How to Get Your Content Discovered on Google with Search Engine Optimization (SEO Guide)
This 9-step search engine optimization guide will help you build content on Temenos.com that targets keywords people search on and gets your content discovered
Action
[1] Enter your target keyword in the Focus Keyphrase field in Yoast
How to choose the right keyword?
Your chosen target keyphrase must meet the following criteria:
- Be searched on by people in Google
- Be relevant to the topic of your content
If you’re not sure which keyword to target, please contact the Temenos Digital Marketing Team or explore keywords on the free Google Trends website
Where do I enter the Focus Keyphrase?
The image below shows the Yoast SEO Premium plugin, which is typically located at the bottom of the page you’re building, and you add your keyword to the Focus Keyphrase field. In the example below, the target keyphrase is AMN AMRO.
Action
[1] Create the title of your page and use the exact instance of your target keyword
Considerations
Sometimes Google will understand acronyms, but you open yourself up to the possibility of confusing Google if you don’t fully write out your target keyword
Where do I enter the page title?
Your title will go in the Page Header which is shown in the screenshot below and this is typically found at the very top of your page. You’ll see two titles: the first title in the page name and the second title is the actual page title which is visible; we recommend your target keyword is added to both.
Action
[1] Create the page URL and include the exact instance of your target keyword in the URL. The URL should closely match the title of your content
Considerations
Google doesn’t like “stop words”, so it’s a best practice to remove them from the URL (they are OK in the title). Stop words to avoid are: a, to, the, an
Changing URL is used mostly when created a new page
We recommend not changing the URL of existing important pages as this can be disruptive to rankings.
If a URL of an existing page is changed, you’ll get a prompt to add a redirect and we recommend doing this.
Where do I change page URL?
Are the very top of the page, click on the page name [the black title shown below] and then the page URL will show. You should note the URL is usually created from the page name automatically. You can click on Edit and change the URL manually.
Action
[1] Include your target keyword in the first paragraph. Placement should feel natural.
Considerations
Google bot reads just like human users (top down and left to right) and including the target keyword in the first paragraph helps establish the theme of your post
Placement of the keyword should feel natural, so make sure it fits with the overall piece of content
Where do I add the first paragraph?
Your first paragraph immediately follows the page title and typically uses the Paragraph block
Action
[1] Ensure that your target keyword is in the subtitle(s) in your post
Considerations
Another signal that Google looks at is keywords in the paragraph titles, or H2 tags
These can be a little bit tougher to include, but you should try to see if you can fit an instance of your target keyword in the H2s if possible
Where do I add keywords in the H2’s?
When you’re creating your content, you can insert a H2 heading simply by choosing the Heading block and then in the block Heading Settings selecting H2. This can go anywhere in your page. A typical example would be changing a heading from ‘Product Overview’ to ‘Core Banking Product Overview’ if your target keyword is “Core Banking”.
Action
[1] Add between 1-3 internal links to your post, linking to other relevant content that makes sense and continues the user journey
Considerations
If you’re writing about a product, link to the product page. If you have an asset you want to share, link to the asset. What page fits the theme of your blog post?
Even if you’re not writing about a product, you may be able to mention the product if it fits your post theme e.g. Find out more about our digital banking platform.
Internal links help Google understand the relationship between different pages on the website
By adding links to other pages on Temenos.com, we are strengthening the connection between our content, and also providing supplemental reading options for our visitors
Links should go to similarly-themed pages, or have additional reading
Where do I add internal links?
Select a phrase in your post and hyperlink it to another page. This is shown below by highlighting the keyword and then selecting the hyperlink button. Rather than copy and paste the destination URL into the URL box, we recommend typing in the Page Title of the destination page and then selecting it from the suggested pages. This way, if the URL changes, the link to the page still works.
Action
[1] Insert an image into your post and then populate the Alt Text field with your target keyword
Considerations
Every piece of content should have at least one image since Google knows that images help people understand concepts and ideas
Google doesn’t always know what an image “is”, so image alt tags help us convey that to Google
If your image represents your target keyword, use your target keyword in the Alt Text.
Where do I add image alt text?
Insert an Image block into your content and upload an image or select an existing image. When you click on the image properties, you’ll see Alt Text. Please complete this description and, if your image represents your target keyword, use your target keyword in the Alt Text. In the example below, we are building a page optimized for Don Bergal e.g. a profile page about Don.
Action
[1] Populate the SEO title and Meta Description in the Yoast plugin and include your target keyword.
Considerations
Yoast gives us the option to specify a Title and Description for our content. These are prime areas to include our target keyword.
Title = 50-60 characters
Description = 150-160 characters
Yoast will let you know if you go over the character limit, and will shine green when you have the recommended amount
Where do I populate Yoast Tags?
The Yoast SEO tags are near the bottom of every page and unique to the page you’re optimizing. When you click on the Snippet Preview, you’ll have the option to edit the SEO Title and Meta Description.
Action
[1] Review your Yoast Rating and see if there are other areas you can improve to SEO your post
Considerations
Not every element needs to be green, but the overall score should be green
If the main light is not green, then you can review the Analysis section to see some areas you can update/change to change the color
Sometimes a green rating is not possible and don’t be put off if you don’t achieve it. As long as you follow the steps in this guide and create the best possible content on your subject matter, you’ve maximised the chances of getting your content discovered on Google.
Where do I find my Yoast Rating?
As shown in Step 8, you’ll find your Yoast Rating in the Yoast SEO plugin near the bottom of your page. Simply click on SEO Analysis to see your Yoast recommendations. When you’ve made an improvement, save the page and check your page score again.
Checklist
- Pick a focus keyword from our list and add it in the Yoast field
- Select a title with an exact variation of the focus keyword
- Copy the title (but remove stop words) as your URL
- Make sure your target keyword is in the first paragraph
- Add your target keyword or close variations into your paragraph title(s) where natural
- Add internal link(s) to relevant pages on Temenos.com
- Choose a relevant featured image and add an image alt tag with the keyword in it
- Update the Yoast SEO tags (title/description)
- Review the Yoast rating and do your best to ensure the light is green. Sometimes a green rating is difficult to achieve and it is ok to not achieve this every time.