Did you know that your website has a lot to do with your SEO performance?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a powerful digital marketing tool every business owner can take advantage of. The right SEO campaign can boost your Google rankings, driving traffic to your website and other platforms.
There are plenty of SEO tricks and tips out there.
Yet one of the best things you can do for your SEO performance is to invest in a well-designed website. In fact, basic website design is intimately related to optimization efforts.
In this post, we’ll discuss how web design and SEO work together to give you the results you need!
1. SEO Brings Traffic to Your Website
This may seem like a no-brainer, but it’s an essential principle of basic optimization. SEO is designed to make online content visible.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) takes advantage of the vast amounts of daily traffic on search engines like Google and Bing.
Standard users enter a phrase or keyword into Google that best approximates their desire. Google ranks search results according to authority (and several other factors).
The most authoritative sites (i.e., the best matches) appear at the top of first-page results, where users are most likely to focus. The higher your Google ranking, the greater your odds are of earning a “click.”
Business owners and professionals know that high click-through rates can be essential for getting more conversions, followers, and customers. They implement SEO in order to bring potential customers to their website–the digital business card companies offer to the world.
Because SEO’s ultimate aim is to bring more traffic to your website, it is critical to invest in the right website design. For this reason, the most successful SEO campaigns are powered by compelling, well-designed sites.
Implementing SEO without giving a second glance to your website design is much like opening your doors to the public before you’re ready to start selling products. Customers may walk in, but they are far more likely to leave without making a purchase.
We recommend spending time with website design before launching an SEO campaign.
2. Web Content Influences Google Rankings
Google is very clear in its own SEO guidelines about the value of content. It states in its steps to a Google-friendly site that website owners should “provide high-quality content on your pages, especially your homepage.”
To Google, “this is the single most important thing to do.” That must mean it’s fairly key!
So what does this have to do with SEO and basic website design?
For one thing, website design and web content are intertwined. In many ways, the right design can influence the right content (and vice versa).
Professionally designed sites are far more likely to accommodate relevant content than cobbled together, amateurish designs.
If your web design is shoddy, your content is likely to be shoddy. And shoddy content can actually tank your Google rankings.
If Google notices that your site is slipping in the content arena, it may penalize your pages. Its web crawlers are constantly sifting through online content, trying to find red flags. A penalty from Google means a lower ranking altogether.
What does rich content look like? As Google puts it, the right web content should give your visitors what they’re looking for. It should be well-written, to the point, and valuable.
Most importantly, web content should be professionally optimized for searches. Google sees right through content that’s been arbitrarily crammed with SEO keywords.
Create the right copy within the right design in order to boost SEO performance. Sometimes this involves hiring professional copywriting services.
At OSO Web Studio, we love helping our clients craft powerful web copy. Learn more here.
3. User-Driven Websites Have Lower Bounce Rates
Remember what we said about SEO drawing traffic to your website?
Well-designed sites are far more likely to retain organic traffic.
Sites that don’t prioritize high-quality web design may experience high bounce rates. Visitors “bounce” when they navigate to your site and immediately leave.
Bounce rates do influence Google rankings. Google is far less likely to prioritize sites that have a history of acquiring traffic and promptly sending it away.
Lower your bounce rate and boost your Google rankings by investing in a user-driven website design. These sites are designed with users in mind.
This means that they are ultimately user-friendly. User-driven sites may be interactive, quick-loading, and easy to read. They often cater to mobile users, ensuring that content adapts to fit the screens of devices used to access the site.
If a visitor to your site encounters relevant content, professional design, and a powerful experience, they are definitely going to stick around.
Consider investing in a website design that places a premium on user experience. This may be the best thing you do for your SEO!
4. Well-Designed Sites Show Authority
At the end of the day, well-designed, user-driven sites are authoritative.
A business that invests in high-quality content, professional website design, and thoughtful SEO is a stellar candidate for a high Google ranking.
Because Google gives the upper hand to businesses with authority, even the most basic website design can transform your SEO efforts. A well-crafted site can also show your commitment to your visitors and customers.
Google takes a lot into consideration when it assigns rankings. You can safely bet, however, that it will acknowledge the sites that care about their visitors.
Basic Website Design 101
When it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO), even the most basic website design can boost your optimization efforts.
SEO’s ultimate aim is to draw traffic to your website, which functions as a digital business card. For this reason, it’s important to have a powerful, user-driven website that can captivate visitors and lower bounce rates.
Professional website design often informs valuable content, which can influence Google rankings. Don’t overlook your website’s design when launching your SEO campaign!
At OSO Web Studio, we are committed to helping our clients achieve the visibility they deserve through web design, SEO, and more. Start a conversation with us now to learn more about what we can do for your business!
