Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process aimed at impacting or influencing a sites SERP ranking and organic traffic. SEO strives to get higher and better overall site analytics that positively impact its performance and placements in SEO rankings. In true white hat SEO, no SEO tactic is static since online dynamics keep changing according to search engine algorithms and other factors. However, these are critical site essentials that can be constantly tracked and updated to enhance SEO rankings. They include:
Keyword Research and Optimization
Keywords are words and phrases that users type into the browser while searching for particular webpages or content online. Use of relevant keywords and phrases helps users easily find your site and content. It helps engage more, gain more site traffic and leads, and increase conversion ratios. A site with relevant keywords can easily build the requisite profile and presence online.
Relevant Site Content
Content is what attracts people to a site in the first place. When content is updated, relevant, informative, and gives users what they are searching for, there is always a high chance they will keep coming and even refer friends to check out the site’s informative content. Relevance increases user interest, making them stay longer on the site. It lowers the average bounce rate on sites and helps increase the average site traffic. Quality content is still vital for Google search ranking.
Site Speed
Site speed is the amount of time it takes a browser to display or load fully functional pages of a typed in domain. It is vital for website pages to load faster when typed into the browser. Slow sites can be frustrating to surf. They can impact site credibility, customer loyalty, site traffic, conversions, ROI, and ultimately Google search ranking. Slowly loading pages and sites are usually lowly ranked in Google’s site rankings. Such sites perform poorly in SEO rankings.
Header Tags
What are header tags in SEO? And how and why do they influence SEO rankings? Header tags are used to mark out the various h1, h2, and h3 tags on a site’s pages. Header tags simplify the understanding of each site page’s content or text. They help make site page content readable and relevant in search results. When site content is well indexed and accessible, sites are easily traceable by their page content.
Images and Videos
Images and videos have more power to engage site visitors than plain text. This is because they communicate more in a shorter amount of time. Someone once said, “An image conveys a thousand words.” Optimized site images and videos are relevant to enhancing a site’s ranking in SEO Ontario.
Web Design and Layout
There are several types of website design today. From static, liquid, adaptive, dynamic, responsive, and single page layout. However, with website design as a Google ranking factor, its vital to choose a site layout that conforms to Googles latest web design guidelines.
Mobile Optimization
Use of digital mobile devices is at its highest with reportedly more people surfing and checking out sites on smartphones than desktops or laptops. This indicates a significant opportunity to harness and utilize the power of mobile to engage a wider audience.
Social Media Optimization
Social media has an influence on life as well as what happens online and offline. It’s the perfect platform for social connections and content. With a higher user base across platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Instagram, etc., there’s opportunity to drive a site’s engagement and traffic and gain a better SEO rank. Social media buttons on a site can significantly impact its placement in the SERPs.
Internal and Backlinks
Internal links are hyperlinks from a specific website page to another on the same domain. Internal links are vital to site navigation and the overall site architecture.
Backlinks, or inbound links, are anchor texts that help one site link to another website page. They help link one website to another page on a different website.
They are both vital Google search ranking factors and SEO techniques as they determine website page authority.
With these basics addressed in SEO, it is fairly easy to enhance a site’s SERP and SEO ranking.