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This document provides simple suggestions on ways of getting information about your morris, sword or traditional dance side to the first page of Google – and we explain that this can be done even if you don’t have a website!
Although there can be no guarantee that the suggestions will ensure your side’s details will be listed on the first page of Google results, evidence suggests that early adopters of the suggestions are already seeing the visibility of information for their side being enhanced,
The advice provided in this document were initially outlined in a “Getting to the Top of Google (and Other IT Issues)” workshop held on Zoom on 3 April 2022. A review of the talk is available, and recordings of the main talks (slides with audio) can be viewed for those who would like to hear an explanation of the approaches, in particular:
In brief (and relevant to all Morris Federation sides, whether you have a website or not):
In addition, for Morris Federation sides which have a website:
Initially we suggested that sides should provide a short factual summary of their side. However following analysis of Google searches for the profiles we now suggest the following:
#location‘ in your profile which provides details of where your side is based. This can be free text, and will probably include the name of your town, city or village, as well as the county. #kit‘ in your profile which provides details of your kit, if this is a particular feature of your side, or may be something people search for.#newmemberswelcome‘ in your profile may also be useful in providing a simple way of finding sides which are seeking new members.#mindthelight‘ in their profile).Rivington Morris provide a good example of a side which makes use of these suggestions:
Notice that the profile contain the side’s hashtag #rivingtonmorris.
Rivington Morris’s profile also contains photographs (and a video) which show accompanying descriptions which is indexed by Google.
In this case, if people are using Google to search for photographs of the Horwich Harriers fayre in 2021 this images may be found.
You should note that a side’s hashtag might also be used in a cation for a video, as the hashtag is likely yo be much shorter than the URL for a website or a Facebook profile.
Currently (14 April 2022) over 50% of the Teamfinder profiles have been indexed by Google, and it appears that new pages are updated every 5 days of so.
The above suggestions are applicable to all sides, whether or not you have a website. However if your site does have a website you can make use of links from your website to enhance the discoverability of the Morris Federation website and content on the website, such as your side’s profile.
The Hemlock Morris website provides a good example of providing a link to the Morris Federation website.
From the About page the page describes how “Hemlock Morris are proud to be members of the Morris Federation” and goes on to add the Morris Federation website “features a wealth of resources and information on morris dancing, and has also provided numerous updates and activities to keep us entertained and informed from our homes.“
In addition, sides may also find it useful to provide a link to their Teamfinder profile page, as this should help to enhance the visibility of their profile. The following example suggests a form of words which can be useful for your own side, as well as helping others who may be looking for find a morris side.
You can see the Xxx Morris profile on the Morris Federation’s Teamfinder service.
This lets you view a database of about 500 sides: an essential tool for dancers and musicians (experienced and those wishing to learn).
Note in the above the link to “Xxx Morris profile” should be the URL of your sides profile (which is of the form “https://www.morrisfed.org.uk/teamfinder/#!biz/id/5b053bd6afd691796be93518/”) and the link to the “Morris Federation’s Teamfinder service” should be to https://www.morrisfed.org.uk/teamfinder/ .
We welcome feedback on this document. In addition we would like to hear from morris, sword and other traditional dance sides who use IT and would be willing to share their experiences. Would you like to contribute a case study?
Document published: 19 Apr 2022
This document is available with a Creative Commons Sharealike (CC-BY) licence. In brief, this means you can copy and make changes to this document provided you give acknowledgements to the author/publisher. A suggested wording for acknowledgements is:
This document is based on the "Getting Details of Your Morris Side to the Top of Google" document by Brian Kelly, Comms and IT volunteer with the Morris Federation.
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