Search Engine Optimization

Why is domain authority important for SEO? 

Domain authority is the measure of the power of a domain name and is one of many search engine ranking factors. It is is based off of three factors: Age, Popularity, and Size. A brand new site will have a score of 0/100 where as a very high authority site might have 80/100. Domain authority gives a useful metric by which to consider the quality of your site. But this is not to be confused with page authority.

Domain vs. Page authority

Domain authority measures the predictive ranking strength of entire domains (websites) whereas page authority measures the strength of an individual page. Why is this important? It is one of the most important numbers known to search engines. The greater your domain authority, the more likely you are to have heavier traffic and a higher rank. A website can have high Page Authority, but a site with a stronger DA score will always rank higher. Websites with high page authority scores are almost awlways ranked below websites with a high domain authority score, therefore, you will want your DA score to always be high. But how do you do this? This can be done by having a clean, user-friendly site structure, have high quality content, and even by maintaining good relationships with other site owners.

Content is King!

Search engines rank websites higher with content that is new, interesting, updated frequently, detailed, relevant, useful, and easy to read. If you are writing the content yourself, be sure to limit the content on each page to a topic between 500 and 1,000 words each. Less than 500 prevents using enough keywords, while using more than 1,000 loses the attention of the visitor. People use search engines because the have questions. Your keywords and the content on your pages should reflect answers to these questions. Content is king, so be sure to use it properly and visitors will continue to return.

Quality vs. Quantity

With SEO, quality trumps quantity every time. Why is this? The point is to create valuable content to a potential customer. If you throw nonsense on your page, you will lose the interest of the potential customer and will make it seem as though you know nothing about your own industry. You want your content to have value, otherwise low-quality content will have a negative effect on your search engine results. This will play into your reputation. Would you want to be known as a business that throws out nonsense with no value? No one will return to your site if your content is not relevant or well-written. Your visitor should feel like they have learned something from your site. You can have this affect by simply updating your content regularly. This can be done by using a blog. Writing content on blogs can spur conversations in the comments section of your page and in turn increase your engagement on the site. However, you have to be consistent. Going weeks without adding an entry, then suddenly adding 10 different articles will get you nowhere. 

Keywords

Be sure your content is rich in keywords, but don't overdo it! SEO keywords make it possible for people to find your site using search engines. A well optimized site speaks the same language as its potential visitor by using keywords.

Overusing keywords, also known as keyword stuffing, is a bad idea. These days, it is debatable if Google still uses keywords as a ranking factor anymore. Google will not prioritize your site just because you used the same term in practically every sentence. In fact, this can get you penalized. Trying to "trick" search engines will only ever result in a decrease in your rankings.

The speed of your site can effect many important factors, including your search ranking. Faster websites create happier users and longer stay times, whereas poor and inconsistent site speed can reduce rankings and the number of pages being indexed. About half of web users expect a page to load within 2 seconds or will abandon the page if it takes any longer than 3 seconds.

Site speed doesn't majorly affect your Google ranking, but it can contribute to the rise and fall of your conversion rate. Remember that for every second you remove from your load time, you will boost customer confidence and trust in your site! 

Google does, however, factor page speed into desktop and mobile site rankings.

Having a consistently responsive site will ensure that your site will be crawled and fully indexed. Responsive design is the preferred method of mobile optimization. Keep this in mind when you ask yourself "Is my website and its content equally optimized for any screen or device?" As of May 2015, mobile search has surpassed desktop search. Google is developing and pushing mobile search as the future and are calling this the "Mobilegeddon of 2016."