SEO stands for ‘Search Engine Optimization’, which is the process of strategically configuring your website and web content to boost your ranking in free (organic) search results. By optimizing your website to correspond with how search engines look for content, you can improve your website’s chances of earning a higher search position or ‘ranking’ in search results pages.
From the outset, websites should be designed and developed with SEO best-practices in mind. SEO involves making a number of deliberate confgurations to parts of your website. When viewed in isolation, these changes might seem like small, incremental improvements, but when combined with other optimizations, they can – collectively, have a big impact on your site’s user experience and performance in organic search results.
SEO ranking factors can change frequently, but the key SEO principles do not. We can break SEO into three main sections;
SEO Basics
First and foremost, Search Engines look for high-quality, relevant content. These best practices are fundamental in helping you to configure your site and its content to be searchable and rank highly on searches engines.
- Keyword Research
- Semantic url and page titles
- Set up Google Search Console
- Set up Bing Webmaster Tools
- Add Google Analytics
- Install and Configure an SEO Plugin
- Generate and Submit a Sitemap
- Create a Robots .txt file
- Check GSC for manual actions
- Make sure that site indexed
Technical Optimization
Technical Optimization is the process of completing activities on your site that are designed to improve SEO but are not related to content. It often happens behind the scenes.
- Ensure website is responsive (mobile-friendly)
- Check site loading speed
- Install an SSL Security Cert
- Find and fix any crawl errors
- Use an SEO-friendly URL structure
- Identify and fix broken links
- Check canonical tags on posts and pages
- Use Schema mark-up generator
On-Page Optimization
On-Page Optimization is the process of ensuring the content on your site is relevant, properly structured and provides a great user experience. It includes targeting the right keywords within your content and can be done through a content management system.
- Use correct header title structure (H1, H2, H3)
- Use meta descriptions
- Page content should be 300+ words.
- Optimize keyword density
- Use image alt attributes
- Highlight keyword content with <b> or <i> tags
- Use internal links
Off-Page Optimization
Off-Page Optimization is the process of enhancing your site’s search engine rankings through activities outside of the site. This is largely driven by backlinks, which help to build your site’s credibility and reputation (Authority Score).
- Set up and optimize Google My Business
- Turn unlinked mentions into links
- Leverage Social Media sites
- Reviews (Google Reviews, Trustpilot, Social Media)
- Content Marketing (Blog posts, Events, Social Media posts)
- Google Business Profile