Why Your Business Website Might Be Playing Hide and Seek with Google
Have you ever wondered why, when you search for your business on Google, it feels like it’s hiding from you? You’re not alone. Many business owners scratch their heads over why their websites don’t appear in Google’s search results. Think of Google like the biggest library in the world, but instead of books, it’s filled with websites. Your website is like a new book that you want people to find and read.
How Google’s Library Organizes Its Books
To understand why your “book” might not be easy to find, you need to know a bit about how Google organizes its library. Google uses a special system (let’s call it the library’s sorting hat) to decide which websites (books) show up first when someone searches for something. This sorting hat looks at lots of things to decide if your website is a top pick, like how relevant and trustworthy it is.
Imagine you wrote a fantastic book about how to bake the best chocolate cake. If someone searches for “best chocolate cake recipe,” the sorting hat decides if your book answers their question well. If it thinks your book is a great match and lots of people have enjoyed and recommended it, your book gets a prime spot on the library’s featured shelf.
Making Your Book a Favorite: SEO
So, how do you make sure the sorting hat likes your book? This is where SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, comes into play. Think of SEO as the tips and tricks to make your book more appealing to the sorting hat. This includes making sure the title and summary of your book clearly say it’s about baking chocolate cakes, ensuring the book is easy to read, and getting other respected authors to recommend your book.
The Importance of Being Easy to Find and Read
One reason your book might be hard to find is if the library’s sorting hat hasn’t properly indexed it, which is like the librarian not knowing your book exists. This can happen if your book is hidden in a secret room (technical issues) or if there’s another book with the same name (duplicate content). You want to make sure the librarian knows where your book is and that it’s unique.
Keywords: Knowing What Readers Are Looking For
If your book doesn’t use the words people are searching for, they won’t find it. Let’s say people are searching for “chocolate cake recipes,” but your book only says “cocoa desserts.” You need to know what words people use when they look for a book like yours and include those words in your book.
Making Friends: The Power of Recommendations (Backlinks)
If other reputable authors (websites) recommend your book (link to your website), the sorting hat takes this as a sign your book is worth reading. It’s like being nominated for an award; the more nominations from respected folks, the better.
The Design of Your Book Matters Too
How your book looks and feels to readers can also affect its popularity. If it’s hard to read on a phone or takes forever to open a page, readers might give up. Ensuring your book is easy to read on any device and loads quickly can make a big difference.
Improving Your Book’s Popularity
To make your book more popular:
- Use long-tail keywords: Be specific about your topics to match exactly what people are searching for.
- Keep improving your SEO: Make sure your book’s title, summary, and content are clear and relevant.
- Get more recommendations: Work on getting more reputable authors to recommend your book.
- Make sure your book is easy to read on phones and loads fast.
Keeping an Eye on Your Book
Lastly, it’s important to keep checking how popular your book is. Tools like Google’s library card (Google Analytics) and the librarian’s notes (Google Search Console) can tell you how many people are checking out your book and if there are any issues you need to fix.
Remember, making your website easy to find on Google is like getting your book on the bestseller list. It takes a bit of work, but it’s worth it when more people find and enjoy your chocolate cake recipes.
