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SEO

Five Simple Steps to Getting Started with SEO

Isn’t it true that every business wants to be found on Google’s first page? And why wouldn’t they, given that Google controls more than 90% of the search engine market? As a result, when we talk about search engines in this article, we’re talking about Google.

SEO, or search engine optimization, has grown to be one of the most significant digital marketing assets. Because the majority of website visitors still originate from organic search, a high position can help to bring a large number of potential visitors to your page.

Furthermore, as compared to other channels, such as social media or paid marketing, organic traffic typically yields a greater ROI (return of investment).

The SEO process is fairly lengthy, encompassing phases ranging from keyword research to technological concerns. To attain the best outcomes, you should continue to optimize and be concerned in all areas on a regular basis.

The 5 SEO steps

We created these 5 practical steps to help you understand the SEO process as much as possible. Also, don’t forget to read our expert advice in this article!

  1. In terms of SEO, where does your website stand?
  2. Keywords that are relevant
  3. The content is king.
  4. SEO for technical purposes
  5. Creating a link profile and increasing domain authority

1. Evaluation: Where does your website stand in terms of SEO?

The first step is to establish a baseline. Where does your website now stand in terms of organic ranking?

To determine the true ranking results, you must first go through the crawlability phase, which involves examining how the website is found by search engines. There are several SEO tools that you will require in order to fully comprehend the issue and site rating.

What kind of SEO tools do you need?

Google has its own SEO tool called Search Console. It is a free application that allows you to maintain and monitor your website’s existence. The Search Console can be installed and linked to your website in the same manner that Google Analytics can.

Other tools, like Screaming Frog, will also assist you with this crawlability phase, and it is suggested that you use numerous tools.

You may be wondering if this initial step is something that anyone can undertake. Yes, but it takes some awareness of how the tools work because they retain a lot of data.

The major purpose of this study step is to determine whether the webpage’s content and structure serve search engine visibility and visitor needs.

Pro tip: Many people believe that they may examine their own website’s ranking results by using a private Incognito mode in a browser and searching Google for their own site. Unfortunately, Google can determine your IP address and the device you are using, which may have an impact on search results. As a result, you should use tools like Google Search Console or MOZ to acquire the right rating.

2. Relevant keywords

After you’ve completed the first phase, it’s time to start thinking about your keywords. You should conduct keyword research and then use the data to design and develop high-quality content.

What is the best way to find these keywords? First, conduct keyword research. To put the research into action, you should:

  • Define themes that are relevant to your business.
  • By examining keyword search volumes and competition
  • Start planning your content based on your findings.

Which relevant keywords to choose

It is important to understand how individuals search for information and what they are genuinely seeking. Keyword research assists you with this step and provides real-world results, so you don’t have to rely solely on gut instinct.

You should also consider keywords from a strategic standpoint. Consider the seasons, geographical variances, and the common position among competitors.

How to put this all into action?

You should select the most crucial keyword as well as several supporting keywords that are relevant to the search. This is critical since Google understands keyword contexts pretty effectively.

You can use the following tools to locate suitable keywords:

  • Google search outcomes
  • Keyword planner for Google Ads (you need a Google Ads account)
  • Ahrefs
  • Ubersuggest
  • Google’s search engine

Most of these tools are free, and particularly the Google search results (image) provide a quick pass if you need to identify keywords quickly and easily.

Despite the fact that your keyword research appears to be rather technical, you should strive for a natural tone in your writing. Don’t use the terms in an unusual way. This is the trick: servicing SEO while maintaining a balanced and informative text.

Overall, keywords assist the themes and organization of the information on the webpage.

3. Content is king

It’s a cliche, but it’s true. Although there are numerous aspects that go into SEO success, content is the most important and has the most influence on organic ranking.

The most crucial thing you can do to improve your website’s visibility in organic search results is to provide high-quality content.

The first step in producing search engine optimized website content is to define the relevant keywords. Using keywords and structuring your themes around them will result in content that responds to Google searches.

Furthermore, your actions should be motivated by the question: “How do I get a visitor to spend time on my web page and browse pages?” Dwell time (the amount of time that a Google searcher spends on a page from the search results before returning to the Google search page) increases your authority in the eyes of a search engine.

How does content help to increase the dwell time?

  • Write long content: instructive content such as blogs, articles, and how-to instructions.
  • People will spend more time on your page if you create valuable content.
  • Create content hubs: Create material that is related to one another and is created with user behaviour in mind. Use CTAs (calls-to-action) to direct visitors to different portions of your website.

Do you want to know more about SEO-friendly content and blogs? Read our article, Blog SEO: 17 Tips for Increasing Your Blog’s Google Ranking.

Tips to write SEO friendly articles

Headlines are vital in Google’s view, and you should include relevant keywords in them. Use keywords at the beginning of your texts as well: the first 100 words of each page, in particular, should include important keywords.

In headlines, use relevant keywords. The keywords should be included in the first 100 words of the page.

Furthermore, videos, images, and infographics enhance the content, and image searches are becoming more popular.

You should use Google Analytics to create content that is based on reliable data. From Analytics you can find out which contents are most popular in your site. Regenerate them, recycle your best content and write even more about the topic.

Pro tip: Remember to not only optimise the pictures but also the videos by using the keywords. This is a big trend at the moment and is connected to creating highly multi-channel content.

4. Technical SEO

Technical functions have a big influence on web pages’ search visibility.

It is good to check that technical factors and website performance is in order. The most important areas are:

  • Responsiveness
  • Mobile-friendliness and mobile-first design
  • Webpage loading speed in all devices

Mobile-friendliness is crucial since Google favors mobile-friendly pages compared to desktop versions. Google Search Console has a feature that helps you to test the mobile-friendliness of your site.

How to improve page loading speed?

53 percent of mobile website visitors will leave if a webpage doesn’t load within three seconds. Therefore, page loading speed is an important factor that you should keep track of and respond to any issues to appear.

You can test your page speed for example with Google’s PageSpeed Insight which is a free tool.

To improve your page loading speed, you should consider the picture formats used on the page. Big pictures and visual elements slow the loading time down. Therefore, reducing the file size by compressing the pictures is recommended.

Also, taking into account all the resources which could be minified such as JavaScript, external files and analytic tracking tools is important to consider when improving page loading speed.

Clean the code and consider safety

HTML headlines, site headlines, meta descriptions, and URL structures should be optimized in an SEO-friendly manner. Simple URLs where the keywords are used have an advantage.

Clean the code – all unnecessary marks should be removed. By using Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS), it’s ensured that the page is technically safe and reliable.

If there is identical content on different pages you should use canonical link elements. This lets Google know which page is the primary page.

5. Link profile and developing the domain authority

Links matter! Take advantage of the links that may race you higher in Google searches. The most valuable links are so-called inbound links (or backlinks), which means that some other website that has high authority uses your webpage links in their content and website.

How do links affect search engine visibility?

High authority sites are reliable, popular, and they rank high in search engines. When these kinds of sites use your page links, it will also increase your authority and ranking in Google.

In other words, Inbound links are like ”votes” which have a real impact on your domain authority. This is definitely a rising trend.

It is also recommended to link to different parts within one website since this can increase the dwell time and improve the user experience by offering relevant related content and engaging CTAs.

How to achieve inbound links and build a link profile?

Producing content that attracts naturally earned attention is the best strategy to obtain high-quality inbound links and build your link profile. This type of valuable content is one-of-a-kind, current, and knowledgeable. Simply put, it’s useful as a reference!

Pro tip: When you utilize another company’s material as a reference, it increases the likelihood that they will share your content.

Sharing your material on social media will help to increase the authority of your website. According to Google, relevant social media links make your material multi-channel, which improves the design of your site.

Time to wrap up

SEO is a long-term endeavor that yields the finest benefits when maintained on a regular basis. Though it takes time and effort, it usually pays off because organic search accounts for the majority of website traffic.

If managing the entire SEO package appears to be too much at once, begin with specifying the keywords. Investing in high-quality content will also get you far.

Do you require assistance in optimizing your websites? Please contact our team of professionals.

Need help with getting your business found online? Stridec is a top SEO agency in Singapore that can help you achieve your objectives with a structured and effective SEO programme that will get your more customers and sales. Contact us for a discussion now.