Clubhouse: SEO Fundamentals 7-20-21

This week's SEO Fundamentals Session was a little quicker than most. Below are some insights from the meeting.

Topics from the SEO Fundamentals session:

  1. How do you expand your SEO efforts into European markets?
    • You can put in a language translation plugin, but you might miss some cultural elements.
    • Try to be location-specific as different countries in Europe may have differing standards, word usage, and language-specific nuances.
    • In some cases, you may need to be hyper-local (think regions in the country)
    • Be sure to write content that demonstrates that you understand the market and can address their needs correctly.
    • Use local euphemisms and anecdotes in the proper languages
  2. I have a new website and lost ranks. What happened?
    • Without seeing the specifics, it's hard.
    • Generally, websites lose rank when a new version of the site launches because of the following:
      • URL structure changes. Your site has old pages backlinked and indexed.
        • Redirect pages from the old page URLs to the new pages URLs, also known as 301 redirects.
      • Content on the new site changes significantly.
        • Watch pages rankings and adjust if needed. The pages may be ranking for new words or versions of words.
      • A web developer may have used 302 redirects (temporary redirects) and not changed them to 301 redirects.
        • Check for 302 redirects.
      • The website may have "no-crawl / no-index," leftover from the development phase of the website.
        • Turn this off
      • Other technical issues.
        • Run an SEO code check to check for errors.
  3. Is the Exact match keyword domain important?
    • No and Yes. The site can rank keywords without having an exact domain keyword match, even if other websites have an exact domain match.
      • It really depends on the quality of the site.
    • The Search Engines are still machines and can pick up the domain and squish the word into their data packets.
    • The best practice is to create quality content and have a URL that aligns with your broader marketing and branding goals.
  4. What do you do when you get traffic from outside your target area?
    • Identify which pages are being picked up.
      • Include more location-specific content on pages
    • Is there something you can do with the traffic?
      • Redirect them to the right place with content and intro to another resource.
    • Consider offering services in those areas.
  5. Should I create Top Level Domains (TLD) with extensions like ".live" ".eu" ".ie", etc. ?
    • If your business is operating in those markets, you may have to look into the laws that govern doing business in those countries.
      • EX: EU requires the business to be located in the EU to be able to use the.EU extension.
        • You may need to partner with a business in those countries to have a valid website.
    • See the question about exact match URLs for some more insights.
  6. Should I do off-page SEO before I do on-page SEO?
    • Ideally, start with the lotus of control, i.e., fix your site first. Get the elements in place and understand what SEO you are doing.
    • This will give you a stronger understanding that will help off-page SEO efforts.
    • However, don't ignore off-page SEO. Find the balance.

Some of the SEO Fundamentals Moderators for this session:

Emmanuel Dato https://www.instagram.com/emmanscape/
Eric Sleeth  https://www.instagram.com/ericsleeth/
Hilary Quinn https://www.instagram.com/proximowebdesign/
Itamar Blauer https://www.itamarblauer.com
Jenny Favela https://www.instagram.com/jnyfav/
Rob Bertholf https://www.instagram.com/bertholf/
Tonya Burge https://www.linkedin.com/in/tonyaburge/
Joshua Monge (Me) https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrjdmonge/

 

We are always expanding the moderator team. Join us to share your insights. Hang out long enough, and you can be a moderator too!