Search Engine Optimization, also known as SEO, is becoming a very powerful tool for brands and businesses that want to establish a stronger online presence and increase their website’s visibility. With everything that revolves around SEO, it can seem impossible for a beginner to really break into this industry, but this step-by-step guide will introduce you to some easy SEO basics and techniques to help you kickstart your SEO journey!
How to Do SEO: A Step-By-Step Guide
Step 1: Keyword Research
Keyword research is the process of gathering popular search terms that users are searching for on search engines like Google, as well as their respective competitiveness and search volume. By understanding the specific keywords and phrases your audience is interested in, you’ll not only be able to create high-quality and well-optimized content that addresses these topics, but you’ll also be able to boost a website’s online visibility and organic traffic.
While there are plenty of keyword research tools out there at your disposal that’ll help you keep your finger on the pulse of what people are searching for, it’s best for beginners to manually choose keywords as this will help them hone their skills. List down keywords that you feel align with your client’s SEO goals and needs.
Step 2: Search Intent
When someone searches for something online, there’s always a reason behind it, and this is what SEO calls search intent. Identifying the search intent of users will help you figure out exactly what they’re looking for, which can give you an idea of what kind of content and format you should be making to attract them to your client’s website based on the most popular results. This can range from beginner’s guides, videos and tutorials, step-by-step guides, and more.
An easy way to figure out users’ search intent is by searching for your article idea on Google. Google’s algorithm ranks results by relevance, and this can be used as a gauge of what people are more likely to be looking for. Aligning your content with users’ search intent will also help your web page rank higher on search engines, but we’ll get to all that later.
Step 3: On-Page SEO
On-page SEO is all about optimizing your client’s website for search engine results, and you can do this by strategically including target keywords and queries into the page’s contents, as well as optimizing certain elements, with the three most important ones being the page title, URL and the headers.
With the page title being the first thing that users see on search engine results pages, this becomes crucial in both attracting traffic and engagement, while also setting users’ expectations regarding the page’s content. On the other hand, the URL helps in communicating the page’s topic and structure to both users and search engine algorithms, which is why it’s important that this is readable and includes relevant keywords and phrases.
Finally, headers make your content much more structured and help search engines understand the importance of each section, as well as rank your content accordingly based on its relevance to the search query. By taking the time to optimize these elements, you’ll be able to make your content more relevant to search engine algorithms, which can lead to a higher ranking on results pages.
Step 4: High-Quality Content
Even with all of the optimizations that you’ve performed, it’s important to remember that users clicked on your page for high-quality content. High-quality content is content that is specific, informative, engaging, and original.
The main goal of your content should be to help address users’ search intent and provide them with the information that they were looking for, while also delivering a good user experience rather than simply prioritizing ranking well in search results.
Step 5: Technical SEO
Technical SEO refers to all the website optimizations used to improve user experience and search engine’s ability to crawl and understand your website. While there are many optimizations for you to choose from, there are three major optimizations that every website should prioritize—page loading speed, mobile friendliness, and other optimizations that improve overall user experience.
Page loading speed or website speed optimization helps a webpage and its contents load much more quickly and efficiently through compressed images, minimized code, and browser caching among other factors. This is important because users tend to leave web pages that don’t load as quickly as they would like.
Mobile-friendliness or optimizations refers to the accessibility of your website across different devices, whether desktop or mobile, and it’s definitely something worth looking into as more users seem to browse the web on their phones and tablets rather than laptops and desktops.
Depending on the layout and content of your website, there are some additional optimizations that you can perform to boost user experience by improving the website’s usability, accessibility, and ease of navigation.
Step 6: Link Building
Link building, also known as backlink building, is an essential part of SEO that involves acquiring hyperlinks or backlinks from other websites that lead to your website. This process helps search engines view your website as more authoritative and trustworthy as more users are directed from one website to another, which is often viewed as a vote of confidence by search engine algorithms.
Aside from establishing your client as a thought leader in the industry, acquiring a greater number of high-quality backlinks will increase your chances of getting a favorable ranking on results pages.
It’s important to remember that the quality and relevance of the linking site are also crucial in the impact of the link on your website’s ranking. Link building can also help promote your content and help you reach a wider reader base, while also helping you stand out from other competitors.
Step 7: Data Monitoring and Analysis
Data monitoring and analysis allow you to track the performance and effectiveness of the SEO strategies you’ve implemented, as well as whether there are any adjustments or changes that need to be made moving forward. It can also help inform any future strategies and plans, while also increasing your chances of yielding positive results.
This is made easier with tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console that help you learn more about your website’s performance and user behavior, as well as other software like Ahrefs, SemRush, and Moz that allows you to stay updated with keyword rankings and competitors’ performance.
Can I Learn SEO By Myself?
Yes, you can definitely learn SEO by yourself. While each SEO strategy or campaign is different and unique, they’re also founded on some fundamental skills and principles that you can definitely pick up and develop on your own. There are also plenty of online resources and courses that can help you on your SEO journey.
How Can I Do SEO Myself?
Before following any of the steps in the previous section, you need to have a website that you can work on. Understandably, you won’t have any clients or brands to work with when trying to practice your SEO skills, but you can create your website and hone your abilities with that.
How Can I Learn SEO For Free?
There are many online resources, courses, and certifications that you can start to develop your SEO capabilities. When looking for the best one, take the time to consider the lessons being taught and covered, the methods used in teaching, and the credibility of the websites.
How Do I Get My First SEO Job?
After learning and practicing the foundational concepts, you can start looking for your first SEO job to showcase your skills and what you’ve learned. One way to do this is by joining a reputable freelancing platform such as Upwork or Fiverr that will allow you to have some firsthand experience with clients. Alternatively, you can also start applying for full-time positions that don’t require applicants to have any prior SEO experience.
Final Thoughts
When starting your SEO journey, it’s important to remember that it can take time to see significant changes and progress in both your skills and results, but it’s important to be patient and persistent during your learning process. And while there are definitely more techniques to be learned in the exciting world of SEO, these seven basics will help you hit the ground running.
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