Google routinely adjust its algorithm a couple times a week to no fanfare, but an update that rolled out in early November caught the attention of SEOs and website owners.

Some websites saw their traffic drop 30-50%. Some of our own clients were also affected, although not to that extent.

In response to questions from SEOs, Google confirmed that an update had occurred but gave no indication of what website owners could do to combat the change, beyond its usual advice to provide “great content”:

Google is set to throw a new wrench into how visitors view your company’s website. Starting in December, Google’s Chrome browser will start blocking “mixed content” on secure websites.

Which might sound like confusing jargon, so let’s have some definitions first:

A secure website is one whose address starts with https, rather than just plain http. The “s” means the site is secured by extra coding to deter hackers from intercepting the personal data entered by a visitor to that site. The extra coding also allows your browser to verify that it’s really displaying the website you want to view.

A nonsecure website doesn’t have that extra layer of protection. Google often labels these sites as “not secure” and can even block users from easily reaching the site.

We hear a lot of news coverage about the impact that the millennial generation (those born from 1981-1996) will have on our society. But what about your business? Younger millennials have grown up with computers and the internet as an integral part of their lives. So, not surprisingly, they’re accustomed to researching and shopping online and have much different expectations of websites than folks in older generations.

Engineers, purchasing managers, company owners in the millennial generation are viewing your site in significant numbers. And their impact on your business is increasing with each passing year. Is your website set up to meet the needs of these tech-savvy visitors?
 

Search Engine Land has released the 2019 version of its Periodic Table of SEO Factors, a handy chart of the activities that can positively – and negatively – affect your website’s search engine rankings.

With 200+ ranking factors in Google’s algorithm, Search Engine Land distills all the known information about Google’s methodology into 35 elements, which cover multiple ranking factors.

Positive Attention

Twenty-nine of those elements represent positive ranking factors, those activities you can undertake to help improve your website’s position on the search engines. Seven of the elements dealt directly with content.

Since Google is tightening its SEO standards on website download time and page speed (factoring your site’s download time into search rankings), it’s time to take action, if you haven’t already. There are countless operations that can be performed to improve page speed, but, knowing where to begin can be overwhelming.

My site seems to load fine, so why is this necessary?

• To maintain visitors.
  Statistics show that, if your site does not load quickly, visitors will leave in just a matter of seconds. Fast page load times are a major factor when it comes to user experience, usability, and the overall functionality of your website.
• To perpetuate sales.
  On e-commerce sites, visitors who become frustrated with slow page load times are not likely to return, which oftentimes leads them to competitor sites. Fast load times lead to more customer interaction and better sales.
• To improve rankings.
  Faster pages are known to have higher traffic and better search rankings. Significant improvements in site speed will lead to better performance.