or user experience? We are here to help you out! If you are looking for UX/UI web design, online store design, ecommerce website design, Please explore our website design services! We also provide website redesign service, website revamp service, online store redesign service or ecommerce website redesign service, for more information, please explore our website redesign services! Ultimately, UX helps to improve conversion rate. If you require help with search engine optimization, digital marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, explore our SEO Services!

If you have any questions or would like to know more about how Skynet Technologies can help your business to reach one step ahead, Reach out us through below form & We'll get back to you soon!