Table of Contents
- Who is this guide for?
- What is SEO?
- Key Terms
- Why is SEO important?
- How does SEO work?
- Types of SEO
- White Hat Vs Black Hat Vs Grey Hat SEO
- What is WordPress SEO?
- How to create an effective On-Page SEO strategy
- Why is Local SEO important?
- How to optimise your E-Commerce website?
- 10 SEO techniques to drive organic traffic
- Why is SEO Online Marketing important for your business?
- Recent Trends in SEO
- SEO as a Career Opportunity
- Truths about SEO
- Scope of SEO in India & Globally
- SEO for Small & Medium Businesses
- Free SEO Tools for Marketers
- Choosing an SEO Agency vs Doing It Yourself
- Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Questions
Who is this guide for?
If you’re just getting started with search engine optimisation in 2023, you’ll find this beginner’s guide very helpful. You’ve come to the perfect place if you’ve ever wondered how to optimise your website for search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo!
We’ll walk you through Search Engine Optimisation from start to finish, simplifying complex ideas and providing actionable advice. This comprehensive manual has you covered whether you’re a business owner, a blogger, or just inquisitive about increasing your internet presence. Brace yourself; you’ll be an SEO pro in no time!
What is SEO?
Search engine optimisation, commonly known as SEO is the process through which online businesses increase the organic visibility of their websites on search engines such as Google, Bing, etc. SEO is an important technique with the help of which a website can attain a position in SERP and businesses can drive organic search traffic to their websites which in return yields conversions.
The higher a website ranks, the more internet users have access to the site. SEO can also be used to improve image search, local search, video search, and more. The best part is SEO works not only on Google but any website with a search engine. Some of the popular search engines include Google, Amazon, Bing, YouTube, and more.
Key Terms
There are a few essential terms you should know before delving headfirst into SEO.
Keywords: These are the terms that internet users enter into search engines to find specific information. In order to optimise your content, you must first determine which keywords are appropriate for your website.
Backlinks: These are inbound links to your site from other websites, and they send a message to search engines about the quality and relevance of your material.
Meta Tags: These are pieces of code that tell search engines what the page is about. They are crucial in establishing where your site will rank in search engine results.
SERP: The acronym “SERP” stands for “search engine results page” and refers to the list of results shown by search engines. One of the primary objectives of SEO is learning to optimise your website so that it ranks higher in the SERP.
Crawling: Crawling is how search engines find and evaluate new pages on the web. Google Crawlers and spiders are automated programs used by search engines to explore the web, follow links, and collect information that will be used to establish a site’s relevance in search results.
If you want to learn more about these and other SEO concepts, check out this fantastic resource Digital Marketing Glossary.
Why is SEO important?
SEO can be a game-changer for any website that wants to rank higher on SERP results. Search engine optimisation helps you in improving your website’s rank in search engine results in the following ways:
Quality traffic:
SEO is an inbound marketing strategy. Inbound marketing is customer-centric marketing. It involves creating and making relevant information easily accessible to users for better user interaction.
When you focus on attracting users who are constantly looking for relevant content that is related to your industry, products, and services, you’ll be effective in reaching your target market.
Free of Cost:
SEO doesn’t require you to pay. All it asks is for your time and effort. You contribute to Google by adding relevant answers to people’s search queries, this eventually helps you rank better.
SEO helps in maintaining public relations:
SEO and PR are both different digital marketing strategies but when applied together they can help you maximise the results. The main connection between the two is link building.
Earning links from reputable websites is an important component of SEO strategy and PR strategy is about getting notable publications and influencers to talk about your company.
Move ahead of your competition:
Creating a website using SEO tactics is considered a prominent requirement for all marketing strategies. Having an SEO strategy will help you provide quality content to your users and will help your business augment its visibility on the Internet.
How does SEO work?
Now! That we have a basic idea of SEO, let’s take a step further and see how it works.
The first step in ranking a website is optimising the content on the pages which starts with analysing metrics such as search volume and keyword difficulty.
So how do these major search engines work?
1) Crawling:
In crawling search engines scan all types of content on the internet from regular pages, blog posts, ALT tags, and others.
2) Indexing:
Once the website is crawled, the information then is indexed on Google Search. Through indexing, the search engines analyse, categorise, store, and present it on SERPs.
3) Ranking:
When the end-user submits a search query, the search engine looks into the index and gives out the best results. The list of the results is called SERP (Search Engines Results Page).
Google decides which site to provide a higher rank in SERP based on these four main elements:
- Content: This checks whether the content is relevant to what the user is searching for.
- Performance: This element checks whether the site loads fast and its performance.
- Authority: Authority keeps a check on whether the content is useful enough to link or not.
4) User experience: User experience is a concept to check how aesthetically pleasing your site looks.
Types Of SEO
There are three types of Search engine optimisation:
1) On-page SEO:
On-Page SEO refers to optimising all possible factors with regard to content curated. These include blogs, pages, and product & service pages to name a few. On-page SEO requires a good set of content creators who can articulate human & google friendly content.
Creating content that is relevant to users helps in getting relevant traffic from search engines. On-page takes both the content and HTML of the webpage into consideration.
Key Factors:
Keyword Research: Involves doing some keyword digging and using the terms you find there in your page’s title, headings, meta tags, and content.
Content Optimisation: Involves creating valuable content that aligns with user search intent.
Title Tag Optimisation: Involves using proper heading tags to highlight important sections.
Meta Description: This involves accurately describing your content to attract clicks.
2) Off-page SEO:
Off-page SEO is also called Off-site SEO. Off-page optimisation refers to all the actions performed outside of the actual website to improve your website’s search ranking.
Link building is one of the important aspects of off-page SEO. Link building is the process where you acquire hyperlinks from other websites to your website. It is an important ranking factor, as it helps build credibility and domain authority.
For instance, when your website or blog acquires a link from another relevant website or blog, your website’s authority and trustworthiness will increase.
Key Factors:
Link Building: Involves acquiring high-quality backlinks to increase rank in search engine results.
Posting on Social Media: Involves engaging with the audience on social media to create brand awareness and acquire customers.
Influencer Marketing: Involves reaching out to influencers to promote your brand.
Guest Blogging: Involves writing valuable blogs on guest sites to build links and gain authority
3) Technical SEO:
Technical SEO is the process wherein the technical aspects of a website are improved to increase the website’s organic ranking. Technical aspects include crawling, indexing, rendering, and website architecture.
Key Factors:
Mobile-Friendly Website: This refers to designing a mobile-friendly website so that it can be navigated and read easily on any device.
Page Speed: As Users, many of us prefer websites that load quickly. Page speed is also considered an important ranking factor in SERP.
XML Sitemap: An XML sitemap is a file that helps search engines understand your website’s content better. It acts as a roadmap that tells search engines what content is available and how to reach it.
Google Search Console Registration: Google search console is a free tool that allows you to submit your website to search engines for indexing. Doing so, allows you to keep track of the general performance of your website from SERPs’ perspective.
Structured Data Markup: Structured data markup, also called schema markup, is added to your website to help search engines understand the content easily.
White Hat SEO Vs Black Hat SEO Vs Grey Hat SEO
Knowing the distinction between White Hat SEO, Black Hat SEO, and Grey Hat SEO is crucial for long-term success in the ever-changing world of digital marketing. Let’s get to it!
White Hat SEO strategies adhere to search engine criteria and place a premium on providing genuine value to site visitors. Optimising content, improving the user experience, and increasing organic traffic are the primary goals.
White Hat Strategies involve:
- Keyword Research
- Content Production
- On-page Optimisation
- Trustworthy Backlink Building
- User-Friendly Website Design
Black Hat SEO involves using techniques that are explicitly forbidden by major search engines. Black Hat techniques put rankings ahead of user experience and can even get you banned from search results entirely.
Black Hat Techniques involve:
- Keyword stuffing
- Hidden content or links
- Cloaking
- Spammy link building
- Use of private blog networks (PBNs)
As an alternative to both White Hat and Black Hat SEO strategies, Grey Hat SEO aims to strike a balance between the two extremes. While some “Grey Hat” strategies may not technically be in violation of search engines’ criteria, they nevertheless may not be sustainable in the long run.
There can be temporary benefits to using Grey Hat SEO techniques, but these come with the danger of being penalised by search engines.
Grey Hat SEO Techniques
- Buying Expired Domains
- Automating Social Media Activities
- Article Spinning
When all is said and done, White Hat SEO is the moral option. A solid basis for long-term success can be established by following principles, concentrating on producing outstanding content, and providing exceptional user experiences.
Playing for the long haul, putting money into long-term strategies, and establishing a solid internet presence through moral means is what “white hat” SEO is all about.
What is WordPress SEO?
WordPress SEO is the process of enhancing a WordPress site’s discoverability and ranking in organic search results. In this context, “organic” refers to traffic from search engines that don’t cost anything to promote.
WordPress SEO works to improve a site’s visibility in search results on platforms like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. When the website’s content, structure, and other features are optimised, it increases its chances of being displayed prominently in search results.
Optimising your WordPress website is very important to rank higher in Google, here are a few points you need to keep in mind:
- Choose a reliable website hosting provider that you can trust for quick page loads, consistent uptime, and helpful tech support.
- Setting your site to “index,” including a robots.txt file to inform crawlers, and establishing XML sitemaps are all ways in which search engines can better index your content.
- Select a search engine optimisation (SEO)-friendly theme with a clean code, pre-implemented on-page components (such as meta tags), and a responsive layout that adjusts to users’ devices.
- Make sure the keywords you choose in your permalink structure are relevant to your content.
- You can improve search engine indexing by submitting a sitemap to Google Search Console.
- To simplify optimisation efforts and get guidance, use a plugins like Yoast SEO, Rank Math, or All in One SEO Pack.
- To raise the standard and usefulness of your indexed pages, avoid indexing low-quality content.
- Find out what your readers are looking for by conducting keyword research, then use those terms throughout your article for maximum impact.
- Use title tags, header tags, keyword placement, internal and external links, and meta descriptions to make content that people will want to read and share.
- Search engines prefer sites that provide a safe and trustworthy surfing experience for their users, so make sure you’re using SSL/HTTPS.
- Choose a reliable web host, compress and optimise picture files, minimise server requests, and think about using a content delivery network (CDN) to optimise your website speed.
- Create original and shareable content, network with influencers and industry websites, and leverage social media to earn high-quality backlinks from credible sources.
- In order to keep up with changes to search engine algorithms and user behaviour, it is important to regularly review and revise your SEO strategy.
How to Create an Effective On-Page SEO Strategy
We have already discussed the definition of On-Page SEO and its key factors. Let us now discuss how to create an effective On-Page SEO Strategy.
- Target Keyword and Frequency
- Title and Subheadings
- Meta Title and Meta Description
- Internal and External Links
- Content
- URLs for SEO
- Optimisation for Click-through-Rate (CTR)
- UX Signals
It’s time to take it a step further with the ultimate on-page SEO checklist now that we’ve covered the essential components of an efficient on-page SEO strategy.
You can use this practical checklist as your go-to reference to make sure that all areas of your on-page optimisation are addressed.
Why is Local SEO important?
The term “local SEO” refers to the process of improving a website’s content and visibility in local search results. By using local SEO, businesses can draw in nearby consumers who are actively looking for goods and services.
Local SEO is important for businesses because it allows businesses to target customers who are within the same geographical area. This allows businesses to market to customers who are most likely looking to buy products like yours.
Some of the reasons why Local SEO is important are listed below:
i) Targeted Visibility: This visibility helps businesses connect with their target audience and raises the possibility of drawing in customers who are more likely to buy your products.
ii) Increased Online Presence: Businesses can boost their exposure on search machines, online directories, etc by optimising their online presence for local clients.
iii) Mobile Optimisation: Local searches are more common now that mobile usage is on the rise. Local SEO makes sure that businesses are visible and accessible to users searching on their mobiles.
iv) Competitive Advantage: Businesses can maintain their competitiveness by catering to their local customers. A company that ignores local SEO runs the risk of losing potential clients to rivals.
v) Client Trust and Character: Positive reviews and high ratings boost a company’s reputation while also impacting consumer choices.
vi) Cost-Effective Marketing: When compared to conventional advertising strategies, Local SEO is a more affordable marketing tactic. It enables companies to target particular areas and connect with their local clientele without having to spend a fortune on advertising.
To learn more about how you can optimise your website for Local SEO and drive more conversions, check out our Ultimate Guide to Local SEO.
How to Optimise Your E-Commerce Website?
E-commerce SEO, or “search engine optimisation for electronic commerce,” refers to the methods used to raise a web store’s overall visibility in search results and the prominence of its particular product pages.
Optimising your e-commerce website is essential because it increases organic traffic, improves user experience, gives higher conversion rates, gives you a competitive advantage, ensures long-term sustainability, and is pocket friendly.
To learn how to optimise your e-commerce store you need to follow the following steps:
Step 1: Keyword Research
To optimise an online store’s search engine results, you must first conduct extensive keyword research. It entails figuring out what people are actually typing into search engines to find your goods or service.
By completing extensive keyword research, you can optimise your product pages for keywords with high demand and low competition, increasing your chances of rising in search engine results.
Step 2: On-Page Optimisation
The goal of on-page optimisation is to increase the exposure and relevance of individual web pages in search engines. Title tag and meta tag optimisation keyword usage in body copy, header tag utilisation, and picture alt tag optimisation are all part of this process.
Your product pages will rank higher in search results if you use on-page optimisation strategies to give them a good structure and fill them with information search engines can use.
Step 3: Site Structure and Navigation
Both user satisfaction and search engine rankings are directly impacted by your online shop’s layout and navigation. Making it simple for site users to browse your products requires classifying them into broad headings and more specific subheadings.
Your site’s user experience and search engine rankings will both benefit from more logical and straightforward navigation.
Step 4: Mobile Optimisation
With the rise of mobile shopping, it’s more important than ever to ensure that your website is optimised for mobile consumers by making it more prominent in mobile search results.
Step 5: Site Speed Optimisation
Fast loading times are good for both visitors and search engine rankings. Various methods, including code minimization, image optimisation, browser caching, and content delivery networks (CDNs), can be used to increase the speed of your online store.
Step 6: High-Quality Content Creation
If you want your online store to succeed, you need to focus on creating original and high-quality content. It’s important to include relevant keywords in product descriptions, category pages, blog articles, and any other types of content you create. Superior content not only clarifies your offerings for search engines but also draws in and keeps your ideal customers interested.
Step 7: Building Backlinks
SEO for online shops relies heavily on backlinks or links to the store from other sites. Getting authoritative and relevant links back to your site can boost its standing with search engines.
Step 8: Social Media Engagement
While social media promotion and interaction aren’t technically a component of on-page optimisation, it plays a crucial function in drawing customers to your online shop. Interacting with followers on social media can boost awareness of your company, bring in new consumers, and get more people to visit your website.
There are several tools available to help you with your e-commerce search engine optimisation like:
- SEMrush
- Ahrefs
- Moz Pro
- Google Analytics
- Google Search Console
10 SEO Techniques to Drive Organic Traffic
- Conduct Keyword Research: Use Google’s Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to look for keywords that are relevant to your niche. Focus on the most popular and relevant terms. Use these keywords to enhance the page’s optimisation.
- Make Content of Superior Quality: Always aim to create content that is both informative and interesting for your intended readers. Use stories, make your content timeless, and inspire people to share it.
- Optimise On-Page Elements: Improve your site’s search engine rankings by fine-tuning its on-page elements including title tags, meta descriptions, header tags, content body, internal and external links, image optimisation, and URL structure.
- Incorporate Backlinks: Gaining backlinks from reputable sources can greatly increase your site’s credibility and search engine rankings.
- Optimise for Mobile: Ensure a smooth user experience on mobile devices by optimising for them. This includes making your website responsive, touch-friendly, and with suitable font sizes.
- Improve Website Speed: For faster load times, it is recommended to employ caching, image optimisation, code minification, and tools like Google PageSpeed Insights and GTMetrix.
- Leverage Social Media: Embrace the power of social media by sharing content, interacting with your audience, and expanding your reach to new people through sponsored and collaborative efforts.
- Optimise for Voice Search: Learn how people use voice search and tailor your content to address frequently asked questions in a way that’s easy to understand. Make sure your website can be easily accessed from mobile devices.
- Implement Structured Data Markup: Using Schema.org elements, you can use structured data markup to give search engines more information about your content. This can lead to rich snippets being displayed in search results.
- Update Old Content: If you want your content to remain relevant draw in new readers, and rank higher in search engine results, it must be updated and optimised on a regular basis.
To learn in more detail about the above-stated points, click here.
Why is SEO Online Marketing Important For Your Business?
The importance of search engine optimisation (SEO) in online marketing cannot be overstated. Search engine optimisation, or SEO, helps businesses improve their online visibility so that more customers may find them when they conduct online searches.
Businesses can improve their online sales and revenue by using SEO methods to increase organic traffic to their website, raise awareness of their brand, draw in quality prospects, and close the deal.
Staying ahead of the competition and connecting with your target audience in today’s internet market requires a well-executed SEO web marketing campaign.
Recent Trends in SEO
Keeping up with the most recent SEO trends is essential if you want to keep your website at the top of search engine results pages.
User Experience: The value placed on the user’s (or customer’s) experience is rising rapidly. Sites that load quickly, are mobile-friendly and are easy to use are increasingly valued by search engines like Google.
Voice Search: Voice-activated search is on the rise as more people use popular virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa. You can get an edge in this rapidly expanding market by making your content more suitable for voice searches by responding to frequently asked inquiries and writing in a conversational tone.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Search engine optimisation (SEO) is also being influenced by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Search engines are using these innovations to improve their ability to comprehend user intent and return relevant results.
There are also several seo automation tools available that can lessen the human effort and leave you to focus on more important tasks.
Visual Search: Thanks to developments in image recognition technology, visual queries can now supplement traditional text queries. Your website’s visibility and traffic can be improved in picture searches by using informative alt tags and delivering high-quality visual content.
High-Quality Engaging Content: With search engines improving their ability to decipher the importance and worth of information, it is more important than ever to provide material that is both instructive and engaging.
SEO as a Career Opportunity
Presently when online businesses are booming, there is an evident increase in the demand for search engine optimisation services. An SEO specialist is required in every organisation.
Whether you are from Arts, Science, or Commerce background you can always learn SEO and enhance your CV.
Today, there are many courses available online on digital marketing and there are plenty of options to get SEO training and become certified.
Here are some of the advantages of working in the SEO industry:
- You can start your business as a freelancer or an SEO agency.
- You can set your working hours.
- It’s a great opportunity to meet people from all around the World.
- As online businesses are growing, the need for all companies to hire an SEO Specialist will always be in demand.
This gives you opportunities for several positions – Digital Marketer, SEO Specialist, SEO Consultant, SEO Content Writer, Technical SEO specialist, and so on.
Truths About SEO
- SEO takes time – it’s not a quick fix or overnight solution.
- SEO requires ongoing effort and maintenance.
- SEO is constantly evolving and changing – you need to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices.
- SEO is not a one-size-fits-all solution – it depends on your industry, target audience, and business goals.
- SEO is not just about rankings – it’s also about user experience and conversions.
- SEO requires a holistic approach – you need to optimize both on-page and off-page factors.
- SEO is not just for large businesses – small and medium-sized businesses can benefit from SEO too
Scope of SEO in India & Globally
The scope of SEO in India is immense. With the rise of digital marketing and the increasing importance of online visibility for businesses, SEO has become a crucial part of every digital marketing strategy.
India has a large and growing online population, and more and more businesses are recognizing the importance of SEO in reaching their target audience. In fact, according to a report by Statista, the search engine marketing industry in India is expected to reach a value of 862 billion Indian rupees by 2025.
This represents a huge opportunity for businesses to leverage the power of SEO to increase their online visibility and drive more organic traffic to their website.
The scope of SEO is not limited to India alone, as it is a crucial aspect of digital marketing worldwide. In fact, according to a report by The Business Research Company SEO is projected to be a $146.96 billion dollar industry by 2027.
SEO for Small & Medium Businesses
You might be thinking that SEO is only for big companies with big budgets, but actually, SEO can help businesses of all sizes!
- By using long-tail keywords that are more specific to your products or services, you can attract more qualified leads to your website.
- And don’t forget about local SEO – optimising your website for local search queries and creating local business listings can help you show up in local search results and bring in nearby customers.
- But wait, there’s more! Building high-quality backlinks is also key to improving your search engine rankings. By creating valuable content that other websites want to link to, you can boost your authority and credibility with search engines.
So don’t let your size hold you back – with SEO, small and medium-sized businesses can compete with the big guys and get noticed online. Plus, it’s a cost-effective way to increase your visibility and attract more customers.
Free SEO Tools for Marketers
Using the right SEO tools can make the process of ranking your website on SERP an easy task, provided that you know how to use them correctly.
Being familiar with the Google search console and Google Analytics tool is essential. You also need to learn how to use other SEO tools such as
Keyword Planner : Google’s Keyword Planner is a helpful tool for finding and researching keywords for use in online advertising campaigns, as well as providing information on search traffic and competition.
Answer The Public: Answer The Public is a keyword research tool that creates graphs showing the most frequently used search terms for a given topic. This can be quite helpful for understanding the kinds of issues and problems that people have while looking for information online.
Backlink Analysis tools: To better understand their link-building efforts and spot areas for development, users can take advantage of backlink analysis tools, which examine a website’s backlink profile and report data on the number and quality of inbound connections to a given domain.
Link Explorer: When conducting link building and competition analysis, Moz’s Link Explorer is an invaluable resource for examining a website’s backlink profile and learning about its domain authority, anchor text, and spam score.
To know in detail about these tools and various other SEO tools you can check out our blog on free SEO tools.
Choosing an SEO Agency vs Doing It Yourself?
It’s a typical dilemma to wonder whether or not to hire an SEO agency. So that you can make a well-informed choice, let’s examine the advantages and disadvantages of each possibility.
One major benefit of handling your own search engine optimisation is that you get to decide exactly how things are done. You have the freedom to try out new approaches, educate yourself on SEO, and make improvements as necessary. Moreover, if you have the time and motivation to learn, doing it yourself can save you money.
However, remember that SEO is a difficult and ever-changing industry. It calls for an in-depth familiarity with things like search-engine algorithms, keyword analysis, on-page optimisation, off-page link-building, and more. Therefore, do-it-yourself SEO may not be effective if you lack the necessary expertise or resources.
Still, there are benefits to using a professional SEO service. These experts have the experience to make your website as optimised as possible. They know what works now in terms of SEO and have access to cutting-edge technologies and expertise that can help your website.
If you hire an agency to handle your SEO you can devote your time to other areas of your organisation. Agencies also generally have a staff of SEO experts who can handle tasks like content production, technical optimisation, and link building.
Picking the right SEO agency is essential as they can make or break your website. Make sure they have a history of success by conducting research, reading reviews, and requesting case studies. Find an agency that shares your vision and has expertise in your field.
In the end, your resources, knowledge, and desired outcomes should determine whether you hire an SEO agency or do it yourself.
Conclusion
This concludes the comprehensive SEO starter kit. From the fundamentals of SEO to the latest trends we have covered everything there is to know about SEO. You should now be well-armed to begin the process of increasing your website’s exposure and attracting organic traffic.
Do not be reluctant to test out fresh approaches. Find out what works best for your target demographic and company through testing and analysis.
Last but not least, always remember the value of producing excellent content. SEO isn’t just about manipulating search engines, but also about helping people find your content.
Pay close attention to their requirements and develop material accordingly. Search engines will reward you when you put the requirements of your target audience first.
Take a big breath, review what you’ve learned, and go headfirst into SEO.
Just like Rome was not built in a day, neither will your SEO rankings improve overnight. But if you put in the time, create a plan, and are devoted to helping others, you can boost your website’s visibility, increase organic traffic, and accomplish your business goals.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) :
What is SEO?
What is website analysis in SEO?
How do I find SEO keywords?
1. Keyword Explorer
2. Keyword Planner
What factors in link building matters?
1. Authority of the linking page.
2. Authority of the linking website.
3. Relevancy of the website.
4. Link's position on the page.
What is black hat & white hat SEO?
What are the factors that make up great content?
Relevance
Uniqueness
Value
Clarity
Structure
Visual Appeal
