No, we are not implying that keywords are no longer an essential search engine optimization factor for ranking higher on Google.

What we are saying is there are other crucial aspects that you need to take care of when thinking about SEO, when your goal is to make your website rank higher. 

 A digital marketing agency based in New Jersey like LBMSLLC can help you figure out and devise a practical approach that will act as a staircase to a higher ranking on Google and other prominent search engines.

Allow us to guide you through other important factors besides keywords for better ranking:

URL: 

One of the most overlooked factors, the URL structure is vital for both the readers and the search engine. The URL structure should make sense. Make sure that it is readable and does not have any filler words like and, the. The motive is to create a URL that adds value to the customer’s search. 

Keywords are obvious, but make sure that you do not repeat the keywords within URLs. Wondering what not to add to your URL? Symbols, number, random letters as they can be a distraction and cause issue. If you have to, as a separator, use hyphens and not underscores. Similarly, be cautious about using hashes. While they can be useful in sending the customer to a specific page, but it will restrict their application in certain circumstances. 

Site performance: 

There’s no rocket science in understanding this. If your website performs poorly, it’s views and ranking is bound to decline to the point where it’s existence won’t matter.  It is essential to make sure that your site is optimized as per the search engine protocols, trends, and preferences of the users. 

But before you begin optimization, you need to test the site for flaws, loopholes, gaps that might be leading to the declining performance of the website. Maybe your images are not compressed, or the CSS and JavaScript that you are using is heavy. If you are running a website on WordPress, check that you are not using too many plugins. Check the codes for extra spaces, line breaks, aspects that might be slowing down your website. Optimizing the website for these factors will improve site performance. 

Link building: 

The search engine uses links to discover new web pages and determine the standing and performance of the page to establish it’s ranking. Your website should have backlinks from trustworthy and websites that have their authority in the particular domain. Link building is essential to garnering more qualified traffic to the website, building relationships across the internet, and determining whether or not the site is trustworthy and deserving of a better ranking. 

Content: 

Google has released an updated freshness algorithm that prioritizes fresh pieces of content and considers it an essential determinant in the ranking. Update your old content or repurpose them in different formats, and you will be able to notice the significant difference in the SERP.

Mobile-first: 

How your website performs on mobile will affect your overall ranking, says the mobile-first indexing released back in 2016. This has been prioritized considering the surge in content consumption on mobile phones. You need to make sure that your website not only performs well on desktops and laptops but mobile as well as fit, ensuring better user experience.  

So the next time, think of these factors along with keyword when devising a plan for SEO. 

You can either learn about them in-depth and implement them, hoping they work or let a digital marketing agency based in New Jersey like LBMSLLC that will assign a dedicated team of certified SEO professionals who come backed with extensive experience of having successfully helped, small and medium scale businesses gain a competitive edge with comprehensive and effective SEO development strategies.