We have been working on the Search Engine Optimisation forQuiddi Compare (https://quiddicompare.co.uk/) for just over 6 months. Seach Engine Optmisation, also known as SEO, involves using a host of techniques toboost one’sposition on Google for hundreds and thousands of relevant keywords. After implementing ourSEO changes, it usually takes Google around 6 months to show your true results. You may find that your rankings flunctuate a lot in the early days but by 6 months, Google has a better indication of your site’s worth and can rank you accordingly.
So now that we’ve done our 6 months for Quiddi, one of the leading loan comparison sites in the UK,we can finally see the results of our hard work which include a first page position for ‘compare payday loans,’ ‘payday loan comparison’ and ‘best payday loans.’
Our Approach
We had to be careful. The SEO techniques in the UK for the payday loans industry are notoriously spammy, something that actually caused Matt Cutts, the head of Search at Google to issue a specific Payday Loan Algorithm to tidy things up (find the video below). This algorithm means companies trying to rank for payday loans receive special attention. Accordingly,your SEO techniques need to be whiter than white to provide sustainable results. If you plan to use thin content which is duplicatedor generate unnatural links, you will be penalised. With this in mind, we executed the following strategy:
Content –We created useful and resourceful information surrounding all the different types of loans, credit cards and mortgages. We created a source of information so whether it was in the main body or on the sidebar, you could find every bit of information that you need. This achieved to keep users on the site for longer because the information was relevant to them.
Links –The SEO for loans can be very spammy. So rather than buying links from unknown and irrelevant websites, we made a relationship with every company we got a link from so it looked as natural as possible, including PR in news articles and money guides.
User Experience –The user experience is more and more important in Google’s eyes. To emphasize this, we put the site on a secure service (https), made the site responsive (and mobile friendly) and included a host of images and videos to create an overall great experience for customers.
Social –We worked on the social media following for the website to follow the premise that a site with more tweets and shares looks more relevant than one without. We ran competitions on facebook and twitter and included iPad giveaways to generate social traction.
Looking further ahead, we are creating various tools and widgets for users to play around with and find the best loan product for them. We want to show the search engines that we are more than just content and loans but somewhere you can get advice and insight that you won’t find anywhere else.