The internet has revolutionized the business world and changed how we conduct business. Any business that aims to increase its visibility and boost profit needs to pay much attention to top ranking factors, including local SEO — which introduces the topic of the local search algorithm.

Local SEO is one of the top practices that help boost a business’s visibility and generates more sales.

However, achieving better local SEO rankings is not a walk in the park, especially due to increased competition. To appear higher on local results, businesses and marketers need to understand how the local search algorithm works.

Knowing this helps guide the steps for improving rankings in the local pack.

The competition gets stiffer as more businesses open and optimize for local searching. Besides, Google is updating its algorithm consistently, meaning only businesses that can keep up with these updates can appear at the top of local search results.

Luckily, you have come to this post as this article looks at everything you need to know about Google’s local search algorithm and what you can do to get that top spot in the local pack.

Understanding the local search algorithm

Google aims to provide the best results that match a specific local search query. It constantly updates the local search algorithm to determine which business to rank on top of local search results.

Ideally, Google wants to provide local content that is relevant and valuable to users. As with search engine optimization, keyword stuffing cannot give you that top spot in local search results.

SEO specialists and marketers should consider Google’s local search algorithm updates and make the necessary changes to rank higher. Failure to consider these updates means losing your local search presence, resulting in fewer leads and conversions.

Local algorithms check the Google My Business (GMB) listings to determine where to rank a business in local search rankings.

Ideally, Google’s local algorithm ranks businesses with information that matches a searcher’s query. And the higher a business ranks in local search results, the more chances a potential customer will click on it.

This post looks at the three major pillars that determine local search results to better understand the local search algorithm: proximity,  prominence and relevance.

Of course, other factors make up Google’s local search algorithm, but since we cannot identify all of them, we’ll focus on the most crucial ones in this post.

By understanding these pillars, marketers can better position themselves for local search success.

1. Proximity

Proximity is one of the major ranking factors when it comes to local search. That means the distance between a business and a searcher is a ranking factor in local search.

When a searcher searches for something, Google considers how far the searcher is from the location of the term they use in the search. When a searcher doesn’t specify the location, Google calculates the distance based on the information they have regarding their location.

Ideally, Google aims to provide the most relevant results to a search query. For instance, why would Google provide a list of coffee shops in Los Angeles if the searcher is searching from Colombia?

That would be irrelevant local search results that won’t benefit the searcher.

Unfortunately, while proximity is a major local search pillar, it’s one of the factors that businesses have little control over. After all, you cannot change where your business is located, right?

You can only ensure your business location is as clear as possible, so that it appears for related nearby queries. Here are steps you can take to achieve this:

• Claim and verify the Google My Business listing
• Ensure local listings are accurate and optimized for local products or services
• Get the Google Maps API Key and optimize for your location and routes
• Set up your profile correctly (for Service Area Businesses) to avoid violating Google’s guidelines

Users can perform several types of local searches, including:

Geo-modified searches

Users will perform geo-modified searches when they are planning to visit somewhere. For instance, a searcher in Los Angeles planning to visit Toronto, Canada, may search for a “coffee shop in Oakville.” The results will differ from if they searched for “coffee” while physically in Oakville.

To be specific, geo-modified searches are mainly based on relevance and prominence as opposed to proximity when a user searches for something when outside the city included in the search.

Non-geo searches

Searchers perform this type of search when looking for something around them. For instance, a user in Los Angeles performing a local search for “coffee.”

Ideally, the user only needs to search for something and is shown results based on proximity. They will get the results that are closest to them.

“Near me” searches

“Near me” searches have been so popular in recent years. Although their popularity has significantly declined, users still perform this type of search when looking for something locally.

For instance, some users could add “near me” when searching for a coffee shop, hoping to get the most relevant results near them. As we’ve stated, this trend has lost popularity because when you perform a local search, you are searching for something near you.

It is not necessary to add “near me” to what you’re searching.

2. Prominence

Prominence refers to how important Google thinks your business is, which gets factored into the local search algorithm.

In other words, it refers to how well a business stands from the rest in various aspects, including directories, links, reviews, mentions, among other things.

If search engines view your business as trustworthy and credible, they will likely show it on top of related search query results.

The local search algorithm views businesses/brands with a stronger online prominence as credible and trustworthy. Some of the factors that determine prominence include:

Citations

A local citation is the mention of a business’s information online. The mention can include the partial or complete name, address, and phone number (NAP) of a local business.

Citations are an excellent way for people to learn about local businesses and impact local search results.

A business with high-quality citations can rank better in local search results, although businesses must continually manage citations to ensure data accuracy.

Inbound links

Backlinks play a crucial role in local business prominence. Gaining relevant backlinks from high-quality sites is an excellent way to build a business’ online reputation.

If you’re trying to outrank your competitors without much success, your backlink profile could be the reason.

In that case, you should check your competitor’s backlinks and compare them with yours. When doing this, pay attention to the number and quality of their backlinks.

As a rule of thumb, aim to have high-quality local backlinks pointing to your site to improve your page’s authority.

Reviews

Next, you need to pay much attention to reviews to improve local prominence. Many customers look at a business’s online reviews before deciding whether to engage more with the business or not. Besides, many positive online reviews can increase a business’ ranking factors.

Consider this scenario. A potential customer is looking for a pub around Oakville. When they perform a search, they are presented with two results: one with over 100 reviews and another with less than 10 reviews.

Which business do you think the searcher would trust? The one with 100 reviews, obviously.

As with search engines, customers need to trust a business before they decide to do business with it. Similarly, search engines can view online reviews and analyze them to determine a business’s online prominence.

That said, here are strategies you can use to boost your online review signals:

Have a strategy

You won’t have a strong online prominence if your products or services are not of a high standard. So, the first step to having many great reviews is to develop great products and services.

After that, develop a strategy to encourage your happy customers to leave honest but valuable reviews of their experience doing business with you to help boost your online reputation.

Monitor and manage the reviews

Having many reviews is one thing; you need to develop a plan to engage with your customers for better results. Responding to reviews shows people that you care and are genuine about your products and services.

People will avoid businesses that don’t respond to customer reviews (whether positive or negative).

Search engines, too, can tell whether you engage with customer reviews or not and will use the information to determine where to rank on local search results.

When responding to online reviews, pay special attention to negative reviews and how you respond to them. While no business likes getting negative reviews, how you respond to them can positively impact your business — respond positively to turn the negative reviews around.

3. Relevance

As earlier stated, Google wants to provide the most relevant results to a local search query. This key ranking factor will determine a business’s position in local search results — how well does a local business match a search query?

Even if your business ticks the above pillars (prominence and proximity), if the content on your page isn’t well structured and doesn’t cover the topics that a searcher is looking for, you won’t appear on top of local search results.

Here are factors that businesses should consider to create a relevant listing:

• Local page signals
• Local listing categories and attributes
• Social posts and responses to online reviews

Local listing signals and categories

A business GMB listing and category can impact its relevance score for local searches. As such, complete your business profile carefully and continually add quality content to the web page to ensure it is relevant for proximity searches.

More specifically, ensure that all information on all listing pages, including Yelp, Bing, and Google, is complete and accurate. Aside from these factors, here are two crucial features you should pay attention to:

Category selection

Selecting the right categories for your local business listing is among the crucial factors for ranking locally. With over 4000 GMB categories, you want to choose categories that best describe your business — ensure they are relevant and specific.

Here are guidelines to follow when selecting a category:

• Describe your business as opposed to your services
• Be specific to minimize competition
• Reduce the number of GMB categories to describe your business better
• Business description

Without a proper description, users won’t know what your business is about. This section is about adding an introduction to your business so that customers and search engines can know more about your business.

However, don’t use this section for marketing your business. Just give users and search engines descriptive info that can help determine whether your business matches their needs.

Local page signals

Another way a business can improve its standing in the local search algorithm is by optimizing web pages for specific keywords. For multi-location businesses, it’s essential to have separate, localized pages for each location, with relevant information and contact details for customers to reach you.

Performing competitor research is advisable to determine what terms or keywords to use for a specific query. Here are top on-page signals to consider when trying to gain relevance for a given topic:

• Keyword research — Before creating local content, you need to find keywords that matter to your business. Perform keyword research to determine highly relevant keywords with high intent. When finding relevant terms to use in your content, base your research on the customer perspective; think about what they search for and the type of content they are looking for.
• Create local content — After finding the right keywords, it’s time to create your content. Google values the quality of content more than the length of the content, so keep this in mind when creating content. Another crucial thing to pay attention to is localizing the content. For example, you can create content on local news and events or use your city’s name within your content.

The goal is to create a connection between what’s happening in your local area and your business. Also, use pictures with your specific geolocation to increase your content relevance.

Creating quality and relevant content is only the start. You need to optimize your content for on-page signals so local search algorithms can discover and rank them better. Here’s how you can optimize your local content for on-page signals:

• Meta descriptions — Include keywords in your meta descriptions to encourage searchers to click through and increase visibility
• Title tags — Title tags are some of the factors that search engines use to determine where to rank content. Incorporating keywords naturally in your title tags can help boost local rankings
• Image tags — Another way to improve local rankings is by including relevant keywords in your image tags. Including geotags also comes with an added advantage
• Headings — Users and Google value pages with clear structures. Consider creating headings within your content to capture readers’ attention and encourage them to read on. However, ensure your heading tags describe the content that comes after them well. Also, include keywords in your heading tags to help search engines understand them and their importance.

Off-page local signals

Gaining high-quality backlinks is a great way to boost credibility and trust. Backlinks refer to external links from another website to your site. Aim to have more high-quality backlinks to boost your website authority.

Ideally, having many quality backlinks shows search engines that your website or page is credible and trustworthy, which boosts the chances of ranking it higher in search engine results.

Guest posting is one of the best examples of link-building strategies you can use. Finding great guest posting opportunities provides an excellent opportunity to share your content to a new but relevant audience, which helps boost your website authority.

Another strategy you can use is to create longer and better content than what is already available on the web. When your content is high quality and relevant, it will be easier to get high-quality backlinks.

Review and social signals

Online reviews can also help boost relevance for your local business. Aim to get as many positive reviews from your happy customers as possible.

Remember, when customers perform a local search, they get not only the relevant businesses but also reviews related to the search. The more positive reviews a business has, the higher chances a potential customer will do business with them.

Closing thoughts on the local search algorithm

Ranking on top of local search results can seem daunting, but it shouldn’t when you know the vital things to focus on. As you have seen above, the local algorithm is based on three pillars: relevance, proximity, and prominence.

Of course, other factors determine local search rankings depending on your industry and competition.

Images enhance the user’s experience and help get a message across, all the merrier. But while it’s tempting to start throwing images everywhere, avoid rolling like a mad imagery scientist. With images, less is more. And a sound strategy for managing images on a WordPress site is key.

You have to remember that your WordPress site won’t load too well if you’ve just uploaded a 4MB hero image to your home page. That isn’t the best policy. So, what is the best practice for managing images for WordPress? Glad you asked!

Let’s take a little journey into the world of web images and WordPress, shall we?

First things first… getting the images

Before you start worrying about managing images for a WordPress site, you first must have images. Barring a photographer, a couple great sources are iStock Photo and Getty Images, to name just a few.

These online repositories were specifically created for folks that need one or more images for their brand or site.

With both repositories, there is a monthly or yearly fee for obtaining the image or images. And if you want to use some of the images for commercial use, the fees can get a little steep. But they both have millions of images to choose from.

Finally, if you’re on a budget, like the rest of us, there are royalty-free sites like Pixabay. On Pixabay, there are tons of images to choose from that are typically free to use, with no need for photo credits. (Although credits are a nice gesture and appreciated by the contributor.)

Where you don’t want to grab images from is Google.

Most of these images are copyrighted intellectual property. If you really need to use one of the images, you will need to try and contact the original creator of the image and then obtain the right to use said image.

This can be not only a long and painful process but could result in great expense. Using a copyrighted image, without permission, could land you in hot water with a cease-and-desist order. No one has time for that.

Image sizes

How big is too big? That is the question of the ages. Ideally, you want to take the original image and resize it externally, with an appropriate application to get the large image cut down to the actual size that is to be used on your website.

Most WordPress themes have set sizes for things like hero shots (the main image on a page) and other features. So, you should try to size your main image to the proper dimensions before uploading it. Never just upload a huge, unedited pic to your site and then rely on coding to resize it for you.

A resized image, online, is still the large file size that was uploaded. It’s just coded to look smaller.

So, you can have a 2,000 x 2,000-pixel image appear to be only 200 x 200 pixels on the screen. But it’s still the file size of the 2,000 x 2,000-pixel image! Now you have a massive load time on your website’s pages.

For the pages of a site, you alo should resize your images to the appropriate size, as well, which is usually much smaller than the hero shot. Then it is acceptable to allow the site’s coding to resize the thumbnails for you, because these main body images are typically pretty small, anyway.

Image editing

You have an image that you need to work with. Now what? Well, you will need to go in and resize and possibly clean up the image in question before you upload it to the WordPress site. Fortunately, there are many applications out there that can be used for this very task.

My personal go to is Adobe Photoshop.

With Photoshop, you can edit and resize images to your heart’s content. It also has an amazing compression engine that can compress images into a multitude of web formats and makes them ready for upload.

That sounds fine and dandy, but what if I’m on a tight budget? Anything out there for free?

Again… glad you asked. There are free image editing websites out there. While not as powerful as Photoshop, they still have pretty amazing editing capabilities and even function in much the same way as Adobe’s star product.

One website I’ve used before is Pixlr. This is a totally free website that affords you with a host of notable features for editing photos.

Once you’ve edited your image(s), you can save them to your local machine and then upload them to the WordPress site.

Another online image editing site is befunky. With befunky, you can edit images, too, but its editing capabilities are much simpler than Pixlr and far more reduced than Photoshop. However, in a pinch, it’s still fun to work with.

Preferred compression and file formats

Once you have your image sized and edited, you will need to save it with the best compression and file format. The compression is, in part, what determines the file size. The format is the file type. Optimally, you want as small a file size as possible, and there are several file types to choose from.

For hero shots, you want to keep the file size down to under a MB — but that’s up for debate. For the main body images, you want to keep them down to only a few KB. This will ensure a fast load time for your pages. The file types commonly accepted online are:

• PNG — Portable Network Graphics
• JPEG — Joint Photographic Experts Group
• WebP — Pronounced “Weppy,” a raster image format

For images that need a transparent background, PNG is great. But with transparency comes a slightly larger file size. JPG or JPEG files are good for compressed images, but you get some quality loss when you really need to compress them a great deal.

WebP is a newer file type, developed to get a small file size but also to keep much of the original image quality. However, not all hosting plans come equipped to handle this file type yet — at least not without certain PHP extensions, like ImageMagick installed.

Displaying images on your site

Now that you have images resized and uploaded, you’ll want to be able to make these images load as fast as possible. Even though you’ve crunched the image down, a little more smooshing is still a good idea. There are several plugins on the market that can help you with managing images for the WordPress site:

• Smush — This is the most popular, award-winning (and not to mention free) WordPress image compression plugin. It uses the latest image data compression algorithms, known as lossless compression, that removes unused data and compresses images without losing any quality. I have personally used this one, with great success.
• EWWW Image Optimizer — This is among the best WordPress image compression plugins. It helps to reduce your website’s bandwidth by optimizing images. A primary feature of this plugin is that it has no speed limits and unlimited file-size support (up to 150 MB).
• ShortPixel Image Optimizer — ShortPixel is another excellent WordPress image optimizer with a great interface. It’s fast, easy on the eyes, and has some fantastic features.

• Optimus — If bandwidth is your primary concern, this is the best plugin for you because it reduces the image size up to 70%, depending upon the file format, of course.
• Imagify — This is a premium WordPress plugin meant to optimize your images to speed up website load times. It’s designed to handle everything for you, automagically. It is set up to run when you upload each new image. This way, you can optimize everything in one go.

Ok. You’ve edited your images, crunched and saved them, and then uploaded and smooshed them further. Now what? Now you have to display your images. By default, your theme will display images throughout the site in a certain way. But if you have the need for an image gallery, then you might want to consider these plugins:

• Modula — This plugin allows you to create pretty and responsive grid style galleries with very little configuration. It’s compatible with Block Editor, Beaver Builder. and Elementor.
• NextGEN Gallery — NextGEN has been around the block for quite some time. Thus, it is typically the go-to plugin for most people. It is highly customizable and has great functionality. It’s a favorite for photographers and folks who work with images as a career.

• Envira Gallery — This one comes in a lite version and a premium (paid) version. The features are more basic than those found in Modula and NextGEN. But it does have the ability for deep linking and pagination, for larger galleries.
• Photo Gallery by 10web — 10web’s image plugin is cool because it also allows for ecommerce functionality, social sharing, and has various slideshow effects.
• FooGallery — Also a simple gallery, it still has some nice hover effects, lightbox, pagination, and retina support. It too comes in a pro (paid) version.

Image protection

You have worked so hard to make a site look pretty with imagery. Now, how do you keep your hard work from being swiped by someone who visits your site? After all, it is pretty easy to just right click on an image and save it to your desktop.

So, what’s to stop that from happening?

Well, there are several ways to approach image protection. It just depends on your goal. One thing you can do is to disable the right click on your site altogether. The above-mentioned plugin Envira comes with image protection.

You can also get a plugin called WP Content Copy Protection. It will disable right-clicking on your entire website. However, you can also set it to protect selected pages, posts, and categories, too.

Watermarking is another age-old tactic used to protect your images.

The plus side to this method of protection is that when someone does swipe your image, they then have your logo and/or trademark on it that they would then have to attempt to remove via Photoshop. Typically, most people will avoid grabbing an image with a watermark on it altogether.

The downside to this method of protection is now all your images have watermarks on them and, based on how you watermarked them, this can be unsightly.

Another way to steal the images from your website is by loading them from the original source. The image will load from your server, or hosting plan, and will then be displayed on third-party websites without your permission, of course.

You can disable the hotlinking of images from your WordPress site with a little bit of coding in the .htaccess file. Just add this code to the .htaccess file in your WordPress site’s root directory:

#Disable image hotlinking with forbidden custom image option

RewriteEngine on

RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$

RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http(s)?://(www.)?yourdomain.com [NC]

RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http(s)?://(www.)?google.com [NC]

RewriteRule .(jpg|jpeg|png|gif)$ – [NC,F,L]

*Be sure to replace yourdomain.com with your site’s domain name!

Finally, you can also add copyright notices on your site, but most people ignore those anyway. I wouldn’t really bother worrying too much about this method.

Closing thoughts on managing images for WordPress

You should now have a generous mitten full of imagery tidbits at your fingertips that will hopefully be able to steer you in the right direction while making a WordPress site shine with pretty images — and still maintain fast load times.

These suggestions are subject to change and/or debate. But what kind of a world would we live in if we couldn’t change or debate?

WordPress is a powerful web application and is used by up to 43% of the internet, to date. But with great popularity comes great threats. With numbers like these, many would-be attackers are constantly on the lookout for weaknesses in your site — a good reason to implement these WordPress security best practices, right now.

WordPress security best practices

Sans the usual best practices — like keeping your core files, theme(s) and plugins up to date — there are also many other factors to take into consideration. File and directory permissions, and more are necessary to keep safe that which you’ve worked hard on and treasure.

1. Update file permissions

The default file permissions for all files on a WordPress site are typically set to 644. The default directory permissions are set at 755. There are scenarios that warrant differences.

For instance, it is a good idea to have your wp-config.php file set to permissions stronger than 644.

I know of folks who set that file’s permissions to 440. This helps make it harder for the riff raff to access the file. Some people set theirs to 600. That’s fine too.

You can change the file and directory’s permissions via File Manager, in your hosting plan. You can also alter these permissions in your favorite FTP program.

2. Disable the xmlrpc.php File

What is this file? Well, simply put, the XMLRPC is a system that allows for remote updates to WordPress from other applications. To make sure your site stays secure, it’s a good idea to disable xmlrpc.php completely.

However, if you need some of the functions necessary for remote publishing and the Jetpack plugin (for instance), you should use a workaround plugin that allows for these features while still fixing all the security gaps.

One plugin that comes to mind is called Disable XML-RPC. This plugin uses the built-in WordPress filter xmlrpc_enabled to simply disable the XML-RPC API on a WordPress site. This renders it unobtainable by someone looking to compromise your site.

Another plugin that comes to mind is the Disable XML-RPC Pingback plugin, which lets you disable just the pingback functionality. This means that you will still have access to other features of XML-RPC if you need happen to need them — for instance, if you’re running Jetpack. There are other plugins that will also disable this file. See below for more details on that plugin.

Both plugins are easy to use. You just have to install and activate them. They do the rest for you.

In the event that you want to have more control over how the XMLRPC plugin works, you can instead install the REST XML-RPC Data Checker plugin. Once installed and activated, you would just need to go to Settings > REST XML-RPC Data Checker, and then click the XML-RPC tab.

Once there, you will be able to navigate through the interface to better control the xmlrpc.php file and what it does.

If you already have a ton of plugins and want to avoid installing yet another, you can control the xmlrpc.php file via the .htaccess file by adding this line to it:

add_filter( ‘xmlrpc_enabled’, ‘__return_false’ );

That will just turn it off altogether.

You can also edit the .htaccess file with this command:

<Files xmlrpc.php>

Order Allow, Deny

Deny from all

</Files>

Or have your hosting provider disable the file itself.

3. Hide your sensitive details

Once you’ve got your site all dialed in and live, hide certain details from the public eye that might lure someone towards wanting to compromise all your arduous work. A nice plugin for this is called Hide My WP Ghost. This plugin is a paid plugin, but it’s worth the coin, and it’s on sale now for a 5-pack license.

This plugin does a fantastic job of hiding your core files, file paths, login page, and more. It performs the following functions, to name just a few:

• Change the wp-admin and wp-login URLs
• Change lost password URL
• Hide /wp-login path
• Disable XML-RPC access

• Change URLs using URL Mapping
• Weekly security checks and reports
• Email support, and more

4. WAF/CDN protection

A big step towards protection is blocking people you don’t want to have access to your site, altogether. This can be accomplished via a WAF (web application firewall) combined with a CDN (content delivery network).

Fortunately, GoDaddy offers this type of protection through Sucuri. Once purchased and set up, you can go into the firewall settings and enable GeoBlocking, if you so desire, and block entire countries from accessing your site.

The WAF will also help to speed up your site, since it does a wonderful job of blocking the known bad IPs and allowing the good ones to access your site.

5. Combat comment Spam

Another nuisance is comment form spam. There is a great way to limit or prevent this type of problem. The method I like is to utilize the plugin called wpDiscuz.

With this plugin, wpDiscuz will take over your site’s commenting and check against a host of bad actors, filtering out bad or malicious comments by forcing the commenter to enter credentials to comment. You get an email sent to you with each successful comment on your site, so you can then moderate further, if needed.

6. Enable CAPTCHA

It is highly recommended that you also enable CAPTCHA on all forms on your site(s). This will aid in the prevention of form spam. There are several types of CAPTCHA additions out there. Some ask the user to solve a math equation, some have a puzzle to solve, others have you select a series of pictures, and there are more variations.

7. Enable 2-factor authentication (2FA)

A tried-and-true way of keeping out the knuckleheads out there who would seek to do your site harm is to enable 2-factor authentication on every user of your site. If you are on your site all the time, it can be a mild inconvenience to have to enter the 2FA each time you log in. But that is a small price to pay for the security of your site.

A good plugin that can be used to enable 2FA is Wordfence. Just install the plugin and go to this article to see how to enable it.

8. Change the WP-admin URL

The default admin URL has been the same, on WordPress, for years. All bad actors know it and routinely attempt to gain access to your site via said URL. The above mentioned Hide My WP Ghost plugin does a great job of obscuring this URL by simply changing it.

9. Add server-level protection

If your WordPress site is hosted on a server, you can enable other security features that will help keep your site safe. One such feature is in WHM. You can help prevent or limit the possibility of an AnonymousFox compromise by simply turning off Reset Password for cPanel Accounts and Reset Password for Subaccounts.

Simply go to WHM > Tweak Settings > search for password. From there, for the Reset Password for cPanel Accounts and Reset Password for Subaccounts features, select Off. This will help in preventing a bad actor from accessing — and then changing — the cPanel and subaccounts passwords.

The second thing you’ll want to do, if your site is hosted on a server, is to disable shell access to all your cPanel accounts. Just go to WHM > Manage Shell Access > Disable Shell for all cPanel accounts.

10. Strong login credentials

Last among our WordPress security best practices, but certainly not least, always use strong passwords and obscure usernames. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across passwords like Password123!. Another common mistake is making the username something relative to the site itself.

If you want to get compromised, that is a sure-fire way to do it.

Long and randomly generated passwords, in conjunction with usernames that have nothing to do with the site, are always your best combo.

Another great idea is to continually change your passwords. It might seem like a pain, but that pales in comparison to getting hacked. How often you change your passwords is up to your discretion. — just as long as you do. (You’ll be glad you did.)

Closing thoughts on WordPress security best practices

All in all, you have worked so hard for your intellectual property (or your client’s). Why not keep it safe? These few, but helpful, WordPress security best practices can go a long way toward a successful and compromise-free website for years to come.

No matter how much experience you have, finding shortcuts can streamline your workflow and help you be more productive. Luckily, there are tons of website development tools designed to help take the stress out of your projects so you can get more done with less effort.

You don’t have to work harder. You just need to work smarter so you can take on more projects without spreading yourself too thin. Here are a few of the top tools for web developers that you can incorporate into your daily workflow.

Using web development tools with GoDaddy Pro

Tracking down individual tools and finding ways to integrate them into your workflow on a piece-by-piece basis is time-consuming. The Hub by GoDaddy Pro makes it easy by integrating a few key web development tools right into the dashboard.

Some of the tools that are integrated into The Hub include:

• Code snippets: Execute custom code without logging in and out of each site you’re working on.
• Backups: Back up dev work and site updates on one or multiple sites at the same time.
• Uptime monitoring: Monitor multiple sites for health, problems and interruptions.
• Performance scanning: Check multiple sites for performance issues on demand.

These are just a few of the tools you’ll have access to in The Hub. You’ll be able to use additional web development tools seamlessly as needed.

Our top 7 recommended tools for web developers

Every web development project is different, and while The Hub can help you manage your clients’ sites with ease, there are a few additional tools we recommend. Here are seven of the top must-have web developer tools you can use in conjunction with those provided in The Hub:

• PHPStorm
• Visual Studio Code
• Sublime
• Vim
• Emacs
• WebPac
• Gulp

PHPStorm

PHPStorm simplifies and streamlines the coding process. You’re able to work with HTML5, JavaScript, CSS, Sass, CoffeeScript, 5, Stylus and others to manually build out features for clients’ sites while analyzing and testing the code in real time.

And you can do it with every major framework, whether you’re working with WordPress or have clients that rely on Magento, Joomla! Laravel, Drupal and more.

The biggest benefit of the tool is its ability to monitor your code for errors in real time. Anytime the program detects a problem, it notifies you and suggests an appropriate fix. That means you’ll be able to test your code and identify issues long before the page goes live.

Learn more about PHPStorm.

Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code was developed by Microsoft in 2015 and has since taken the web development world by storm. It’s one of the most popular code editors in use and for good reason: It’s easy to use and extensible, meaning you’re able to create extensions that will benefit your web development style and preferences.

The system works with all of the most common programming languages, so you’ll be able to work with the language you’re most comfortable with.

It works across platforms, so you can work on Windows, Linux or Mac operating systems. Even better, Visual Studio Code is free and, as an open-source program, you can count on continuing innovations from your peers to make the program as feature-rich as you need it to be.

Learn more about Visual Studio Code.

Sublime Text

If you’re looking for a simple, pared-down program to edit text and test your code, Sublime Text is your best bet. The interface is simple and, while it may lack some of the extensions and customizations of other programs, it’s still incredibly powerful.

The program allows you to edit text quickly and can make use of the many intuitive keyboard shortcuts to make the process faster, easier and more enjoyable.

The program is free for an extended period. You’ll have ongoing support and updates for three years after downloading the program. After those three years, you’ll still be able to use Sublime Text, but you won’t gain access to new versions or patches without paying for a license.

It’s the perfect front-end development tool for those just starting out and developers that don’t want to deal with complicated layouts or extensions that don’t serve their purposes.

Learn more about Sublime Text.

Vim

Vim is another free and open-source application designed for web developers who value efficiency above all else. The interface is simple and integrates seamlessly with Linux and Mac-based systems. As an open-source program, you can count on user input and leverage a vibrant community of web developers when you need assistance, support or just want to bounce ideas off of another person, much like you can in The Hub by GoDaddy Pro.

The control interface is designed to keep your fingers on the keyboard at all times, reducing lag when moving from line to line. There is a learning curve with Vim, but once you master it, you’ll find that writing, editing and testing code will be much faster and more efficient.

Vim is a unique platform in that the designers encourage users to donate to a charity rather than purchasing a license for advanced features. You’re able to pay what you think is appropriate or continue using the program for free.

Learn more about Vim.

Emacs

Emacs is one of the best web development tools for coding experts that like to switch between text-only and graphical interfaces. You can toggle between the two displays to better fit your mood or to better accommodate different coding projects. Even better, Emacs works with every major operating system.

It’s best for experienced web developers, as there can be a learning curve. But as long as you have a firm understanding of coding best practices, you’ll be able to use the program fully.

Learn more about Emacs.

Webpack

Great web pages aren’t just text. They incorporate tons of images and interactive features, and those features can be tough to code item by item. Webpack bundles those modules together into functional workflows that do much of the heavy lifting for you.

Webpack is predominantly for developers using JavaScript, but that doesn’t mean it’s restrictive. You can still use Webpack for HTML and CSS-based projects, too.

Learn more about Webpack.

Gulp

The best way to increase productivity is to automate as many processes as you can. Gulp allows you to automate certain tasks within your JavaScript code. Most web developers choose to automate the more repetitive tasks like compilation and linting that would otherwise take up valuable time.

The program also lets you nest or combine tasks into a cohesive function to further speed things along.

Though Gulp is usable right out of the box, the community of users is vibrant, and you’ll find tons of support and valuable extensions and plugins to make the program even more useful for each project you work on.

Learn more about Gulp.

Build your web development toolkit

As the digital world evolves, so too will your job. Using these web development tools will help you streamline your workflow and improve your efficiency. Each provides a level of portability, functionality and customization to support the specific projects you work on.

When combined with the tools already in The Hub by GoDaddy Pro, you’ll see a major improvement in your web development efforts with every project you take on.

If you’re looking to offer a more affordable (and easier to build) solution for a client’s business, online portfolio, and much more, you may want to consider a one-page WordPress website.

One-page websites are simple, popular and — when built on Managed WordPress — easy for nearly anyone to maintain.

However, dialing in the one-page design isn’t always a simple task for website designers, especially when you’re used to taking on larger or more complex projects. Luckily you’ve come to this post. Here, we look at tips to help create a solid one-page website design. Here’s what we’ll cover:

1. Determine whether one page is enough

2. Create a strategy for content

3. Build an anchor menu for easy navigation

4. Understand the audience

5. Make scrolling easier

6. Make the website mobile-friendly

7. Develop strong CTAs

8. Avoid large text blocks

9. Optimize for search engines

10. Include social media accounts

11. Be creative with the contact block

Why a one-page WordPress website?

One-page website designs have gained increased popularity among business owners and web designers because they’re simple, easy and trendy. But while one-page websites are ideal for different types of business, they are not a one-fits-all solution.

Before settling on a one-page website, ensure it is ideal for your client. You may want to create a one-page website if they don’t have a lot of content or many different elements. A single-page website may be ideal for clients who:

• Want to create an online portfolio or personal website
• Sell a few products or services
• Have one-time events such as conferences and weddings
• Need a campaign-specific landing page

On the other hand, a one-page WordPress website may not be ideal, for example, if their content is complex or they sell lots of different products or services with tons of information.

Tips for creating a one-page WordPress website

Less is more in design, and web design is not an exception. After all, the fewer pages a site has, the more it will be appealing to visitors. A good one-page design will communicate a story effectively, promote a brand and drive conversions.

However, that doesn’t mean that creating a one-page WordPress website is a simple task. Without the right gameplan, you may end up with a single page that isn’t attractive and doesn’t serve your marketing purposes.

To that end, here are steps to follow for a perfect one-page website design:

Determine whether one page is enough

Before you take any step, it’s best to determine whether the situation calls for one page or a classic website. Depending on the type of client you’re helping, one kind of website might be better than another — you need to weigh the options to determine which type of website will work.

As stated earlier, a one-page WordPress website should have a simple yet robust design that is user friendly. It often displays only a small amount of text but more images.

Due to its long scrolling design, you have the option to be creative and decide the order in which content appears.

One-page website design offers a good user experience. Since the content appears in a linear fashion, visitors won’t get lost in multiple pages. These sites also render well on mobile and tablets, and are easy to maintain.

A classic website comes with a homepage alongside other pages, often services, a contact page, and FAQ. The main advantage of a classic web design over a one page is that it allows you to display tons of content about products or services.

With the classic design, you get the option to display each piece of content on a dedicated page, allowing more thorough descriptions. But if you decide that a one-page WordPress website is best, move to the next step.

Create a strategy for content

The first step to creating a one-page WordPress website is to plan out content. One page allows you to control the order in which content appears. The idea is to ensure the order is both logical and intuitive.

Be careful with what you place above the fold or what the visitor sees before scrolling down the site. Ideally, the main message should entice visitors.

Like any other website, a one-page WordPress website could include an about section, services and products, more about the offering, an FAQ section, CTAs, a photo gallery and contact information.

How you prioritize this content will determine how effective the one-page design will be. Remove unnecessary information to keep content as simple and organized as possible.

Build an anchor menu for easy navigation

Unlike a classic website (where each item links to a page of its own), a one-page WordPress website menu links to a different section of the same page. As a result, you need to build an anchor menu to link each section.

These are three important steps to help create an anchor menu for a good one-page design:

• Create an anchor — An anchor will help users navigate to a particular part of your one-page design. While some templates come with built-in anchors, there’s usually an option to rename, move or delete them.
• Link anchors to the menu — Linking the site’s menu to anchors makes it easier for visitors to go to a specific section. The idea is to select the corresponding section to attach an anchor to, which will help in the navigation.
• Create a menu order — Linking the menu to anchors isn’t enough. You should ensure the order in the menu corresponds to the order of section. Single-page website designs involve a lot of scrolling. As such, ensure that the menu is always visible by freezing it. Fortunately, this is easily achievable via plugins such as WP Floating Menu.

Understand the audience

When it comes to a one-page WordPress website, you have only one page to display many sections. That’s why it is important to identify gaps in every section and fill those gaps to improve user experience and overall site performance.

Analyzing which sections have gaps and making the necessary changes is paramount. To achieve this, you need to group your visitors based on location, demographics, source, behaviors, devices they use, and other such criteria.

You can collect this data for clients if you install proper analytic tools like Google Analytics on the site. Ensure that you have everything set up to get required data and determine the metric to track.

Tracking user behavior for a classic website with multiple pages is straightforward. But things get rather complicated when it comes to a single-page website.

Luckily, free tools like Google Tag Manager will help track activities on a one-page website. This tool will enable you to track different actions on the site and provide more insights regarding the needs and expectations of a target audience.

Make scrolling easier

A one-page WordPress website involves a lot of scrolling. Don’t make visitors keep scrolling down the site to find what they are looking for — make it as simple as possible.

A scroll-top button (yep, there are plugins for that) and anchor links make navigation easier and fast. You may also want to use parallax scrolling (make the background move a different speed from the foreground content) to keep your users engaged when scrolling until they find what they are looking for.

No matter how creative you want to be with navigation, you shouldn’t ignore usability. After all, visitors are real humans, so ensure they can easily find the content they need.

Make the website mobile-friendly

People spend more time on smartphones or tablets than desktops. You may also have heard about mobile-first indexing, where Google considers the mobile version of the content for indexing and ranking.

As a result, ensure the website is functional and looks as good on mobile as desktop. Adapting to the mobile version shouldn’t cause headaches if you use a readymade CMS like WordPress.

Develop strong CTAs

Strong CTAs for the one-page WordPress website are essential. This command phrase, such as “Buy Now” or “Sign Up,” takes the form of a button or hyperlink to increase sales or conversion.

To get the most from a CTA, it needs to:

• Be logical, intuitive and concise
• Encourage visitors to take action
• Unique from other graphical elements
• Placed at strategic places for users’ view

Once you have CTA content, link the button to an anchor to make it easy for visitors to navigate a particular section.

Avoid large text blocks

Having too much text on one page can hurt conversions. After all, users expect as brief a chain of actions as possible (e.g. visit > see what you need > take the required action).

Imagine if, during the second step, there’s tons of text for the user to read.

Include only the information that directs users to a CTA, and presents it in a brief and straightforward manner. If you have a lot of information to share with users, create a separate blog and link it to a unique place on the website.

Optimize for search engines

The need for search engine optimization for any website cannot be overstated. When it comes to a one-page WordPress website, you only have one page to rank for several keywords, and you have fewer things to optimize than a classic website.

However, this doesn’t mean that you cannot optimize the single-page website. Yes, it may be a bit challenging, but it’s possible. That said, here are things to remember when optimizing a one-page website:

Improve page speed

Page speed refers to the time it takes to display a page content fully. In our case, this is the time it takes to display one page of website content.

A significant number of visitors will leave a page that takes more than three seconds to load.

And if your website loads slowly, Google and other search engines will consider it to have a bad user experience. That’s why you need to analyze your site loading speed and optimize it.

Luckily, Google has a free tool to help analyze your website speed. To analyze your website, go to PageSpeed Insights and enter the URL. This tool will help analyze how a site performs on both desktop and mobile devices.

Once you get insights into what is slowing down the website, try to resolve all errors to improve website speed.

Optimize each section for SEO

Treat each section of the one-pager as a separate page and optimize it for SEO. The idea here is to ensure that each section of your one-page website has a heading tag to tell what the section is all about.

Next, optimize each section for the primary and related keywords. You also need to optimize text blocks for those keywords and include alt texts in images.

Ensure content is fresh and relevant

Content is king, but only if it’s fresh and relevant for an audience and search engines. Content is not static. To keep up with the ever-changing Google algorithms, pitch content updates to your client so the website can rank higher on SERPs.

Include social media accounts

Social media can provide a perfect way to improve an online presence. As such, connect your client’s Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn profiles with their one-page WordPress website to help improve traffic to the site.

One way to achieve this is by adding an Instagram feed. Doing this will provide an opportunity to share the latest photos of your client’s business with visitors.

Another perfect way to incorporate social media profiles into the website is to place icons for all business social media accounts. Users will see these elements as they scroll the website, providing a perfect way to further interact with a business.

Be creative with the contact block

Last but not least, make sure visitors can easily find contact information on the site. That said, consider placing phone numbers, email addresses, blogs, and social media links in a separate block at the top of the site.

The idea is to ensure that users will not need to scroll to the bottom to see contact information. After all, this can be troublesome, especially if the site has many media components that can load slowly when there’s a poor internet connection.

Closing thoughts on the one-page WordPress website

Creating a one-page WordPress website has many benefits, including better SEO potential, it’s faster and easier to maintain, intuitive to use, and easy to organize. Once you determine that a single website is best for your client, the above tips will help you get a perfect one-pager going.

WordPress has a host of very cool automated features at its disposal, like auto-posting, security scanning, site health checks, and auto updates. So why would you want to interfere with automation and start manually updating WordPress for clients?

Well, sometimes automation can go sideways and cause more harm than good.

One such instance is the auto-update feature. You can set WordPress to automagically update its core files, and you can even set it to update plugins and themes, too. That may seem fine until there is a conflict with an update — and now the site is down.

That won’t sit well with your client, so it’s highly recommended to keep an eye on updates as you run them. If you’re managing WordPress sites for a stable of clients, you can use The Hub by GoDaddy Pro to run updates in bulk. You’ll be able to monitor these updates as they complete and easily click into WP admin if it’s necessary.

Manually updating WordPress core files

At the heart of WordPress are the core files, like the wp-config.php, index.php, and functions.php, to name just a few. Anyone can feasibly download these core files and work to exploit them for vulnerabilities.

Thus, these files need to be updated regularly to patch security holes.

Updates also address new features as well. It is always best practice to manually perform a core file update for the primary fact that if something goes wrong, you are there and able to revert to the previous version of WordPress quickly.

If left unchecked and the site does go down, and you aren’t there to fix it, a client’s online presence could be missing for an untold period of time. Simply being there to press the update button in the dashboard of the site could save you many future woes.

Upon logging into WordPress, select Updates from the top left of the primary dashboard menu. This will take you to the Updates page. Here you will be able to see all the updates the site requires.

Covering your bases with a backup

After reviewing the necessary updates, make sure the site is backed up. It is always best practice to fully back up the site before running any updates. That way you have something to revert to, in the event something goes wrong.

If you’re using Managed WordPress from GoDaddy, the site is backed up each day.

If you’re not using Managed WordPress, you should have a backup plan in place that stores redundancies (backups) of a site. Once you have confirmed that you have a recent backup, you’ll want to select the Update to version x.x.x button.

The update can take a couple minutes to complete on larger sites. But once it’s complete, you’ll see a screen like this one.

On rare instances, the update can fail. That is why it is crucial that you have a backup in place and ready to restore. There are many reasons for a failed update, but usually it is due to either a hosting or server setting, PHP version issue, or plugin/theme incompatibility.

One point to remember, too, is that when WordPress is updating core files, plugins, or themes the site will automatically be placed in maintenance mode till the update is finished.

Manually updating WordPress plugins & themes

To update plugins, visit the Updates page again. Scroll down to the plugins section and there you will see one or more plugins that need attention.

Best practice in mind here: update one plugin at a time.

The reasoning behind this is if you update them all at once, and one of the plugins has an issue, you’ll have a lot of troubleshooting on your hands to find out which plugin failed to update successfully.

Updating one at a time allows you to spot which plugin, if any, failed to update. You can simply disable that plugin and either come back to it later or replace said plugin with another that is more compatible with other plugins, theme, or core files.

Plugin troubleshooting is outside of the scope of this article, but you can hit your favorite search engine to find the solutions. When updating a plugin, you would simply select the check box to the left of the plugin and, just above the plugins, select Update Plugins.

Plugins can take a few minutes to update, at times. So be patient. Good things come to those who wait. Once the plugin has completed its update, you’ll be redirected to a “success” screen. The maintenance mode will be automagically deactivated, and the site will be accessible again.

A point to remember here is that when you’re updating core files, plugins, or themes, you simply need to wait till the update is finished. If you navigate away from the update page, you will interrupt the update and you will have to manually delete the .maintenance file via either FTP or File Manager.

Otherwise, the site will be stuck in maintenance mode.

Updating a theme follows the same procedures as updating plugins. Select the theme to update, select the Update Themes button, and wait for it to complete.

Closing thoughts on manually updating WordPress

In closing, be sure to follow best practices and always backup files and database before performing any updates. Always update one thing at a time. And finally, be patient and allow WordPress to complete your requested task. You’ll be glad you did. Manual updates have been a part of my personal routine for over a decade now, and my sites are better for it.

When you have a great product or service, it is natural that you will want to get the most out of it. However, having an irresistible product or service and a great marketing strategy (never underestimate its power) is not enough to improve your sales and revenue — there’s always room to improve conversion rates.

You need to craft a high-converting landing page to help turn a larger percentage of your audience into customers. Luckily, you have stumbled on this post. In the next few minutes, you will learn about the key landing page elements to improve your conversion rates. Read on!

Effective landing page elements to improve your conversion rates

A landing page exists within a customer journey. It is reflected in what a customer does after they land on the page. As such, an effective landing page should align with the ad you are promoting.

For example, if your ad was about the best SEO services, a landing page that features an email marketing campaign might not lead to a conversion.

An effective landing page needs to be simple and clear with fewer elements to convert visitors into leads. Any distractions or unnecessary elements will draw the attention of your visitors away from your goal.

That said, here are the key elements of a high-converting landing page:

Your headline is everything

Your headline is the face of your landing page, so ensure it is attention-grabbing, clear and concise. After all, your headline will determine whether people will continue to read your copy or not.

As a rule of thumb, ensure that your headline compels people to read what is on your page. That said, here are the key elements of a killer headline:

Clear and simple

In marketing, simple yet clear headlines carry the day. That is why you should ensure that your users can understand what your landing page is all about to ensure they do not click off.

Do not send your visitors down a complicated path that is hard to navigate to the final stage. Instead, let your customers know what the page is all about in a simple, clear manner to improve your conversions.

Captivating

Your first impression matters a lot. Unfortunately, your headline should form an impression within a blink of an eye, and you will rarely have a second chance to make a great first impression.

As such, ensure that your headline is appealing and can get people’s attention instantly. The idea is to make it hard for anyone who lands on your landing to exit.

Resonate with your target audience

A great headline should attract the attention of your website visitors. Think about your specific website visitors and keep them in mind when writing your landing page message. Ensure that your message clearly states what you are offering and the problem it solves.

Provide value

People who visit your landing page are not just visitors; they are people looking for products or services to solve a problem. As such, your headline should clearly state how you will solve their pain points and make their lives easier.

Value proposition

Like your headline, your value proposition is unique to your business and matches what you are trying to communicate in your headline. Ensure that visitors understand a product or service as soon as they land on your page.

Most marketers make the mistake of putting information about who they are above the fold instead of letting them know what product or service they are offering.

Avoid this at all costs. Instead, use this real estate to let your visitors know how your product or service can help them.

The idea is to ensure that your prospect sees the benefit of what they are purchasing or signing up to. To further improve the conversion rate of your landing page, ensure your value proposition is reflected from the ad to the headline and into the body of your landing page.

One thing, though. Avoid using generic benefits on your landing page. Instead, clearly describe your benefits and add figures so prospects can understand what to expect from your product or service.

An impressive web design

If you need a high-converting landing page, you must pay much attention to your landing page design. That said, let’s look at visual elements that encompass a high-converting landing page.

High-quality images

Imagery is a critical part of a high-converting landing page. Images on your landing page should be high quality and relevant to your page. You can make your landing page more appealing using attractive images, illustrations, and infographics.

Educational videos

Visuals have a special place in marketing, with current surveys showing that consumers prefer videos over text. Additional information shows that only a handful of online readers read a copy till the end.

As such, videos offer an effective way to engage your audience and offer a platform to showcase your offers. The idea is to get more online users to spend more time on your landing page and know the benefits of your offer and how it will change their lives.

Enough spacing

No one likes to read a block of sentences. You must ensure that you have the right amount of white space between the text of your landing page, graphics and other page elements.

Social proof

Credibility is another crucial element of a high-converting landing page. So apart from a clear value proposition, social proof will help increase conversions.

The best way to get the most of this persuasion element is to collect testimonials from your previous clients and add them to your landing page. When you boost your credibility, prospects will trust you, making it easier to convert them to customers.

Page load speed

Landing page loading speed determines how good or bad user experience will affect SEO and other marketing campaigns. No matter the number of hours you have spent on your landing page, you will not get the most out of it if your website loads slowly.

In fact, most users are likely to leave your page immediately and head to a competitive page if it loads slowly. Imagine bringing visitors to your landing page only to leave because your website loads slowly.

Too bad, right?

Besides the speed, you need to ensure that your website loads quickly on all devices, including smartphones and tablets. After all, about 50% of website traffic comes from mobile, which is expected to rise in the coming years.

Google PageSpeed Insights will help get the necessary insights to improve your page loading speed. Implementing these suggestions will help improve your page loading speed and impact your SEO.

Clear call to action (CTA)

The CTA is another critical element of a killer landing page. This button offers an effective way to get your visitors to take action and is a sure way to get more leads and drive sales. The CTA button for a high-converting landing page consists of these key elements:

• Text — Your CTA message needs to be concise and action-oriented. The catch is to give your text a sense of urgency and use first-person to give your CTA a personal touch.
• Size — The size of your CTA button should be appropriate for your users. Remember, there are many mobile internet users, so ensure that your text can be seen on mobile devices.
• Color — The need for choosing the right color for a high-converting landing page cannot be overstated. To make your CTA color stand out, consider a color that contrasts with the background of your landing page.

Lead capture form

Lead capture forms provide a quick way to improve your landing page conversion rate. However, ensure not to ask for too much info as this will hurt your conversion rates. Lessen the required fields to ensure that you don’t overwhelm your visitors with questions and increase their chances of abandoning the form.

Asking your visitor’s name, email, contact details, and location will do the trick. You can always ask for more information at later stages of your engagements.

Short, actionable copy

The need for an engaging copy for a high-converting landing page cannot be overstated. You need to work with an experienced copywriter to help create a landing page that can convert.

Your copy needs to be short and actionable.

Any landing page with more than 50 words above the fold will lead to a higher bounce rate. Ask any experienced marketer, and they will tell you that creating a clear and actionable copy for your landing page works any day.

The catch is to ensure that your copy can evoke your audience’s emotions. Ensure that your copy highlights how your prospects can benefit from your products or services and how it will make their lives easier. In other words, your copy should not talk about your product’s features but rather the solutions.

A guarantee

Trust is a crucial component for a high-converting landing page. After all, if prospects cannot trust you, they are unlikely to buy from you. You can make customers trust you by offering a money-back guarantee on your landing page. Regardless of how you do it, a guarantee will help improve conversions.

Here’s what to remember when creating a guarantee for your landing page:

• Guarantees come in different forms. Select the one that works best for your business and include it on your landing page.
• Place your guarantee statement around the CTA to give your prospects some assurance and increase the chances of conversions.
• If you do not have a specific product guarantee, such as a money-back or satisfaction guarantee, you can offer other types of guarantees like a “no-spam guarantee.”

As you can see, you do not need to provide an explicit guarantee or talk about its legalities. A guarantee statement that provides a level of comfort to your prospects will do the trick.

Include trust badges

Trust badges can significantly increase your landing page conversion rates. As earlier stated, people want to purchase something from a brand they trust. In fact, many (if not all) will click on the badges to check your reviews to confirm whether they are legit before deciding to do business with you.

You will experience an increase in your conversion rate by including trust badges on your landing page.

This can include testimonials, media mentions, and corporate rewards. That said, here are some tips when adding badges and seal tests:

• Place the badge close to the “place order button” or any other desired action
• Include the badge or seal in your header
• Make the badge or seal clickable

A/B test everything

You are not yet done. You need to A/B test everything to ensure you have more accurate data on all the changes you make on your landing page. This is especially important if you make more than one element of your landing page and want to know which one has the best conversion rates.

It is crucial to test one major element at a time.

These include the headline, design, layout, etc., to determine which of the changes has the most impact on your landing page conversion rate. The idea is to be certain the change in conversion rate results from a change you made.

Ready to improve your conversion rates?

That is it. These are some of the elements of a high-converting landing page. By following the above tips, you will improve your landing pages conversion rates and return your investment. However, before I let you go, let us look at some reasons why landing may not be converting. These can include:

• Misunderstanding your prospects needs
• Poor headlines
• Non-intuitive design
• Unclear CTAs
• Distractions

By avoiding these mistakes and implementing the above elements, you will improve your landing page conversion rate. The catch is to take your time to understand how users interact with your page and keep testing the changes you make to determine the steps to take.