When asked about their position on the search engine results page (SERPs), business owners typically have the same goal: to have their website rank number one. Having a website on top simply means more people are going to click on it because users believe it to be professional and reliable. For business owners, this means a lot more organic traffic that can be converted into subscriptions, sales, and more to help the company grow. 

Although the dream of ranking number one is not impossible, it is certainly quite a challenge. Not only is the competition fierce for the number one spot, but with the search engine's algorithm adapting all the time to improve user experience, adapting to these changes is like a full-time job. As such, many business owners may end up settling at the second, fifth, or even tenth rank, dismissing the idea of being number one as nothing more but a pipe dream.

Want to face the challenge of ranking number one on a search engine? The only way you are ever going to find yourself on the top results on a results page is to implement an excellent SEO strategy. Here are a few key points to remember when gunning for first on the SERPs:

1. Content is king

Content has and will always be king. Ever since the inception of the internet, it has been used as a place to search for information. Unfortunately, not many people realize this, and they simply upload whatever content they feel is good enough to be displayed. This results in websites that do not match with a user's intent, leaving them traffic-less and, worst of all, leaving them with an incredibly bad rank.

Want to make sure your content does not suffer the same fate? It is time to pay attention to what Google wants for you. Remember—Google's motive is to organize information and make it accessible for everyone. They facilitate this by creating algorithms to check the content and see whether or not they satisfy specific criteria. 

One major signal that indicates your content is relatable and valuable will be your keyword usage. It is through keywords that the search engine links your content with a user's search. Paired with other signals like click-throughs, the search engine can determine just how truly useful and valuable your website is, rewarding you with a higher rank if it looks like you are doing great.

2. Link-building is a must

Ever since SEO came into existence, link-building has been an important activity. If you are unaware of what it means, you might assume that link-building is simply creating as many links as possible and placing them around the internet to increase your reach. To a certain extent, that is true. Link-building is the process in which you create high-quality links that lead back to specific parts of your website that are related to that link. However, it is a little more complicated than simply sharing links randomly.

Only the best links come from reputable and authoritative websites. This means when you reach out to such websites and offer to write content, creating a link that links back to you will expose you to a large audience from a reputable source. In the process, you are also showing that you are an expert in the field and an industry leader, simply because you are writing for an authoritative website. This helps to build your company image of trust that people look for in a world full of scams and shams.

3. User metrics help you grow

You may be putting all your time, effort, and money into creating what you believe to be an excellent SEO strategy for your website. However, you can never really tell if results are positive up until you start tracking user metrics. In other words, you cannot tell if people actually like your website if you do not know what is "good" in the first place. 

User metrics are essential things that help to boost a user experience. This includes the website's look, ease of navigation, loading speed, responsiveness, and more. Asking yourself questions like "Is my website loading in less than three seconds?" or "Does my website look professional?" will help you check to see if you are ticking all the right boxes. Fortunately, plenty of tools also exist online that you can use to gauge your website, such as tools to test load speeds. They will help you discover ways to improve your website's performance. Nevertheless, paying attention to user metrics is a must when developing SEO, as it will help to create an effective strategy that pushes your website up the ranks.

4. Reputation can make or break you

A good reputation is tough to forge, but it can take mere seconds to completely destroy what took years to build. As such, maintaining a good reputation online is key to your website's success, and a one-way ticket to ruining that is to implement poor SEO tactics. Issues like slow loading speeds, poor mobile responsiveness, lack of security protocols, and such will leave you in the dirt. When users visit your website and experience these issues, they will quickly form a negative impression of you, leaving for a competitor that is able to provide a superior experience.

Reputation is not really an SEO tactic. It is more so a philosophy. It is an important foundation that you must understand when you do anything, including SEO. Knowing what helps to build your reputation will go a long way in forging trust between your brand and your customers, leading to loyal customers that will stick to your brand for as long as they live. As such, applying tactics like asking for reviews, being reachable through social media, listening to what customers are saying to you, and more will help you control your reputation to a certain extent.

Conclusion

All in all, the above tips will go a long way in helping you create an excellent SEO strategy you can rely on to boost your website's rank. Remember that no SEO strategy is completely alike, as different businesses will have nuances that make them unique in their own special ways. Also, SEO is a long-term strategy, not a short-term one. This means that you will only see results after a while. Because of this, pairing SEO strategies with other quicker tactics like PPC (pay-per-click) ads will allow you to continue growing in the short term. All the while, you are developing your long-term strategy to solidify your number one rank on the internet and secure success for your business. 

Calling Digital is a creative digital marketing agency in Belton, Texas, offering powerful and innovative services, including website design, SEO, and more. If you are looking for SEO services to boost your website's rank, work with us today!