How to Know if you Need SEO on Your Website
In today's digital age, having a website is not enough. You need to ensure your website is visible and easily found by potential customers. This is where Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comes into play. But how do you know if you need SEO on your website? In this article, we'll explore the key indicators that suggest your website could benefit from SEO.
Understanding SEO
Before we delve into whether you need SEO, it's important to understand what it is. SEO, or search engine optimization, is the practice of optimizing your website to rank higher in search engine results. This means more visibility and traffic to your website by means of impressions and clicks. If you’re not tracking your data, you might want to consider it.
SEO involves various techniques, including keyword optimization, improving website speed, creating quality content, and building backlinks. When done correctly, SEO can significantly enhance your website's performance and visibility. But don’t worry, you don’t need to be a tech guru to do the basics!!
6 Signs You Need SEO on Your Website
Low Website Traffic
One of the most obvious signs that you need SEO is low website traffic. If you're not getting many visitors to your site, it could be because it's not appearing in search results. SEO can help improve your site's visibility, attracting more visitors. If you’re not sure, get yourself set up with Google Search Console, or in most cases your website back end will have it’s own version of analytics. If your traffic is low, but you get a high click through rate (CTR), then maybe you don’t need more traffic and everything is great. If your CTR is low, then it’s time to dig a little deeper and figure out why. For reference, a good click through rate is 2-4%.
2. Poor Search Engine Rankings
If your website doesn't appear on the first page of search results for relevant keywords, it's likely that potential customers are not finding you. Most users don't look past the first page, so if you're not there, you're missing out on potential business. But what are your relevant keywords you ask? Anything someone would type into a search engine to specifically find your site, are your relevant keywords. We aren’t looking for generic things like “makeup artist in Vancouver”. We are looking for something like “Best makeup artist for weddings in Coquitlam”. The more specific the better. If you are a makeup artist in Coquitlam who specializes in weddings, we want you on the first page of Google for this search result.
3. High Bounce Rate
A high bounce rate means that visitors are leaving your site quickly without engaging with your content. This could indicate that your site isn't meeting their expectations or that they aren't finding what they're looking for. SEO can help attract more relevant traffic that is more likely to stay and explore your site. Remember the days when people would just put a bunch of keywords on their sites whether or not they were relevant?? I do. It was chaos. People used to put invisible text on their pages.
The reason I mention this is because back in those days you could search for something and end up looking at balloon tours in Turkey if you searched for wedding photographers in coquitlam. It was nuts. As you can imagine, the bounce rate was high on those sites, and over time the internet got smarter and started dinging websites who did that.
Bottom line, stay relevant! Maybe you didn’t keyword your site balloon tours in Turkey, so if not we should figure out other reasons people are “bouncing” so quickly from your site.
4. Outdated Content
If your website content hasn't been updated in a while, it could be affecting your search rankings. Search engines prioritize fresh, relevant content. Regularly updating your site with new content can improve your SEO and keep visitors engaged. What should you add? Blogs, or have a feed to your Instagram account if you update that more frequently. Add new photos of team members, products or your space! If you have a store, remember you are competing with online stores who are always updating their content. You’ll want to focus more on location based content to boost your SEO if your inventory turnover isn’t as high.
5. Lack of Mobile Optimization
With more people using mobile devices to browse the internet, having a mobile-friendly website is crucial. Search engines like Google prioritize mobile-friendly sites in their rankings. If your site isn't optimized for mobile, you're likely missing out on a significant amount of traffic. Nobody wants to have to scroll left and right to see your entire page…
6. Slow Loading Speed
How long do you generally wait for a site to load before losing patience and navigating away? Exactly. Website speed is a critical factor in SEO. Slow-loading sites not only frustrate users but also rank lower in search results. If your site takes too long to load, it is definitely affecting your visibility and user experience. There are different reasons for this, one of which is using photos that are too big. There are other reasons but check this one first.
6 Ways to Improve Your On-Page SEO
🚨 If you've identified any of the above signs on your website, it's time to consider improving your SEO. Here are some steps you can take:
Conduct Keyword Research
Keywords are the foundation of SEO. Conducting thorough keyword research will help you understand what terms your potential customers are using to search for products or services like yours. But don’t just look them up, make sure the words are on your site. Use these keywords strategically in your content to improve your search rankings.
How do you find keywords exactly? I like to copy and paste my entire page copy into chatgpt and ask it what it thinks the top ten keywords are for my site. I do this for each page. You can also check your Google reviews and see what people are saying about your business. Type in what you think people would type into Google to search for your business (without using your business name). Be as specific as possible. I have a whole video about keywords in my course that’s worth watching for additional tips.
2. Optimize Your Content
Once you have your keywords, focus on creating high-quality, relevant content that incorporates these terms naturally. Avoid keyword stuffing (using one keyword too often), as this can harm your rankings. Instead, aim for informative, engaging content that provides value to your audience. Some great ways to boost content is to write blog posts! There really is no better way to establish yourself as an expert in your field and gain domain authority, than to offer people helpful information about your subject matter.
If you are a makeup artist, consider writing a blog post about how to choose the best makeup artist in Vancouver (or your city). Or write an article about your favourite venues for photography or weddings. You can ask ChatGPT to help you brainstorm questions to answer, or simply start answering questions real people ask you and publish them as blog posts (don’t forget to add a featured image that’s optimized!).
3. Improve Website Speed
This is where things can get a little codey. Before we go there (and to be clear, this is a non technical website SEO site), we want to look at your image sizes. Make sure they are not too big!! I have a module on optimizing images for web in my SEO course, but if you don’t want to watch that, here is the rule of thumb. Your images should not be larger than 300kb.
Additional ways to enhance your site's speed are to enable browser caching, and minimize JavaScript and CSS files. This is coding, we aren’t doing this. But if you have a web developer available, ask them to do it. You can use free tools like Google's PageSpeed Insights to identify areas for improvement, or seobility, my favourite tool I use for determining someone’s website SEO score.
4. Ensure Mobile-Friendliness
Make sure your website is responsive and looks good on all devices. Test your site on different screen sizes to ensure it's user-friendly and easy to navigate.Your website back end will have a mobile toggle so you can see what it looks like on a smartphone or tablet. Use this! You can often rearrange things to look better on mobile, without affecting how it looks on desktop. This should be your web designers job but if you do your own editing, don’t leave this part out.
You’ll be able to see how many of your visitors come from desktop or mobile devices, and if more than half of them are from mobile devices, you definitely want to be optimizing this.
5. Build Quality Backlinks
Backlinks, or links from other websites to yours, are an important factor in SEO. They signal to search engines that your site is trustworthy and authoritative. Focus on building quality backlinks from reputable sites in your industry. This is muito importante. I recently learned that the optimal number of backlinks is around 30! So, how are you going to get those? By making sure #2 is covered. By publishing useful, helpful content for your industry, other businesses will naturally link back to your site or article, because you offer value.
In our example, if you are a makeup artist and you write about your favourite venues, you can share the article with them and perhaps they can link back to your site as a preferred MUA, or reference your article where you mention how great they are. If you’re an entrepreneur, you will have heard of BNI groups. Think of backlinks as digital BNI, like a trusted referral network.
6. Regularly Update Your Content
Keep your website content fresh and relevant by regularly updating it. This could involve adding new blog posts, updating product descriptions, or refreshing existing content. Regular updates show search engines that your site is active and relevant. When I build a site I like to have a live feed to an Instagram account that is generally updated more often. Like real life storefronts, people (and search engines) like to know that the display isn’t always going to be the same. People like updates, new offers, new information and in general to know the business is alive and well.
If you haven’t updated your website for a few years, it is time to do that now. You don’t need an entire rebrand. If you don’t have the time or skills to do this yourself, have someone like me do a refresh so you are current for 2025 and beyond.
Happy SEOing!!!
Conclusion
In the competitive online landscape, SEO is essential for ensuring your website is visible and attracting the right audience. If you're experiencing low traffic, poor search rankings, or other issues outlined in this article, it's time to invest in SEO. By optimizing your website, you can improve its performance, attract more visitors, and ultimately grow your business. Remember, SEO is not a one-time task but an ongoing process that requires regular attention and adjustment. By staying proactive and keeping up with SEO best practices, you can ensure your website remains a valuable asset for your business.
Ready to take the next step?
I’m here to help you navigate SEO with ease. Whether you’re just starting or looking to fine-tune your strategy, I’ve got you covered:
Need a personalized analysis? Book a Deep Dive SEO Audit to uncover the key opportunities for your website.
Want to DIY? My beginner-friendly SEO micro course will guide you through the essentials step by step.
Looking for more insights? Check out How to Create and Use Ultra Long Tail Keywords for SEO for more strategies to boost your visibility.
Let’s make your website work smarter, not harder. Reach out today, and let’s get started! 🚀
