Semalt Expert On 7 SEO Essentials When Optimizing Your Site

Search engine optimization (SEO) is essential. It will help you position your website such that it is found when potential buyers are looking for services you're offering (which is a critical point in the buying process).

So, what do Google, Yahoo, Bing and other search engines look for? How do you build a website that appeals to both search engines and people alike?

Ryan Johnson, the Senior Sales Manager of Semalt, explains here how will SEO make your web presence profitable.

The perfect analogy

You cannot expect to achieve much if you skip the basics of SEO. In fact, doing so is akin to spending money on fancy clothes, jewelry, and shoes while skipping brushing your teeth, combing your hair and taking a shower. It's a fruitless endeavor. Back to the matter at hand. The aim of fundamental SEO is not to cheat search engines. Instead, its purpose is to offer the user a good experience and communicate your intention to search engines so that they can recommend your website.

With that in mind, here are the essentials:

#Your website is cake

Your links, social media engagement and paid searches are the icing on the cake which definitely cannot do without the sugar vis a vis the content, site structure, content management system, and information architecture. Without the sugar, you don't have cake

#What are the search engines looking for?

Search engines seek to be relevant. This means that they do their level best to refer the user to the content or website that's relevant to whatever they might be looking for. So, how do Google, Bing, Yahoo determine this? Well, they consider:

  • the content - determined by the theme, description, titles and text written
  • performance - page loading speed
  • authority
  • user experience

#Avoid this to remain in the good books

Search engines are not looking for:

  • keyword stuffed content
  • purchased links - this won't get you anywhere
  • bad user experience - avoid too many ads

#Acknowledge your business model

While this is pretty obvious, you'd be surprised by the many people who don't take heed. They just don't know what they want. Ask yourself what your objectives are, what assets are at your disposal, the liabilities, then define what constitutes a conversion for you.

# Optimize for multiple channels

Proper keyword utilization should not only be reserved for onsite stuff. The same should apply to other platforms. This touches your social media engagement, email marketing, and TV/radio ads plus of course print media.

#Choose a good domain

Try to be consistent by using sub-root directory domains like example.com/seo rather than subdomains like seo.example. Try to keep to a domain as older ones are seen to be better than newer ones.

#Optimize for different devices

Your website should be optimized for proper viewing on any device. And remember to create rich content like videos or even gifs.