What is search engine optimization(SEO) ?

Search Engine Optimization- Digital Marketing (digital shruti is certified digital marketer)

SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” It is the process of improving your website to increase visitors from Google, Microsoft Bing and other search engines, whenever people search for:

  • Products you sell.
  • Services you provide.
  • Information on topics in which you have expertise or experience.

The better visibility your pages have in search results, the more likely you are to be found and visited.

This introductory guide will explain in more detail what SEO is and what it entails in 2024.

Technology is constantly evolving, which means that websites – and the way they are structured – evolve. So do the devices we use to access search engines.

A web search can be voice activated and a click may be a tap on a mobile phone screen. Even the results we see from our search engine of choice may be summarized by artificial intelligence (AI).

We will explain all these different aspects of SEO as well as provide resources for your continued learning.

SEO can be broken down into several key components:

  1. On-Page SEO: This focuses on optimizing elements within the website itself to improve search rankings, including:

    • Keyword research: Finding and using the right words and phrases that people are searching for.
    • Content quality: Creating valuable, relevant, and engaging content.
    • Meta tags: Optimizing title tags, meta descriptions, and headings to improve click-through rates.
    • URL structure: Creating SEO-friendly URLs with relevant keywords.
    • Internal linking: Connecting pages within the website to improve navigation and authority distribution.

  2. Off-Page SEO: This involves activities outside of the website to enhance its authority and credibility, including:

    • Backlinks: Getting other reputable websites to link to your site (backlinks), which signals trustworthiness and relevance to search engines.
    • Social signals: Engaging in social media platforms to promote content and drive traffic.
    • Brand mentions: Having your brand or content mentioned across the web.

  4. Technical SEO: This focuses on optimizing the technical aspects of a website to ensure that search engines can crawl and index it properly. This includes:

    • Website speed: Ensuring fast load times for better user experience.
    • Mobile optimization: Making sure the site is responsive and works well on mobile devices.
    • XML sitemaps: Creating sitemaps to help search engines discover and index all pages of the site.
    • Structured data: Using schema markup to help search engines understand the content better.

  5. Local SEO: Optimizing a website to rank well for geographically relevant searches. This is important for businesses that want to attract local customers and includes:

    • Google My Business optimization.
    • Local reviews and citations.

SEO is an ongoing process that requires monitoring, analysis, and adjustments to keep up with algorithm updates and changes in search behavior. By improving SEO, websites can drive more traffic, increase visibility, and ultimately improve conversions and business performance.