What is SEO?

Feb 28, 2022 | Digital Marketing | 0 comments

What is Search Engine Optimization?

SEO is an acronym for Search Engine Optimization, or “Search Engine Optimization” and expresses the practices that aim to increase and raise the quality of web traffic (the number of visits to a particular website), through unpaid search results on search engines, what is known as “Organic Search Results” means the regular unpaid search. Although the term is an acronym for “search engine optimization”, this concept is more about people than search engines. It is about: understanding what users are searching for on the web. The answers they seek to find. The words they use in their research. The type of content they consume. When you can identify these things, you will be able to connect users who are searching on the Internet with the right solutions offered by your website. It is worth noting that SEO or SEO is a two-sided coin, where the first face is to know what users are searching for on the Internet, while the second face is to provide this information in a way that search engines can find and understand so that they can communicate it to the user.

How do search engines work?

We can liken search engines to an answering machine, as they collect a huge amount of content, then organize and rate it based on thousands of factors to determine the best content that will answer a specific question a user asks when they search for something on the Internet. Search engines can do this by exploring all forms of content available on the Internet (web pages, PDF files, images, videos…etc) through a process called crawling and indexing, and then ranking them according to their compatibility with the query. What a user has entered into a search engine through a process called ranking.

What are Unpaid Organic Search Results?

As we have already explained above, Organic Search Results are the search results that appear to the user as a result of effective use of SEO/SEO techniques, and for which no sums have been paid by their owners to appear on the results page. It used to be easy to spot natural search results. The ad results were visible at the top of the results page, followed by 10 links to natural results. However, over time, the way results are displayed on search engines has changed. So how do you identify natural search results? Today’s search results pages (SERPs) contain more ads as well as unique dynamic natural search results called SERP features in addition to regular natural search results. Examples of dynamic search results SERP features we find: Snippets or answer boxes that appear in the form of an answer to your question at the top of the search page inside a box. Relevant results section or People Also Ask. Section images related to your search.

In addition to many other forms of unique results that are constantly changing and evolving in line with the preferences and needs of users. It is worth noting that the SERP features in the Google search engine are completely natural (unpaid), some of which are affected by SEO techniques, while others have nothing to do with search engine optimization techniques. Examples of SERP features that are affected by SEO (their appearance on the first page of search results depends on how strong and SEO-friendly they are): Snippets. Results related to your search, which sometimes appear as “People Also Ask” boxes. As for the distinguished results that are not affected by SEO techniques, they are those that include information from reliable or specialized sites in the subject matter of the search such as Wikipedia, or IMDb, which specializes in rating films.

Is SEO Important?

Although paid advertising and social media platforms can bring more visitors to your website, most of your online traffic comes from search engines. Not only that, Organic Search results appear to professional researchers more reliable and get more clicks than paid ads. As of the search results shown to users in the United States of America, users click on only 2.8% of paid results. Not only that, as SEO is the only online marketing method that, if you use it well, will bring you continuous profits and always satisfactory results. If you put relevant content that deserves to be shown on the search results page for a suitable keyword, your site traffic will increase over time for free. Whereas, content marketing by other means requires constant payment of money to increase traffic and the number of visitors. And even though the different search engines are getting smarter, they still need your help. Therefore, you must improve your site so that it can deliver the information better to the search engine so that the latter can find this information, index it, and then display it on the results page.

Do I need to hire an SEO specialist for my website to be successful?

It depends on a lot of factors such as: how much you want to learn more about SEO. The complexity of your website. The size of your brand. You can undoubtedly apply some SEO basics if you like, but you can also get help from a professional in the field if you wish, and either way, it will benefit you. However, if you choose to hire an SEO specialist, be sure to choose it carefully, as many companies provide SEO services, but they vary in the quality and effectiveness of the service they provide. The right SEO will ensure that you save a lot of time, effort, and money while using these techniques incorrectly will do a lot of damage to your site. The best choice is good!

The white hat and the black hat!

Don’t worry, we haven’t moved on to the fashion! We’re still talking about search engine optimization. These two terms express two famous techniques in the world of SEO which are also known as white hat SEO and black hat SEO.

1. White hat SEO

It means SEO techniques, best practices, and strategies that comply with the laws and conditions stipulated by search engines. It primarily aims to benefit users and provide better results for their search.

2. Black hat SEO

It refers to techniques and strategies that aim to deceive search engines, to get higher traffic and more traffic from users. Black Hat SEO strategies may actually achieve higher numbers, but they still put your site at risk of being penalized and banned by search engines, and your site may even be removed completely from search results pages, and this may cost you huge financial losses. Be sure to avoid them and stick to sound strategies and techniques.

Website and SEO Objective

Websites vary, so take your time to understand the main purpose of your website (or the site you’ve been tasked with optimizing for search engines). Knowing this will not only help you figure out which SEO strategies are right for you, but will also enable you to identify key negotiating points with employers or other on-site SEOs. So start by asking yourself: What KPIs should I measure to see how successful the SEO strategy I used is? Here are some of the most popular performance indicators you can adopt: On-site sales figures. Download numbers. Numbers of new registrants on the site. The number of applications received. Phone calls received. There are many other indicators you can set that vary depending on the website and its nature, but watch out! Don’t make driving traffic to your site or ranking high on the search results page a primary goal. Yes, you may be surprised by this! In the end, you are seeking to improve search engines to raise the ranking of your site and increase the number of visitors to it. That may be true, but a higher ranking or a number of visitors is only a means to achieving the site’s primary goal. Think of the following two cases, whichever you prefer: to have 1,000 visitors to your site, 3 of whom will buy your product or service. Get 400 visitors to the site, including 40 people who buy your service or product. If you are fully aware of what is meant by SEO and its purpose, then you will undoubtedly prefer the second option, because it is the one that will bring you the financial return and success you seek. Always set a goal for your website, and then use SEO techniques to achieve that goal and not the other way around.

by Alfride Crystani
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