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How To Start With Search Engine Optimization

No matter what kind of business is in question, its basic essence is the same; reaching out to potential customers and convincing them to use the products and services offered. Every person who comes around looking for such goods and services is a potential customer, and there is always competition between various businesses to acquire them. As an entrepreneur, one should not overlook the fact that SEO plays a major role in improving the visibility of the business and widening the purchase funnel.

It does not matter what background a business comes from, whether it is a small startup or a big firm, every business needs to market its products and services. They need to inform people about what they are offering. A very good way of doing that is by launching web sites, which can be viewed easily and on the go. People have access to Internet through their phones, laptops, tabs etc. Web sites can be accessed by anyone, anywhere. Quiet unlike the obsolete and primitive ways like posters and leaflets.

For any SEO, the foundation stone is a well optimized website. Different kinds of on and off page factors contribute directly to the optimization journey. Whenever the algorithms search through websites, the following factors are taken into account: 

  • Keywords
  • Title tag
  • Page URL
  • Internal links

So once that we know what are the factors that determine the search, we can start resolving whatever problems we are facing. But before doing that, we must understand all the aspects in and out. There are several tools available for checking up on how the website is doing. These tools help determine the current standing of the business. One such tools is Website Optimization Grader.

The On-Page Optimization tool is a simple one to navigate and handle. It actually takes care of all that is to be done. Just at the click of a button, it does one quick analysis of all the elements that are on the web page and identifies the ones which have an impact on the web-site’s visibility. The elements which are of concern are marked in red, implicating that they should be taken care of immediately and without delay.

The concerned elements are listed as per priority, so that you never miss out on any one of them. What’s more, it even gives you a description of the problem, giving hints as to what is to be done to resolve this problem. Once we know what kind of problems we are facing, it is then that we start taking them out one by one.

If we speak of SEO, we must also know what WordPress is. What is it? Its a CMS that we use for our websites. Almost all websites run on WordPress. But the problem with WordPress is that it is still missing a few things that kill Google traffic for websites. Here are a few examples:

  • Does not have XML sitemap:

First of all, what are site-maps? They are the ways to tell Google about pages on the website which might not be otherwise discovered. It is basically a list of all those pages. It also supplies more information to Google such as page update requirement, meta tag description data. So just imagine with all this missing, its like jigsaw without pieces. You can eliminate this problem by using Yoast SEO plugin.

  • No option for Google+ Authorship

Google+ Authorship plays a direct role in increasing the hits on a website. A small image has a significantly huge impact on the click through rate. By incorporating Google+, you will be able to attract more visitors to your site and build your brand through authorship. If you are not using Google+ authorship already, it is not too late to start.

  • No optimization as to how posts look in SERPs

 This one bears close resemblance to the above mentioned. When someone searches for something, several sites are displayed in front of you. These sites have a meta description given below them, and for most sites which have not put in meta description, the first few lines of the site as displayed by default. These few sentences might not be what you would want on SERPs, to boost site hits. A very good way to deal with this problem is by getting a plugin, the best one according to me being Yoast WordPress SEO.

  • Cannot define Canonical URLs:

First of all, canonical URLs are the best URLs that can be used to optimize your search results. A website may have several pages, but the SERPs will display the page that is required only if a URL has been canonicalized. Simply put, if Google is not informed of the version of the page, it might end up showing results which are of no use at all. Using Google Webmaster tools will inform Google as to which type of URL is to be used.

Ensuring Optimized Results:

A very good way to ensure optimized search results is by using relevant keywords, which are original and ones unique to your business. Users who find it difficult to determine the keywords they want to use and looking for any kind of help can always use the Google Keyword Planner, which suggested relevant keywords for your website, and also the search rate for each keyword. Using popular and common keywords is a great way to bring in the traffic, but there is always a catch. Using such keywords brings with it the threat of major competition with other related businesses. Using the demand for ads for that particular keyword, Google Keyword Planner also gives an idea of the level of competition.

Once the desired keywords are chosen, the next step is ideation. It is the art of generating ideas for content relevant to the keywords. It is a difficult process as it involves originality. Speaking to the customers could give you a fair idea about what they want, and you could think up of content on the basis of that study.

Conclusion:

Last, but not the least important in any way, comes update. It is in fact one of the most crucial parts of SEO. Search algorithms simply love fresh content. Not only that, it keeps your client base engaged and that results in more business.

So if you are too busy running your business and cannot find the time to update on a periodic basis, then you could take the help of scheduling software. This software can help by automatically posting updates from time to time. Whenever you have the time to update the content, you could do it and forget about it, the software does the rest. After all, it is the age of the machines!


Source: dailyseoblog.com
By: Ethan Diaz