Search engine optimization (SEO) is a process that tries to help search engines rank your site for certain keywords and phrases, making it easier for people to find you. You should focus on making sure your site is properly optimized for search engines by using things like keyword research, content creation, the use of schema markup, website speed, social media and more!
The most important thing in SEO is creating quality content. Quality content will attract links from other sites which will increase the popularity of your site and its rankings in search engine results pages. This article will teach you how to optimize your site so that it can be found with ease by both humans and machines.
What is SEO and why does it matter?
SEO stands for search engine optimization. It’s a process that tries to help search engines rank your site for certain keywords and phrases, making it easier for people to find you. The goal of SEO is not to trick the search engines into placing your site high in their results: if they think you’re spamming them, then you’ll be penalized. The goal is to make sure your site is properly optimized for search engines by using things like keyword research, content creation, the use of schema markup, website speed, social media and more!
Which search engines should I optimize for?
You should focus on making sure that your site is properly optimized for Google , since it has a huge share of the market (over 90% in most places). If you can rank highly with Google , then if people do searches related to your industry or niche they’ll find you at the top. Since there are other ways to get traffic besides SEO (such as paid advertising), when optimizing for search engines it’s better not to spend all of your resources in one place; rather, you should have a presence on several search engines. Make sure to include Bing , Yahoo and Yandex . Also make sure you optimize for social media, since many people find new sites or articles through Facebook , Twitter , Pinterest and other social media feeds.
How do I use SEO?
There are three main steps to optimizing your content for search: keyword research, on-page optimization and off-page optimization. This article will only focus on the first step, but it is important to understand that none of this works unless you also work on increasing your site traffic through things like social media marketing.
The key to successful SEO is using keywords that are already relevant in searches so you don’t have to spend as much time and money trying to attract new visitors. Keyword research is just like keyword analysis, except you do it before you create content rather than after. You need to look at the terms and phrases related to your site’s industry that people are already using when searching for information about products or services. Your goal with keyword research is two-fold: you want to find out what keywords would be useful for your site and how many people search for them per month. Some free tools that can help you do this include Google Trends , Wordtracker (which has a free trial) and Ubersuggest . When doing keyword research, make sure to focus on long-tail keywords as opposed to single words or short phrases! You may also want to consider writing about a generalized topic rather than something industry specific, because the latter has many long-tail keywords associated with it. For example if you’re working an SEO blog, one of your topics might be “SEO tools.” A good keyword to target here is “free SEO tools” because that’s a search people regularly do when looking for what they need. On the other hand, another topic could be “organic SEO techniques.” This would likely have less searches per month (though there will still be some) but it’s much easier to rank on Google since no one else is targeting this keyword (yet).
What is schema markup?
Schema markup facilitates the discovery and organization of information on your site. It gives people the ability to quickly see critical information about your site such as its name, address, contact information and more. It also gives search engines additional context on what pages are important and allows them to show that data in search results (along with whatever content is found on those pages). Schema markup doesn’t guarantee a higher ranking from Google , but if you’re already optimized for SEO then it’s worth a shot! Schema markup can be used for things like reviews, recipes or local businesses. There is also a type of schema specifically for people and person descriptions, allowing you to put an avator image next to your Google+ profile which will lead people right back to where they came from!
What is social media optimization?
Social media optimization is a key part of SEO. It requires you to post your site’s content on social media sites in an effort to build traffic and generate links back to your site. Make sure to use relevant hashtags so people who are interested in that topic can find your posts easier . For example if you have a product or service related to gardening, make sure to include #gardening, #gardeners, #growyourownfood and other terms associated with that niche. You don’t want all of these posts to be about your business though–that will come across as spammy and won’t get many likes or shares!–so make sure you mix things up by including pictures from the garden expos , funny gardening memes , gardening quotes and more!
Don’t forget to post content directly on your Facebook page as well. You can use this site for help doing so. Remember that people you know are more likely to share something with their friends if they find it interesting or useful, so keep the posts relevant to them . For example, if they mention liking a certain brand of clothing in one of their status updates then you could comment about an item from that brand that was featured on your site. If someone shares one of your articles on Facebook , don’t forget to thank them (on Facebook) and tell everyone how awesome they are! Did you know you can have a Facebook tab which automatically pulls the latest posts from your website? If so, this is a great way to show people your latest articles.
If someone shares one of your posts on Twitter , you can also thank them and ask them to follow you–but don’t expect for anyone to do it! In most cases they are just retweeting something that caught their attention (just like with Facebook) rather than endorsing the site as a whole. However, if they’re an influential person or business in that niche, make sure to track them down and get them onto whatever list you have so you can continue following what they post down the road!
How to optimize your site for search engines
For many people SEO is a daunting task. I’ve even talked to freelance writers who complain about how hard it is to get their sites ranked in the top ten for certain terms. If you follow these tips, however, I’m sure you’ll find it’s easier than you think!
Make your descriptions unique
Until recently all meta description tags were generated automatically by Google so they featured the same text across websites-even if that wasn’t very appealing. This meant that there was no real way of knowing which site would rank higher in search results , and if someone clicked on an article found on the number five result they might be disappointed (or things could be just as amazing as they expected). Nowadays, however, Google is capable of generating descriptions based on the content of each site (thanks to schema markup). As a result, you should write unique meta descriptions for your articles. If someone is searching something like “What kind of herbs grow best in pots?” and they click through to a description which sounds like it was written by a bot or has nothing to do with the article they’ll be pretty disappointed-and probably won’t come back!
If you want people to find your website later then make sure you’re using descriptive keywords . What are keywords? These are phrases that potential customers might type into Google when they’re looking for something on the web. Make sure yours is relevant but not too long-you don’t want people accidentally clicking off your page while looking for something else!
Although you want to use keywords consistently across the site , make sure they aren’t too repetitive. You want your content to stand out and be interesting rather than just reciting all the same phrases over and over again.
Make your titles exciting
I’m sure you get it-your title, subtitle and meta description have a lot of power over how many people click onto your article from Google’s search results. While it might seem like a good idea to include lots of keywords in these sections, you need to keep things relevant ! The only way someone will actually read the post is if it sounds interesting or informative enough-so don’t overwhelm them with keywords.
Post even if no one is reading
Lots of people will tell you make sure you have lots of regular visitors to your site before you start writing. The problem with this is that it’s hard to know exactly what kind of content they’ll be interested in and very few people will stick around long enough for you to find out! Instead, start posting updates right away and look at the stats on a daily basis. If no one has clicked onto your article then try again the next day-with a different topic . Once you start getting a few visits each day (hopefully through Google) then switch back over to working on SEO so that it starts getting easier for more people to find your articles in search results.
If you want to make sure no one is going to click on your website, write an article about SEO!
Why should you use schema markup?
We’ve all heard of it, but why should you use schema markup? While some people think it looks ugly or that it’s just an unnecessary step there are tons of reasons to use it!
Schema markup helps search engines better understand your content so they can search for and display relevant information in results-giving you more traffic. Once your site is properly optimized for a certain topic (thanks to SEO) then adding this markup will make things even easier. It makes the title stand out on your page , making sure potential visitors know what they’re going to get when they click onto a certain article. It makes your URL include keywords, which helps Google recognize what type of site you have and what type of content is contained within-making it easier to rank. It makes it easier for you to figure out what’s in each post , giving you the chance to edit and refine your content as necessary.
How do I add schema markup?
If you’re using WordPress then there are dozens of plugins available that will help you easily add descriptive data into your site-and if they don’t have one, there are other ways! Making sure your site has this metadata is a very simple process: just go to the HTML page where you want the description (like an article) and type <meta name=”description” content=”…” /> right after the opening html tag . Then, copy and paste the text from the box labeled “Description”. There are also other elements like <meta name=”keywords” content=”…” /> that you can add to the header-and most sites will usually have a few others if they’re very large.
If you don’t want your site to look ugly with these codes scattered all over it, here are some ways to make them blend in: just put them after the <p> or <h1> tags of your article , or even use CSS so that they match your style! If you’re not using WordPress then there’s still an easy way for you to automatically add meta data. All you need is a plugin and one line of code. Just go into the HTML editor in your web hosting control panel (you should be able to find it by looking under the ” WordPress” or “Website” section), add a meta description to your article and save. Then paste the line of code into WordPress (or whatever platform you’re using) right before the </head> tag in The Loop: <meta name=”description” content=”…” />.
OK, I have schema markup – so what?
Now that you’ve added this code to your site it’s time to take a look at how it affects SEO! Google will see your article and know right away whether or not it contains any important information or keywords. When a user searches for something related to what you’re talking about then they’ll notice that your URL is highlighted in search results and are more likely to click onto the page. If they do end up on your page then the meta data displayed along with the title makes sure they know exactly why they should stay there! It’s a win-win for everyone involved: readers get more relevant information from search engines while sites like yours get more traffic and engagement.
If you don’t have this code on your site then there’s a good chance it will lag behind competitors who do. If your business is trying to take over the market or if you want to earn some extra cash, making sure users are getting an easy way out with every article of yours will help make things happen!
How about schema markup for images?
There aren’t any specific elements for meta information in images-but that doesn’t mean you can’t use them! Adding captions and descriptions to pictures like infographics can take them from being “pictures” into useful content people enjoy looking at. To add a caption to a picture all you need to do is type <figure> before it and <figcaption> right after. Then, just write whatever you feel like!
If captions aren’t your thing then there’s a way for you to make the image look more appealing. Just add the keyword element into the beginning of the file name (in the URL). It will be highlighted in search results, showing that someone is looking for something relevant. You can also make pop-ups appear over images when they’re hovered over using HTML5 data attributes. If someone hovers over your image and sees that it links to an article about how to use schema markup while they’re reading another article about how great SEO is…well, let’s just say things are going well!
How do I get links from other sites ?
One of the best ways to get links is to make articles that other sites will want to link back to. Creating lists (ex: “Top 10 Tips”) or comparison guides (ex: “3 SEO Tools Compared”) can help you build a reputation for yourself, as well as attract visitors who are interested in what you have to say. If you’re worried about making something professional enough then there’s always research tools like BuzzSumo or Google Trends. You can use these websites’ keyword data and compete with others by creating content people are searching for!
So I’ve got my links – now what?
After all this time you just might be wondering…when do I actually get to see results? Well, the short answer is right now!
Google tracks these elements almost instantly, so the moment you publish your article then others can see it. An important thing to remember is that Google will look at what you’ve said and match it up with other content on the web in order to determine if you’re relevant. Make sure any information from previous articles or posts is updated as well – this includes links, images, quotes and all the rest! Another good reason for keeping old information live on your site is because it makes linking to your articles more likely. If someone doesn’t link to a specific page of yours (maybe they linked somewhere else instead), then don’t delete those pages – just add them into a new post with additional commentary. This gives people who found your old articles another way to see what you’ve said!
Blogging tips for beginners
There’s a lot to take in when it comes to SEO and schema. Even though Google has been making changes over the years, there’s still a lot of things you can do to improve your site. Here are some more tips that will help you get started!
Don’t forget about WordPress plugins either! There are many out there that will help you optimize your website or give if different functions like social media integration or an easy way to add images (such as with Flickr).
Generally speaking, any time something is made easier for users then it will be ranked higher by search engines . This includes features like adding videos into the background of posts – if someone likes what they see then they’re ready to click.
That’s not all though – you also have the opportunity to use your own site as a source of content for other people! Linking out is an easy way to help spread some goodwill, and it can give you SEO value as well. Linking out also helps increase social media interaction with visitors, which in turn makes them more likely visit your site again.
It’s important to remember that there are always exceptions out there. When you try new techniques its a good idea to test them multiple times before making any changes on your live site…just so you don’t make any drastic mistakes! If possible, create a second set of pages/posts for testing purposes instead of using live ones, and prepare yourself for when you get a lot of reports back (they can be hard to read through!).
So what do I have to say about SEO? It’s not something that should be ignored at all if you want your site to succeed. Doing it right requires a lot of work, but the reward is worth it. In order to give users what they want, you need to make sure you’re giving search engines what they want too!
Remember that optimizing for search engines doesn’t mean ignoring your visitors either – it means finding a way to attract both sides. If you spend time making content people will like then eventually the search engines will take notice and reward you by sending more traffic!
Tips on how to write a blog post that gets read
As much as we’d all love to say that creating high quality content with a lot of work put into it is the only way to go, this isn’t always the case. You could spend 100+ hours making sure that every sentence is just perfect…but if no one reads what you’ve come up with then what does any of that really matter? The answer: not too much!
If your goal is to get people reading about your site then you need something they want, and fast! This doesn’t mean sacrificing quality – it means cutting out all the parts someone isn’t going to care about and saving them for later (or never). If you’re writing an article on how your company helped save Christmas for everyone last year, don’t spend time talking about the specifics of what happened – just give them a short summary and let them know that you’ll be posting about it later (and link back to it!).
Getting people into your site as fast as possible is going to help out when it comes to SEO . People are less likely to leave your site if they see something in front of them that’s interesting. However, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go over some basics. Make sure that any images on your post have alternative texts associated with them! This will both improve accessibility for users who use screen readers and add more content for search engines.
If you’re using keywords within the title or body of an article then make sure they flow together well! Using the same word twice is going to make it seem like you’re just stuffing them in and not really caring about what you’re writing. Keep things natural and people will stick around!
Don’t forget that some people may want to have a break from reading your content at times as well. Rather than forcing them to read on until they reach the end of a paragraph, split up paragraphs with headings so they can take a look at other things if they need too for a few minutes (make sure they know when they’ll be able to come back!). This isn’t something you should always do – sometimes having shorter paragraphs is more appealing – but it’s helpful to do this every once in awhile! Cross linking between multiple pages on your site is another great way to keep people around. If a reader has been on your page for awhile and they see that there are even more things driving them to stick around then the chances of them coming back will be higher!
Don’t forget about images either! They can help break up sentences and make it much faster to get through an article, making it more inviting for users. If there’s an image relevant to your topic you should include it – but only if it’s relevant. You don’t want a blog post about cats showing pictures of dogs (unless you’re talking about how cute they are!).
Finally, remember your keywords…but use common sense when doing so! Just because you’re talking about “wrought iron fence” doesn’t mean you need to include it in your title 5 times. Putting your keyword too much can actually hurt you more than help you, so only add it when it makes sense!
Even if your blog posts don’t always get hundreds of comments on them, they can be a great way to build up trust with users who might otherwise hesitate to use your website or service. It’s also a good place for users to leave tags and keywords that will help search engines begin finding information about what you’re doing – which helps improve SEO!
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