Does anybody understand Google ranking?

[HermioneMakepeace]

Hello, I have a small business. I sell things and I provide a local service. I don't want to say what it is as I don't want to be accused of advertising, but let's just say it's making and selling cakes and I live in Dulwich.

What do I need to do to come up when people search 'cakes' + 'Dulwich'? Also when people are in my area and search 'cake makers near me' we don't come up, even though we are on Google Maps.

Many thanks.

Are you listed on Google Maps? Is there a keyword data field anywhere that you can fill in as the business owner? Make sure you use as many variations on cake, cakes, cake maker, cake making, birthday cakes, wedding cakes, professional cakes, tiered cakes, naked cakes, cake decorating, cake decoration - you get my drift.

Does your business name make it immediately obvious you do make cakes? Sometimes a witty name is not worth it, because search engines aren't people.

On your website, make sure you describe your services with the types of cakes you make, bake, decorate. You need to write what people search for as many times as possible.

Also stalk other local businesses that you see coming up higher than you on the search results. See what words they are using in their websites.

Have you enabled Google Analytics on your website? Once you have a few months of data, you can see what key words people are searching who land on your site. That can help you understand what is working for you.

Good luck!

@YeahNahWha I will look into Keyword Data Fields. And your other suggestions. There is another lady doing the same thing as me who lives much further away, say, Fulham. And when you Google 'cakes' and 'Dulwich' she comes up.

Make sure you use as many variations on cake, cakes, cake maker, cake making, birthday cakes, wedding cakes, professional cakes, tiered cakes, naked cakes, cake decorating, cake decoration - you get my drift.

Sure fire way to get your site blacklisted. I worked at senior level in the field and published. Will post again later.

She may well say Dulwich cakes in her key words or meta data. You should add all the surrounding area names in the mix too!

Do you mean add them to my website? If so, where? In the text? Thanks.

I think having a good amount of positive google reviews from customers helps to move you up the rankings too. Or so we were told.

First of all, the person in Fulham may be paying for ads, which look a lot like search results. That's certainly an option to consider at some point, but probably not until you're sure you have everything else nailed down and ready to go.

Secondly, make sure you have Google My Business installed on your phone and that you fill in as many of the fields as possible about your business. They've got really quite detailed in what you can include, and you should make the most of this as it will help them decide to include you in relevant search results. They also love it when you upload photos of your work to the listing. Ask happy customers to review you on Google as well, since this can help them place you higher in the rankings.

As for your website, I agree with PP that keyword soup is a really good way to kill your search engine rankings. As far as possible, try to use natural language to describe what you do, and avoid stuffing paragraphs full of obvious lists. Make sure your images are optimised so loading times on the page are low, and also be sure that your site is responsive and works on mobile. Use alt text on images on your website, too, as far too many people ignore this. And if you're using Wix for your site, migrate at the first possible opportunity to something like WordPress that won't be an obstacle to your SEO.

Set up Google Search Console and Analytics for your site, as together they will give you an invaluable source of information for finding out what terms people use to find you, and allow you to consider what is performing and what isn't. There's obviously more, but this should be a start.

Thanks, I have now added Google My Business. I can’t afford Ads at the moment but will is that as soon as I’m able to.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Please don't pay for ads. You absolutely do not need to throw money away on Pay Per Click. You do need to ensure you have great content and good images with captions and alt img tags (depending on what software, CMS, etc you have used to build your website, you can easily search how to add these).

Write blog posts or page content on your website that is useful for your potential visitors. So, that may be about how to have a children's party, the etiquette for taking cake home or eating at the party, wedding cakes and the tradition of keeping a slice, etc. Don't just use Dulwich as a keyword, offer a true list of places you will deliver, write about events you have catered etc.

And do NOT rely on Google to sell your products. There are many other search engines people are using because Google has and continues to queer its pitch with deeply worrying practises ; market offline as well as online; and use social media eg Pinterest, fb, twitter, Instagram but only to the level you are able to eg time, resources etc.

Good luck!

Thanks Penguins. If I PM’d you, would you mind having a quick look at my site?

Google uses a number of algorithms for SEO ranking.

Websites are built inside three programming languages - one for semantics and structure (HTML), one to control elements on the page like font type/size, image dimensions (CSS) and one for programmatic code (JavaScript). Each of these languages has a strict set structure to follow and Google checks for compatibility.

Then there's accessibility - how well the website dynamically adjusts to the screen size of multiple devices, and support for visual defects/aural inputs.

Rich content is the primary best way to improve ranking, whilst conforming to the triad of programmaticall structures.

Unfortunately it's unlikely to be a case of you just flagging some keywords into Google (although you would glean a little benefit from it), you'd be better getting someone to take a look at your code instrinsic properties.

I'd be more than happy to take a look if you want, just PM me.

Thanks Steve, I've PM'd you.

Google likes mobile optimised websites, ones with reviews and ones that have rich content that gets updated regularly.

Place marking as I need to look at stuff like this too!

Small business owner here too!

Pinterest is fantastic to drive traffic but you have to pin regularly.

Make a variety of boards eg wedding cakes, kids birthday cakes, first birthday cake. I find boards by colour really popular. Something like ‘yellow theme baby shower”.

You need your own images too to add as pins. Make a brand board, happy customers etc.

I did a Renegade Academy Pinterest course last year and it was really informative. Not too pricey either and fine online in your own time.

Good luck with your business Hermione!

@EstherLittle Thanks, good luck to you too!