Search engines rely on an ever evolving set of metrics to determine page rankings. Google’s latest algorithm update is said to more effectively identify low-quality content and reduce the ranking of those pages while elevating the ranking of higher quality small- and medium-sized sites. This is great news for produce brands looking to optimize their online presence in 2015.

Here are three quick search engine optimization tips that you may be missing in your SEO planning this year:

3 Simple SEO Tips for Fresh Produce Marketers

1. Proper Linking – Not only does Google analyze the relevancy of your own page content, but it also evaluates the validity of your external links when ranking any given page on your site. If given a choice between two link sources, you should always choose the highest quality source in your link. In other words, your reputation with Google will be elevated by the reputation of your linked sites.

2. Consistent Photo Labeling – They say a picture is worth a thousand words and when it comes to SEO, properly tagged photos can help make or break your ranking. While you are given an option to add a Title, Caption, Alt and Description to any photo you upload to your website or blog, the most important information for SEO ranking is the Alt text.

The search engine bots that crawl web pages and deliver up search results rely on a photo’s Alt text to help determine content relevancy for that page. So it’s important to provide Alt text that directly correlates to the photo contents and the page that it is shown in. It is also critical that if a page contains more than one photo, each photo be labeled with different keywords so that Google does not find your content to be too redundant.

3. Mobile Site Configuration – Phones and tablets have quickly become the preferred devices for digital content consumption. As we’ve seen this trend pick up speed over the last five years, mobile-friendly websites have been an important aspect of many companies’ marketing evolutions.

However, according to a study by BrightEdge, over 25% of mobile sites “are ranked lower than they should be because Google and other search engines do not recognize the mobile site as related to its desktop counterpart.” This data relates specifically to dedicated mobile sites hosted on their own unique URL and is a result of any number of possible coding issues that the study identifies.

Fortunately, those issues can be identified and easily resolved by a web developer. To prevent these types of challenges in the future, we recommend transitioning to a single mobile responsive web design will ensure Google views the desktop site and mobile site as one in the same for purposes of ranking.

Websites are a continual work in progress and no doubt, algorithm changes will always keep us on our toes. Make sure to regularly identify new search engine parameters and try subscribing to a blog like SEO Moz to stay updated on algorithm changes.

Are you considering a new website in 2015? The DMA Solutions web team can help! First, take a look at these 10 Steps to Optimizing Your Website to identify your website needs.