Don’t let your SEO go out of date!

Keep your optimizations regular with a monitoring plan

Just like with updating your Google Ads, it’s important to update your Search Engine Optimization keywords and copy. Google search trends are constantly changing due to a variety of factors, and the hot keywords of last month might have dropped off in favor of another wording or another topic altogether. But don’t worry: once you’ve done your initial SEO implementation, further adjustments aren’t quite so intensive. You’ll be working from a solid base, and there’s rarely a need to update your audience and base/brand keywords once they’re set. This is just a matter of staying on top of culture, changing interests, market shifts, and the like. You still want to be sure you’re reaching as many people as possible with your awesome website, after all!

Let data accumulate

However, don’t be too eager to start making changes. Unlike Google Ads, Google’s search engine trends and patterns often take more time and data to see. Many experts recommend updating your SEO every two or three months. Even if you’re really eager, you shouldn’t update your organic keywords more than once a month. The Google algorithm takes time to process changes to your website, especially deeper-level changes like SEO copy. You won’t see any meaningful data on your changes for at least a month. So once you’ve done your initial implementation, take a break, and put a mark on your calendar to come back in a few months. You’ll be glad you did when you can see much clearer trends and make informed decisions with your changes.

However, this isn’t to say you should ignore big, new trends! For example, imagine you were selling vacuum cleaners, and a major publication published an article about HEPA filters. Even if you’re in-between SEO implementations, it would probably be a good idea to rework some of your copy to include keywords related to this new hot topic. Especially with the slower rate of Google’s search engine trends updating, it’s important to get out in front of these more viral trends while they’re still relevant.

Research any trend changes

Unfortunately, the big trends don’t often make themselves so apparent. When the time rolls around to start your up your SEO efforts again, it’s important to look at the success of what you’ve already implemented. Google Analytics has a section that lets you track what keywords brought users to your audience, and then what pages those users visited and whether they purchased or not. This can give you a good idea of the internal success of various keywords. You can get a general picture of which keywords are working and maybe should be implemented in more spots on your website, and which keywords are a bust and can be replaced in the coming process.

You should also head back to the third party source like Ubersuggest that you used the first time around. Plug in some of your successful keywords, or even the keywords from your previous list. You can see if search trends have changed, or stayed the same. Some keywords may be fine the way they are. Some may need to be altered to accommodate new popular words or replaced altogether if new search patterns have emerged. Feel free to do some new brainstorming in this stage, too. With several months to think about your audience and website, you may have a new perspective on what your users might be searching for. No matter the exact details, you should end the process with an updated list of what keywords you want to implement on your site.

Audit your copy

With the keyword list in hand, it’s time to get to updating your copy! This doesn’t need to be so intensive as rewriting every line on your website. Simply look for lines with old keywords, and replace them with the new ones. It may take a little reworking to get your new keywords to flow correctly, but there’s rarely a need to recreate what you wrote the first time around. There may be some rewriting if you’ve found new keywords you want to implement, either through finding spots to add new lines or removing outdated lines to make room for your new content.

Once you’ve implemented all of your new keywords, be sure to read through everything again and make sure it still reads well. You’re still trying to talk to your users after all, and not just provide a list of keywords. It’s easy to create grammatical mistakes by accident when adding in new words, so a quick proofread can go a long way in preventing typos or other errors.

Audit your meta data

Unlike your website copy, the site meta data audit may require some more structural changes and rewrites. Since these are short and sweet snippets meant to entice users to your website, these need to be as punchy and crisp as possible. Changing out a word here and there may seem innocuous with website copy, but with meta data it could ruin the whole flow or message of your copy. Take a hard look at the title and description provided to search engines, and evaluate how you can incorporate your new keywords while keeping messaging as short and clear as possible. We’ll say it again – don’t be afraid to rewrite! This is the doorway to your website, and it needs to make a great first impression to get users to your site.

Rinse and repeat!

Just like the first time around, this isn’t the end! Search trends and user interest are always changing, so put down that mark on your calendar to repeat this process again in a few months. Staying on top of SEO takes effort, but it’s worth it to consistently rank well on Google and draw new users to your site. Not sure how to get started with Search Engine Optimization, or need a little help with your audits? Don’t hesitate to reach out to Mr. WPress for a free quote!