Aro Digital SEO Series #1 - Google Search Console
Introduction
When you begin looking at improving the search ranking of your website, it can be difficult to know where to start. There are so many different aspects of SEO to consider that it can get a little overwhelming. Lucky for you, we have created a SEO guide in partnership with Aro Digital!
Aro Digital is a digital marketing company based in New Zealand that specialises in all aspects of online marketing. Aro has been helping New Zealand business with their online marketing for several years now and have built up a strong reputation around the country!
Check out the first step in the 5 piece guide below!
What is SEO?
Search Engine Optimisation, often referred to as SEO, is the process of optimising your website to better perform in search rankings.
Every time a Google search is performed, Google pulls information from websites to be able to provide customers with the best, most relevant results.
While there are several search engines available, Google is by far the most advanced, and most used platform. When optimising your website for SEO, it is always best to follow their guidelines.
At Storbie, we have teamed up with the digital marketing extraordinaire Aro Digital, to create a series around boosting the SEO of your website!
Here’s the first thing to consider, when we optimise for SEO, we are looking to optimise some or all of the following factors:
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But before we dive into the nitty gritty of all things SEO, we must first understand how we can quantify the impact of any changes we make to our site.
The first blog in the Storbie SEO series is all about Google Search Console. A free tool developed by Google that is essential for anybody who is serious about smashing their organic traffic or SEO goals.
What is Google Search Console?
Google Search Console is one of two essential tools for any website owner. It gives you the ability to monitor your website's relationship with Google at all times.
The platform is free, providing you with valuable insights into how Google views your website and informing the way in which you manage your site.
And for an added bonus - once you’ve set up an account, Search Console will keep you up to date if anything unusual happens, making keeping your website running smoothly a piece of cake.
Basically, GSC allows you to track, check and measure the impact of any SEO changes you make on your organic traffic results. If you want to quantify the impact of any organic marketing efforts, then you need to set it up prior to making any changes/
Why is it important?
The benefits of Google Search Console lie within the data it allows you to access, giving you a launching pad for making data-driven decisions. Google Search Console allows you to:
- To track your website performance and get to know your visitors/what searches they used to find your site.
- Identifying page or usability issues that need to be fixed and opportunities for enhancement.
- Providing insights into what pages are ranking for what terms and what pages aren’t performing well.
- Gain insight on what websites are linking to you and vice versa.
- Helping to build your familiarity with the basics of what effects SEO.
What should I be tracking?
Google Search Console is packed full of interesting and informative data on your website, but the main things you should have eyes on include:
- Search Trends: access data on what users are searching for to reach your site and how well your site captures organic traffic. Non-brand terms you’re already getting clicks or impressions for may indicate ‘low-hanging fruit’, terms that you could optimise your site for and capture traffic on easily.
- New pages: track the impact of your website changes on your overall site performance.
- Site maps: ensure your pages are indexed by Google and appearing in Google Search Engines.
- Coverage/errors: get up-to-date information on any site issues that may be causing challenges for your visitors.
How do we set this up in our Storbie site?
to verify your website on Google Search Console, you first need to visit this page.
It should look something like this:
Once you’re here, you can choose to verify your property via the domain or the URL.
We prefer using the URL option, if you have Google Analytics or Tag Manager on your website already - this option will be a breeze.
If not, you can verify the property using the html tag option - Here are some steps to add this to your Storbie site:
- Simply copy the meta tag displayed
- Visit your Storbie Website
- Navigate to Settings > Site Verifications
- Click Add a Site Verification, and paste the meta tag
- Publish the changes, and you are good to go!