SEO Recommendations for News Websites
SEO promotion for news websites comes with a number of nuances that should be considered when developing an optimization strategy. We will examine these specifics in more detail.
Optimize Your Web Resource for Google News
Google News is an aggregator where the most current and trending news is compiled from various sources worldwide. The selection and delivery of information is carried out based on the principle of relevance to the specific time period. Thus, the reader receives fresh material directly from the source, while publishers can increase their website traffic without significant effort.
For a website to be included in Google News, it is not enough to simply pay; the site must meet specific technical criteria. A complete list of requirements is outlined in the official Google guidelines.
Create a Sitemap.xml for Your News Site
A sitemap is an XML file that contains the most important information relevant to the content of the site. Specialists recommend separating the news section into its own map to make it easier for search engine crawlers to scan the data for inclusion in Google News.
Having a list of URLs for news articles is essential, as Google News activates the process of gathering, sorting, and translating articles. Additionally, by structuring this data logically, Google Search algorithms can better grasp the essence of the published content, as it will be well organized.
Typically, the microformats highlighted include:
- Contact information;
- Company logos and trademarks;
- Lists and rankings;
- Upcoming events and relevant dates, etc.
Utilize Google Discover as a Traffic Source
The personalized Discover feed from Google is a new effective method for SEO promotion of online platforms. Currently, Google Discover is only available on the mobile version. Its essence lies in the fact that the news feed is generated automatically based on the specific interests of the user. However, Google representatives note that the selection of recommendations often happens arbitrarily; thus, traffic from Google Discover is free and intensive, albeit unpredictable.
Monitor Key Metrics
To understand how effective the chosen SEO strategy is, it is essential to define specific criteria for assessing the completed work. In terms of performance indicators, the results of promotional efforts can be evaluated based on the following metrics gathered from Google Analytics:
- Total visits to the platform: Google provides a section dedicated to traffic. You can check the dynamics of changes in site visits or specific pages over a selected time period. Through indicators such as “session duration,” “unique visitors,” and “new visitors,” you can also track seasonal trends.
- Average user engagement time on the page: This metric reflects the level of user involvement in the process of interacting with the published content.
- Main sources of traffic: This section provides insight into which channels are bringing your audience.
- Most visited pages: This metric shows the most read articles over the last period;
- Traffic geography: It is important for a news publication to understand in which regions its target audience resides to tailor content to the most relevant themes, including local significance.
Conclusion
The task of optimizing news websites cannot be deemed simple. However, the results of effective work are bound to manifest if the media resource owners seriously approach the matter and apply the recommendations provided in this article.
