Digital Spoke - Web Design & Graphic Design in Cambridge Design with Purpose

How Do I Get Top in Google? aka. The most frequently asked question

We get asked this so often that it really deserves its own page. Usually, though, the real answer isn't what people want. Ready? OK, here goes - to get top in Google, all you need is a good site that offers valuable content. That's it. Then just relax; Google does the rest.

Of course there are ways of temporarily cheating the system and leap-frogging competitors but Google gets wise to these underhand tricks and then you get penalised and suddenly your site isn't showing at all. We don't want to suggest that it is all snakeoil, but do be wary of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) services. (The good ones will focus on your code structure and your content).

But here's the good news! When you build a website using strict standards (like we do) and usability and accessibility drive your design choices, two wonderful things happen:

• 1) Because the code is what we call 'semantically meaningful', it can be "understood" very well by Google's robots scouring the site, trying to work out what its about. That gives it a head start in being indexed correctly and relevantly.
• 2) Because your site is a joy to behold and use and there are no usability or accessibility barriers, people return to it willingly and spread the news.

We get to the top in Google without even trying. That's a bold statement, but true. We just build the sites well, our clients follow some simple guidelines when writing their content and then it's just a matter of time.

The Proof's in the Pudding

Here's a case study. Consider how many websites mention the phrase "war on terror". 17 million at the last count. We designed a website for a rather natty product called War on Terror, the boardgame. Now simply because the site was built well, had relevant, valuable content and was popular, it is now 2nd in Google. That's ahead of the BBC, the CIA and even the State Department.