SEO stands for search engine optimization which is the driving factor for organic (aka unpaid) traffic to your website. There are many factors that play a part in aiding a positive organic rank including site copy, internal and external links, site security and site responsiveness.

One important factor in ranking for SEO is having a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). You can see if a site is secure by noting if it begins with https or has a lock to the left of the URL in the search bar. This notes that the website has gone through an extra precautionary measure to ensure the safety of its website visitors, especially when inputting personal information through the site, like a phone number, address, or credit card number.

In addition to an SSL, it is important to ensure that your website is compatible on all devices and loading efficiently. Nowadays people can access the internet from a variety of different devices, like a phone, tablet, or computer. Each device is a different size and fits to a different layout. Optimizing your website to aesthetically fit and function on all sized devices and allow it to load promptly are important. If a user accesses your site on mobile and cannot navigate or see what they are looking for easily or quickly, it is likely that they will leave your site and view another to seek what they were looking for. Compatibility and site load time are essential to the ease of the user journey and ultimately higher organic SEO ranking.

Often times, when you hear SEO, you think of keywords. How do you know what keywords you should have on your site and how often should they be there? Finding the perfect equation takes time and seeing your organic rank change happens over weeks and months, so patience is key. Spamming your website with the same keyword over and over again is not a pleasant experience for website users because it does not seem authentic. Incorporating desired keywords in a natural way is the best approach because it will allow for a smooth reading experience for the user and better site ranking results. The choice of words is important for SEO, as well as the quantity of words. The more copy on the site, the more helpful Google sees the site to be; however, that does not mean fluffing up pages with irrelevant content. Although quantity is important, quality is the goal!

In addition to the keywords in the copy of the text, it is important to make sure that your heading or <h1> tags are correctly utilized and placed. The exclusion of an <h1> tag can decrease the ranking of your site, so including them are crucial. Headings are also a useful tool to guide users through your website and give them a preview of what is coming next. Under the heading and within the text copy, internal and external links can be used to reference relevant information. Checking to be sure that all of your links are valid, active, and directing to the desired page is important when discussing SEO. If any links do not respond correctly and produce an error page, it is good to confirm that the desired destination is still a live URL and it is inserted correctly. Many people don’t even think of this very key factor when addressing SEO. That is why D2D’s Website Watchdog program helps ensure your tags are accurate and effective!

Now it is time to take a look at your site. Are you ranking organically for keywords in the automotive industry? Are all your links working properly and guiding website users to the right location? Is your website secure, responsive and operating with a quick load speed? If you answered no to any of these questions, you could be losing out on potential organic traffic, and it’s time to talk to an automotive digital marketing agency. At D2D, we are here to help with that! Make the most of your digital assets to improve your business by taking the time to improve your website’s SEO. Pairing highly ranked organic SEO with a powerful digital advertising