Business owners who are looking to optimise their websites are increasingly understanding the premier role the content of their site plays in SEO. While it is important to instruct professional copywriters, whether they are being outsourced or from in house, to follow content rules designed to optimise the site, in many cases it is how the content is laid out that can affect optimisation with search engines.
Here the key is to keep the structure simple.
Put the most important content first. Search engines tend to prioritise text according to its position on the page. The higher the content, the more priority it is given by the search engine. For this reason place the material you consider most important high up on the page, not further down. In some cases such as a two column layout, your navigation will appear first in the html (and thereby “read” first by the search engine spider) before the layout. However by tweaking your cascading style sheets (CSS) you can make the content look on the right, yet be presented first in the html code.
It follows that minimising flash banners and keeping images to the minimum will help your readers scan the information as well as helping spiders categorise your page. Navigation is also a key point: ensure that other pages can be reached from the landing page with a minimum of fuss (usually no more than three clicks).
Keep your content from looking cluttered and your SEO (and readers) will thank you. Include sub-headings and use bullet points where appropriate. Your goal is to make it easy for website visitors to find the information they’re seeking. When readers are presented with a dense page of text, reading it all to uncover what they need can feel like too much hard work.
By keeping the layout simple you make it easier for search engine spiders to categorise your page. An excellent rule of thumb here is to look after your reader. If a web page is easy to read for a visitor, with clean and well-written text and easy navigation, it should also be the same for search engine spiders.
If you’d like further information on how a quality copywriting service can help you with your readers’ experience and search engine optimisation, please don’t hesitate to contact the team at Article Writers Australia here.
Leonie Seysan is the Director of Article Writers Australia, and manages the team of professional writers and editors. She holds a Bachelor of Communications Degree (Media Studies) and has been writing professionally for over 15 years. Leonie is also the podcast host of 'Content with Humans'.
