SEO Starter Guide
If you are wondering how to begin with SEOs (search engine optimization), and how to get a quick and effective start this article is for you.
In this article, I will cover the most common questions about SEOs-straightforward with no BS 😉:
- Why is SEO important? And how does SEO help you?
- What is SEO?
- How does SEO work?
- How to satisfy your target audience?
- How to satisfy the search engine?
- Which are the best SEO tools?
let’s get started
Why is SEO important? And how does SEO help you?
It goes without saying that it is no longer enough to have a website or an online shop; you also have to be visible and found online. You guessed it, SEO is your best ally to help you to accomplish a successful online presence if applied right.
What is SEO?
In a nutshell, SEO is a process to know your target audience’s goals and then create the content/website so search engines make it visible online.
The SEO process is all about satisfying your target audience and fulfilling the search engines’ requirements.
How does SEO work?
The SEO process covers four areas to satisfy your audience and make you noticeable on search engines: technical, content, backlinks, and competition. With two areas you have direct control, and two areas you have an influence:
The areas you control:
- Technical
- Content
The areas you influence:
- Backlinks
- Competition
How to satisfy your target audience?
To satisfy the audience, you have to concentrate on two areas: content and competition.
Before you start creating any content, be sure to use an SEO tool to check the most popular queries. You also have to look for high search volume keywords to include in your content. Don’t forget your due diligence to check out your competition to observe how they answer those queries, and then create the right and relevant content using your expertise. Now, you see the need for SEO tools, right?
How to satisfy the search engine?
You have to focus on technical and backlinks areas to make search engines satisfied. But how do search engines work? Search engines use programs or bots called “crawlers” to crawl, index, and rank your content:
- Crawling is when the crawlers visit, read and follow links on your website/webpages.
- Indexing is the process of storing your content in the search engine database.
- Ranking is when and where the search engines display your content to answer queries.
So how do make search engines happy? You satisfy search engines by making your website reachable and readable by crawlers. Here is a list of the technical things you need to do on your website:
- Use semantic HTML.
- Avoid internal dead links on your webpages (from your webpages to your webpages).
- Add HTML and XML sitemaps.
- Add robot.txt.
- Use descriptive text. For example, instead of click here, write something like learn more about critical thinking.
- Use friendly SEO URLs.
- Increase the backlinks numbers from websites with authority.
Among all the SEO areas, the backlinks are the most challenging. The backlinks process is when a website links back to your website. Search engines value backlinks, especially from a website with authority. For example, if you have an astronomy website; you will hit the jackpot if NASA links back to your website. Here are some tips to improve your backlinks area:
- Get in touch with your industry influencers to promote your content on their blog or website. I know it is not easy, but “you get in life what you dare to ask for”.
- Write testimonials for companies and services you use; they will be happy to publish them on their websites.
- Be generous and donate money to nonprofit organizations; like the paid companies, they will also be happy to display your website on their webpages.
What are SEO tools?
It is virtually unthinkable to carry out the SEO process without SEO tools, as there is no way you can know which keywords are popular and the site’s authority is linked back to your website. The good news is that I am sharing the most popular free and commercial SEO tools for each area, enjoy 😉 (see table below).
Remark: The green color is for the free SEO tools and the red color is for commercial SEO tools.
Which are the best SEO tools?
Well, it depends on your objectives and budget. If you are a small business owner, I highly recommend investing some time and energy to improve your SEO knowledge, as it will have a tremendous impact on your business and your online visibility. I also advise you to pick some free and paid SEO tools to cover the four areas mentioned. There are a plethora of free and paid online courses to get you up and running in no time. However, if you have a larger budget, it is wise to hire an SEO specialist. Nevertheless, this does not prevent you from doing your due diligence and understanding the basics of SEOs.
With all the pressure to be found online, it is no wonder why you might feel confused and frustrated, don’t give up, and keep improving your online visibility. I hope this article will help you understand a little more about the SEOs world.
