I often hear “SEO is impossible to understand” or that SEO is opaque, expensive, a scam, or only for developers. I will give you this: SEO is not easy, there is no quick fix, and there is always more you can do. But there are many SEO tasks you can do yourself to start improving the signals search engines use to rank your site. So let’s get started with this SEO 101.
Overview: What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
SEO is commonly described as all the improvements on your website, and on signals outside of your website, that will help your website rank better in search results.
You face two SEO challenges:
- It is a game where the rules are not clearly defined
- It changes over time as search engines evolve
We like to divide SEO into three pillars, each of which has an impact on the end result. They each require specific work and a specific set of skills.
There are three pillars of SEO: architecture, content, authority, and each requires a different approach and skill. Image source: Author
How does search engine optimization (SEO) work?
Search engines pick up signals on your website, outside your website and from the user behavior of your visitors. Among the hundreds of signals they use, you can influence some directly and others indirectly. Working on each of the three pillars will improve the signals that search engines take into account to rank websites.
There is a wide range of SEO tools on the market. Some of them primarily cover one pillar, whereas certain suites cover the entire range of tools, including rank monitoring, site crawling, SEO keyword research, backlink analysis, and competitor analysis.
What are the different types of search engine optimization (SEO)?
There can be big differences between the way a large company handles an SEO audit and a small company’s approach. But with the exception of local SEO, all SEO is based on the three types we find in the pillars illustrated above: architecture, content and authority.
1. Architecture: Technical SEO
It would be logical to start your SEO project in the architecture pillar because this is where the technical foundation of your website is located. It’s about configuring your hosting correctly, optimizing page speed, removing crawling obstacles and ensuring your pages carry the right structural elements. However, this is the most technical approach you can take and an area where you may need outside help.
Still want a first look at this? Try the free Sitechecker, which reviews up to 150 pages on your site and gives you detailed information on things to improve.
Site crawlers like Sitechecker visit your site the same way a search engine crawler would, notifying you of obstacles and inefficiencies for each page. Image source: Author
Source: sitechecker.pro.
2. Content: Keywords and pages
You can go a long way towards improving your SEO without touching the architecture pillar. An easier starting point is the content pillar, where everyone can play. Here you identify the keywords your website should rank for and optimize or create content that can rank for those keywords.
The first step is to research keywords for your site. You can brainstorm, ask your customers, look at your competitors and see what keywords are already working for you.
Keywords
A good place to start is to enable Google Search Console for your website. It integrates with Google Analytics and is a gold mine of information for your SEO. It will show which keywords you are already ranking for.
When you enable Google Search Console and integrate it with your Google Analytics, you can see all the keywords your site is appearing for. Image source: Author
Source: analytics.google.com.
Titles and descriptions
Once you have your prioritized keyword list, you have a big task ahead of you: pair each keyword with a page on your site and write keyword-rich titles and descriptions for each. This is the first step in optimizing the content of your website, often called on-page SEO.
Content optimization
The second step in on-page optimization is to enrich the content you already have. It’s about using keywords more prominently and more often. It is also about using synonyms and variations and related topics.
Content creation
It is impossible for a page to rank for keywords for which there is no content. There were definitely keywords in your prioritized lists that you had no content for. This is where you start writing articles and creating illustrations to respond to users searching for answers about those keywords.
3. Authority: Expert information, brand and backlinks
The final SEO pillar is authority. The effects associated with your brand strength are not readily available, but authoritative on-site content such as that created by identified experts is.
For example, getting Tiger Woods to sign an article on a golf-related website ticks the authority box. The most powerful lever for your SEO is to build backlinks that point to your site. Search engines consider them signals that your site is a reference worth pointing to.
Brand recognition
Search engines aim to provide the best possible answers to a search query. They read signals to identify the popularity of a website, very similar to what we would call brand recognition. You can compare yours to another brand by searching for them in Google Trends. Search marketing tools such as Moz Pro and SEMrush also provide a brand strength evaluation, which is based on the SEO strength of your domain name.
Improving your brand recognition is a much broader business goal than an SEO goal, so it’s not something you want to work on as part of an SEO project.
Authoritative content
In certain industries, search engines are extra careful about the sites they rank. This is, for example, the case for health-related information and financial advice. In these industries, additional authority signals are believed to be very important.
These signals are referred to as EAT factors (experience, authority and trust), but they are difficult to measure. They are about delivering deeply authoritative content, written by experts and recognized by others.
Backlinks
The more tangible dimension of authority is backlinks. Both domain strength and EAT factors also use these, so this may be the place to concentrate your efforts. Backlinks are links from other websites that point to yours. An ideal backlink comes from a strong and reputable site, points to your targeted page and uses the keyword you aim to place in the anchor.
Of course, the best links are those that are created organically, when people simply link to your site because of its great content and added value. But often backlinks don’t come naturally. So you need to submit your site to business directories, get affiliates to mention it, and reach out to people who might be interested in your content and request a link to it.
What makes search engine optimization (SEO) a unique marketing channel
Search engines are often the best drivers of website traffic. That traffic is free when you’ve paid for all the work you’ve put into creating your website and content. It generates recurring traffic as search engine rankings can remain static for a long time. SEO marketing can be a powerful channel, but to rank for competitive keywords you need to optimize across all three pillars.
The best places to learn about SEO and improve your skills
SEO for beginners is a popular topic on YouTube, and there are countless blogs and self-proclaimed gurus who will be happy to teach you a lesson. It is considered good advice to avoid any SEO information that is too self-promotional or that guarantees results of any kind. The following list steers clear of them and provides valuable resources for learning more:
1. Blackboard Friday
A video series of SEO sessions originally created by the team at Moz. It goes into detail on one specific SEO topic every Friday and has invented its own format. The YouTube playlist for a one-hour SEO guide by Rand Fishkin in whiteboard format is a good place to start.
See the One-Hour Guide to SEO playlist.
2. Search engine country
An authority site originally created by Danny Sullivan covering both the SEO and PPC sides of search marketing and closely related digital marketing areas such as shopping, marketplaces, social media and programmatic advertising.
Go to Search Engine Land.
3. Google Search Central (formerly Webmaster Central)
Google Search Central hosts another YouTube series, but it also has live “office hours” where you can ask questions in a live webinar. This is one of the only places you can really ask Google questions. It won’t teach you SEO, but you will learn how to use Search Console and find answers to technical questions you may have encountered.
Visit Google Search Central office hours.
4. Twitter Chats
Twitter chats are a bit complex to join, but you can always just listen in. There is a recurring #SEOchat on Thursdays and a #SEMrushchat which often addresses SEO questions. Twitter is generally a great place to look for SEO-related information, and people are really good at answering your questions or pointing you in the right direction.
Participate in SEOchat on Twitter.
5. The webmaster world
An entire discussion forum dedicated to webmaster topics with a prominent place for SEO. You can find a lot of information in the already asked questions, and if you don’t find the answer, don’t hesitate to ask your own questions.
Enter the webmaster world.
The best SEO is the CEO
Even if you are convinced that you need help to succeed in SEO, it will be valuable to learn about it and understand the basics. The best SEO is always a CEO because he is the person who best understands what customers want and who is best at building partnerships that can generate backlinks. Every business founder should do some SEO and then hand it over to the experts when it gets too technical or too time-consuming.