Within the world of digital marketing, there are numerous acronyms and abbreviations used, with SEO being one of the most known, and most important. Hopefully, you are aware that SEO stands for search engine optimisation, and within this field, there are even more abbreviations, such as SERP, (Search Engine Results Page), DA (Domain Authority), TF (Trust Flow), and the one which we are going to focus on here, UX (User Experience)

UX has become an integral part of the language and the activities within SEO, and the reason for that is that a great user experience has become a hugely influential part of what Google seeks to achieve with its search results. Google can only survive if people go there to search for something online, and one of the key ways Google hopes to continue that is by generating the best possible search results for its users.

A way it seeks to meet this objective is by ensuring that the results it displays are websites that give those users who click through to them a great experience. Google has several parameters by which it determines good and bad user experience, and thus website owners need to know these if they are to achieve and maintain high rankings on Google.

If you are a website owner you might already be doing some of these by default, however, it is far better if you know what factors Google includes in its determination of UX, and more importantly, how you can ensure you maximise them on your website. Here are seven tips to achieve these.

Tip #1 – Ensure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly

Today, you can access the internet in far more ways than a mere 5 years ago. Now, even the watch on your wrist can connect you to the internet. This trend to mobile internet access shows no sign of slowing down, and that includes Google now prioritising mobile versions of websites and mobile access. Add to this the fact that more people go online via their mobile device than their desktop PC, which means your website must be mobile-friendly or its rankings will plummet.

Tip #2 – Optimise Page Load Speed

The days when it could take a minute for a website page to load should be long gone thanks to broadband and higher specification websites and hosting servers. However, that does not mean you should take it for granted that all your website’s pages load quickly. Check each of them, and take action to ensure that the UX of those visiting your website is not compromised due to slow-loading pages caused by a faulty plugin or large image files, for example.

Tip #3 – Make Navigating Your Website Easy

Not everyone who lands on your website is going to be a technical genius, and the truth will be closer to many people finding some websites daunting. You can ensure they do not think that of your website by having a simple navigation system that makes it easy for them to visit multiple pages and find their way back to the home page.

Tip #4 – Make Your Website More Accessible

Around 1 in 7 of the world’s population has a disability which means a huge number of those who visit your website could be within that demographic. You can enhance the accessibility of your website by adding text tags to images, closed captions for videos, and the means to increase font sizes, to name but three. To check how accessible your website is use an accessibility tool such as ‘accessible’ that will score it.

Tip #5 – Only Publish Clear, Informative Content

The content within your website has many roles which are all related to SEO, however, it is its role within UX that many consider the most important. If your content is clear, concise, informative, and entertaining, and leaves anyone consuming it thinking positively about it, then it will undoubtedly enhance the user experience of visitors to your website, and the actions of those visitors will mean that Google knows this.

Tip #6 – Ensure All Images And Videos Are High Quality

There should be no excuse for the images and videos on your website being anything other than top quality. Even the most basic of mobile phones are capable of producing a photograph or recording a video which can be high quality. As with content, high-quality imagery and videos on your website will induce certain actions from visitors, all of which are measured by Google to create your UX score.

Tip #7 – Make Your Website As Secure As It Can Be

One aspect of UX you do not want to overlook is website security as online users are cautious of entering and remaining on websites that do not appear to be 100% legitimate or secure. You must ensure that your security is all in place including SSL encryption and certificate, software updates, and data protection as well as having a page outlining your privacy policy.