Our search and how content helps
Our site search engine is powered by Google. The main search box on the front page along with popular page buttons and the main site menu. There is also a search icon in the header that can be used wherever you are on the site.
When someone searches for something the most relevant results are returned. Our search looks for the words used in the title, description and content. It also picks up on any keywords that have been applied.
Here is an example of the search results that are returned when using the search term ‘blue badge’.
Customising our search
We also are able to custom our search, exclude draft pages from results until they are ready, edit the layout of how results are returned and promote key topics.
Auto complete is turned on to give useful suggestions which might help users get to their results quicker.
Search Optimisation
Relevant metadata
The more relevant information that exists about a webpage, the better a search engine can understand what a page is about and rank the page appropriately. Where information is missing, a search engine has less information to work with so will be less likely to rank it highly.
We make sure any the metadata fields available are populated with accurate, relevant information.
Page titles no longer than 50 to 60 characters
If they are any longer than this they may be cut off in search engine results pages. This could mean that important words are not displayed. If users do not properly understand what a page is about from search results they may be less likely to choose it.
We try to keep titles short and make the most of the characters available by using keywords that help users find the content. We front-load the title with the most important keywords to maximise their impact.
Optimise page descriptions
The more relevant information that exists about a webpage, the easier it is for search engines to understand the content and rank it appropriately.
We try not to include confusing or inaccurate information as it can negatively affect the page’s position in search results. We also try not to repeat words as search engines may interpret duplicated words or content within the page as an attempt to boost the page ranking artificially, and could rank the page lower as a result.
Prioritising keywords and front-loading them
We aim to be as informative as possible and only include information relevant to the page.
We pay particular attention to the first 120 characters of any abstract as this will appear as a content preview in search results along with the title.
We don’t use non-sensical text or word strings.
Short URLs
Research shows that pages with long URLs are more likely to appear low down in Google search results. URLs should ideally be no longer than 50 to 60 characters.
We don’t always have control over the length of a URL, but we try to keep it as short as possible.
Avoid special characters where these are not displayed correctly
Search engines penalise webpages containing information that does not make sense. Special characters (such as copyright or trademark symbols) may have a negative impact on the page’s ranking.
We check how special characters are displayed and where they are displayed incorrectly, we remove them. If we still need use them, they will be explained them in the text.
Keeping the same URL if data is updated
Pages usually increase their place in search engines over time. Creating a new page takes time for it to build up recognition with the search engine. When we update a page with new content or data we keep the URL the same as long as it is relevant.
Removing out-of-date pages
The more data that is published, the harder it is for users to filter out the noise and find the source they really want. Search engines view recently updated pages more positively so pages that are out of date, or not actively managed, are less likely to be seen by users. If they are not seen by users they do not add value, but simply add to the long tail of results.
We have a processes for managing the pages we publish. We make sure we regularly review and remove pages if they are no longer useful or relevant to users.
We try to set up a permanent redirect for any pages removed so users are directed to other relevant content and do not encounter broken links.
Tools and tests to understand users
Google Trends is a website by Google that analyses the popularity of top search queries in Google Search across various regions and languages.
We use it to give us an idea of what people are looking for and what popular keywords they might be using when searching for our services. We can then add any search terms as keywords to our pages to improve our search and make pages easier to find.