You launch your website, all proud of your creation, and then struggle to rank high in search results.
You just wrote the next great American novel, but people have yet to learn it exists. Frustrating, right?
Everyone you talk to, all the marketing gurus online, says the same thing: SEO, SEO, SEO. It’s like this magic cure-all, but what exactly is it? Where do you even begin?
Let’s break it down.
Search engines are bridges between user queries and the vast ocean of online content.
SEO, short for Search Engine Optimisation, is a translator between your website and search engines.
So, you might be wondering what basic building blocks prop up the edifice of search engine optimisation.
SEO success hinges on understanding the three pillars of the SEO triangle: content, technical SEO, and backlinks.
The Triangle’s Apex: Content
Without valuable, informative content, there’s nothing for search engines to understand or users to engage with.
Great content needs keywords people are searching for to get noticed.
Think of it like a conversation.
The key to attracting viewers to your fantastic content is using the search terms they type to find information.
The right keywords make your content user-friendly.
But to appease search engines, you need to align your content to the search intent behind a user’s query.
Search engines prioritise understanding the user’s goal behind the search query.
Imagine searching for “Italian restaurants near me” and ending up on a website about the history of Italian cuisine.
While the website might have exciting content, it doesn’t fulfil your search intent of finding restaurants.
Now that you know why keywords matter, let’s dig into how to find the perfect ones to weave into your content.
Unearthing Keywords For SEO Success
Consider employing professional keyword research tools like Ahrefs or Semrush.
Dive into forums, social media groups, and online communities related to your niche.
Conversations on these platforms reveal valuable keyword opportunities and provide insights into your audience’s needs.
Check out high-ranking content in your niche.
It’s not about copying but understanding what works and finding your voice.
Last but not least, put yourself in your target audience’s shoes.
What questions would they be typing into search engines related to your topic?
Think of it as predicting search intent – what problem are your readers trying to solve with their searches?
Keywords that match user intent are essential for successful content marketing.
Broadening Your Reach with Varied Keywords
Different users have varying levels of knowledge about a topic.
Including broad and specific keywords ensures your content caters to various needs.
Some are browsing for sneakers, while others are serious runners seeking specific features.
Just like a well-stocked shoe store offers options for every customer.
Incorporating a variety of relevant keywords ensures your content reaches the right audience and achieves its SEO goals.
The Importance of Readability and Organisation
Search engines favour well-structured content, making it easier for users to discover your pages through search.
Simple, clear language makes the information accessible to a broader audience and avoids confusion.
Good titles, meta descriptions, headings, paragraphs, and sections help readers quickly navigate the content and find specific information.
With structured data, you can unlock richer search results(also called Rich Snippets) that showcase features like ratings, images, reviews, recipe ingredients, and more.
With these visual enhancements, your result becomes more informative and enticing, potentially leading to more clicks.
Higher click through rate (CTR) can act as a thumbs-up for search engines, indicating users find your content valuable. This might translate to improved rankings in search results.
Stand Out: Why Unique Content Matters
Unique and updated content helps you differentiate yourself from the competition.
Originality demonstrates your expertise and offers fresh perspectives on the topic.
Readers and search engines value unique insights over regurgitated information.
Links to other reputable websites offer users and search engines additional information on a topic, enriching your content and potentially demonstrating your expertise.
Now that we’ve covered the content side of SEO, let’s turn our attention to the other crucial aspect: technical SEO.
Search engines might have trouble finding and understanding content if the technical aspects aren’t optimised.
Technical SEO: Unleashing the Full Potential of Your Content
Technical SEO involves fine-tuning a website’s technical facets for search engines.
User experience also improves by ensuring fast loading times and straightforward navigation, contributing to better search rankings.
The Mechanics of Crawling: Bots, Spiders, and Website Indexing
Crawling is the fundamental step for search engines even to discover a web page exists.
In the eyes of search engines, if a page can’t be crawled, it doesn’t exist.
The foundation of SEO success starts with a website architecture that ensures search engines can easily crawl and index your website.
Search engine crawlers consult your robots.txt file as a guideline before exploring your website.
Ensure your robots.txt file allows access to important content like blog posts and regular website pages so search engines can find them.
Keep valuable content from getting lost! Include all essential pages in your sitemap, especially those that might be harder to find through regular browsing.
If a crawlable page is deemed valuable, the search engine analyses its content and stores it in its index.
When a user enters a search query, the search engine retrieves relevant pages from its index and ranks them based on various factors.
Other factors adversely impacting crawling are broken links, server issues, and network problems.
Securing Your Web Browsing: The Importance of HTTPS
HTTP is the foundation for communication on the web, allowing browsers and servers to exchange information, which is how web pages are delivered to users.
HTTPS is a secure version of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that uses encryption to protect data transfer between browsers and servers.
Although HTTPS offers broader security advantages, its role in search engine optimisation (SEO) makes it a crucial aspect of technical SEO.
Core Web Vitals for a Frictionless User Journey
Prioritising users, Core Web Vitals revolve around three metrics, which quantify speed, responsiveness, and layout stability for a seamless experience.
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) tracks how quickly the largest piece of visual content loads on your page.
Aim for an LCP of under 2.5 seconds to ensure the main content of your page loads quickly and keeps visitors engaged.
Interaction To Next Paint (INP) gauges a web page’s responsiveness by measuring the time from user interaction to the resulting visual change on the screen.
An INP below 200 milliseconds means your website has made the grade for a smooth user experience.
March 2024 saw a Core Web Vital update: Google replaced First Input Delay (FID) with Interaction to Next Paint (INP).
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) measures visual stability and tracks how much the layout of your web page shifts as elements load.
For a by-the-book user experience, endeavor for a CLS score below (0.1).
Boost your SEO with Core Web Vitals!
Optimising your website for these metrics can significantly improve your search ranking and attract more organic traffic by providing a superior user experience.
Beyond Mobile-Friendly: The Power of Responsive Web Design
Google priorities mobile versions of websites for indexing and ranking.
There’s a method to the madness!
By mid-2023, a staggering 96% of the global digital population accessed the internet via mobile devices.
Responsive design goes beyond just mobile optimisation.
It ensures a seamless user experience across all screen sizes, from desktops and tablets to laptops.
By prioritising user experience with responsive design, websites can improve rankings and overall SEO performance.
The SEO puzzle is almost complete!
We’ve established the twin pillars of “On-Page SEO”: compelling content that users and search engines love and a technically sound website foundation.
Let’s focus on backlinks, the missing piece that completes the SEO triangle.
The Authority Arc: Backlinks
Backlinks, called inbound or incoming links, are created when another website includes a clickable link with your website’s URL within its content.
Backlinks originate entirely on a different website, not from within your pages.
Backlinks from other websites are a key part of “Off-Site Optimisation“ efforts.
Following the Backlink Trail: Dofollow vs. Nofollow
Dofollow links act like a vote of confidence from the linking website and pass on link juice to your website.
Search engines consider dofollow links editorial endorsements, suggesting the linking website finds your content valuable and relevant, forming a strong SEO foundation.
While nofollow links don’t directly pass link juice, they offer SEO benefits.
Nofollow links can still drive valuable traffic to your website if users click on them.
Nofollow backlinks can help build brand awareness by getting your website’s name seen by a wider audience.
A healthy mix of dofollow and nofollow backlinks appears more natural to search engines and indicates a diverse range of sources linking to your website.
Not All Backlinks Are Created Equal
When a high-authority website (think well-established, trusted websites in your niche) links to yours, it is a positive recommendation.
Search engines consider these endorsements (backlinks) as a sign of your website’s credibility and relevance.
Backlinks from spammy websites can even hurt your SEO performance.
Strategies for Building Backlinks
While the “holy grail” of SEO is undoubtedly earning backlinks organically due to your website’s fantastic content.
Multifaceted approaches to building a profile of high-quality backlinks focus on:
Sharing content on relevant social media platforms and engaging with influencers in your niche.
Contributing guest posts to high-authority websites in your niche.
Collaborating with other websites in your industry for interviews or joint webinars.
Submitting your content for relevant industry awards or recognition programs.
Connecting with bloggers, journalists in your niche.
Building a solid backlink profile takes time and effort.
While organic links are the ultimate goal, a well-rounded strategy is crucial.
Consistently create high-quality content, promote it strategically, and nurture relationships to build website authority and attract deserved backlinks.
Conclusion
This brings us to the culmination of our discussion: the three core elements of a successful SEO strategy.
The path to a robust SEO foundation is clear! Dedicating yourself to high-quality content that captivates users and search engines alike, a technically sound website and a strategic backlink profile equips you with the essential tools for long-term SEO success.
SEO is a marathon, not a sprint, but with these pillars in place, your website is well-positioned to dominate search results and attract the organic traffic it deserves.
