Absolutely Everything You Need to Know About SEO

Absolutely Everything You Need to Know About SEO

Websites are our business, which means search engine optimization (SEO) is always on our minds. SEO plays a vital role in the success of any business, but it’s never done. With ever-changing algorithms and trends, SEO is constantly changing and evolving. Staying updated on SEO best practices is essential for businesses looking to improve their online presence and stay ahead of the game. Below we have everything you need to know about SEO whether you are building a new website, looking to redesign your existing website without losing your SEO, or enhancing the SEO on your current website. 

Google Search Page

What Is SEO?

Search engine optimization is the process of optimizing a website to increase its visibility and rank on search engine result pages (SERPs). That rank on the SERP is determined by how well your site matches not only the search terms entered but also how easily the search engine was able to evaluate your site for information. WordPress makes SEO easy for users to optimize their websites for search engines. 

How Do Search Engines Work?

Search engines use automated programs called crawlers or spiders to navigate the internet and collect information from websites. These crawlers follow links and index the pages they encounter. Then, search engines use complex algorithms to evaluate and rank these indexed pages based on various factors, such as relevance, authority, and user experience. When a user performs a search, the search engine quickly scans its indexed pages and provides the most relevant results based on the search query.

How Is It Determined?

SEO is largely determined by Google Ranking Factors. While not all of the 200+ factors are made public, some are more commonly known. These factors are as simple as having accurate image information to as complex as code that optimizes your website on mobile devices. Others include:

On-Page Vs. Off-Page SEO

Both on-page and off-page SEO are important for improving your website’s visibility and attaining higher search engine rankings. It is important to understand the difference between on-page and off-page SEO when implementing SEO strategies in order to achieve the best results.

On-Page SEO

On-page SEO focuses on optimizing individual web pages to rank higher on search engines On-page SEO refers to anything on a website, both what is visible to visitors and what is behind the scenes. This includes anything that helps to improve your ranking on a search engine. These areas would include the following:

Off-Page SEO

Much like the name implies, off-page SEO is just that: any kind of content that exists outside of your website and that points back to your website, including:

  • Backlinks
  • Directories
  • Thought leader content such as trade shows and speaking engagements

Technical SEO

Technical SEO refers to the process of optimizing your website’s infrastructure and backend to improve its visibility and indexing by search engines. Technical SEO plays a crucial role in improving your website’s search engine rankings and overall online presence. Key factors to consider include:

  • Website speed and performance
  • Mobile-friendliness
  • Proper website structure
  • Enhancing website security

Local SEO

Local SEO offers businesses a way to connect with potential customers in their target geographical area and attract increased foot traffic to their brick-and-mortar establishments. Local SEO helps businesses appear in relevant local search results, which can significantly increase their visibility and drive targeted traffic to their websites or physical locations.

  • Google Business Profile – One of the cornerstones of Local SEO is your Google Business Profile. This free tool ensures that you appear in local search results and on Google Maps by creating a business profile on Google,
  • Local citations – Local citations refer to mentions of your business across various online platforms, such as business directories, review sites, and local listings.
  • Online Reviews and Ratings – Customers increasingly rely on online reviews and ratings to inform their purchase decisions. Positive reviews and high ratings can significantly influence potential customers and establish trust in your business
  • Local schema – Local schema is schema code that is specific to your local business. It codes things such as the hours your business is open, currency accepted, department information, and so on.

Quick and Easy Ways to Improve

In addition to implementing the items above, organically improving your SEO score can be done by regularly updating and auditing your website. Below are some easy things you can do to improve your SEO.

  • Blogging – Consistent posting of blogs gives big content updates to your site. In addition, having good structure, keywords, and backlinks is key to ranking higher.
  • Google Business Profile – Regularly Update your Google Business Profile by adding specials, pictures and collecting reviews.
  • Updating Links – Go back to older blog posts and link to newer posts. Quality and quantity of internal links are important.
  • Images – Updating images, as well as completing all of the descriptive information, can make it easier for web crawlers to analyze your site.
  • Regular Maintenance – Website maintenance plays a critical role in your site’s SEO and overall success.

How Long Does it Take to Improve

It’s not possible to say exactly how long it takes for SEO to start working and improve your rankings as there are so many factors that go into SEO. But, generally, if you are creating fresh content and putting the effort into improving your SEO, you should start to see an increase in traffic and rankings within 3-6 months on an existing website and 9 to 12 months on a new domain. 

We Can Help Unlock Your Website’s Potential

Our comprehensive SEO service is designed to increase website traffic, improve your search engine rankings and help convert those additional visitors to customers. Schedule a complimentary 30-minute consultation and let’s talk through your questions and discuss how our SEO service can help grow your business. 

Additional SEO Resources

General SEO Resources

Fresh Content

On-Page and Off-Page SEO

SEO Ranking Factors

Technical SEO

Local SEO

SEO Analytics

Artificial Intelligence (AI)