Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of getting traffic to your website through search results. All search engines display primary search results. That is, websites and content, images, or videos that are displayed based on user input. Search engines display and rank results by what is most relevant to the user. If you own a website, you want to rank as high as possible on search engine results pages (SERPs). This ensures that users see your site, which should lead to more visitors, and over time, customers.
If you are like many business owners, you’ve heard of SEO but don’t really know how to apply it to your business. Developed by a Black-Owned SEO company, this guide will help you understand SEO and how to apply it to your business.
What is SEO?
SEO is a process by which web designers and content writers optimize a website to meet the demands of search engines. The better optimized a website is, the more likely that it will rank highly on search results pages. The higher your page ranks, the more likely you are to be viewed by potential customers.
Why SEO is Important
SEO is important because the more traffic you get to your site, the more likely you are to convert – meaning users interact with your site by filling out a form, subscribing, or placing an order. With the vast majority of users searching online before making a purchase, it is more important than ever to rank well.
Best Practices for SEO
If you want to boost traffic to your site through SEO, here are a few best practices that may help you get started:
- Determine what you are optimizing for. This is done by identifying the search terms that people are entering into search engines (keywords).
- Narrow down your keywords by looking at how many people search for those keywords.
- Make sure your keywords are relevant to your audience.
- Find out what sort of competition you have with those keywords.
Implementing Your Keywords
After you have your target keywords narrowed down, the next step is implementing them. To do this, you will choose a keyword for each page on your website, and optimize your content to that keyword. Web services like WordPress have plugins that you can use to optimize your content. Yoast, for example, shows you your keyword density (percentage of keywords to total text), and provides tips for optimizing the page. Tips include images, headings, the meta description, and your URL.
Internal Linking
Every website has an architecture – or a structure for how pages are organized. This structure is an important part of SEO. The way that your website is organized factors into SEO because the structure impacts how search engines view the site. To build your site’s credibility and authority, you will use an internal linking structure. To do this, you will:
- Select a handful of pages on your site that are optimized for the primary target keywords.
- As you post new pages to your site, have those pages link back to those primary pages.
- Identify high-traffic pages and have other pages link back to those.
Content Marketing
Content marketing is one of the most important tools for SEO. The most successful SEO optimized websites have a regular flow of new, useful, and original content. This content is optimized for target keywords and links back to those high-traffic and most relevant pages. SEO optimized content should be useful, answer a question, or meet a need of readers.
Link Building
Another key element of SEO is link building. That is, when other websites link back to yours. The more sites that link back to yours, the better you will rank in SERPs. Good ways of building links back to your site include:
- Guest blogging
- Posting press releases
- Using a link building service to attract link partners
- Posting on forums
Site Performance
There are also technical aspects to SEO, such as site performance. In short, how your site performs when someone navigates to it. A poor-performing site can cause issues that drop your ranking in SERPs. Some tips for improving site performance:
- Make sure your page speed is optimal. Fast-loading websites tend to perform better on SERPs, generate traffic, and get more conversions.
- Make sure your website is mobile friendly. Search engine algorithms can affect how your website performs on mobile devices. Make sure that you periodically check your site performance on mobile.
- Check for broken links. If there are pages on your website that give a “404 Page Not Found” error, it will affect your overall site performance. And, in turn, will also negatively impact how search engines rank your site.
- Make sure you do not have duplicate content posted on your website. That includes duplicate content on your own pages, as well as duplicate content with other pages on the internet.