The answer to the question “What is SEO optimization”
SEO is the improvement of the site for search engines and users, which takes place by conducting internal (everything related to the pages of the site) and external (increasing authority in the eyes of the search engine) optimization. The goal of SEO optimization is to increase traffic to the site and its subsequent monetization (for information resources) or conversion into customers (for commercial resources).
The definition of SEO in the words of most people who do not understand Internet marketing sounds like this:
“SEO is how to make it stand out on the first page of Google”
By the way, the abbreviation SEO can also mean search engine optimizer, that is, seo-optimizer.
Mostly, the first results in the search are paid advertising, followed by SEO (or organic search) results.
What does search engine optimization consist of?
When defining the question “what is seo”, I mentioned the internal and external optimization of the site. In the spring of 2016, a Google representative named 2 main site ranking factors, these are:
- site content;
- external link.
By and large, this explains the division of SEO optimization into internal and external. To make it clearer, let’s briefly analyze each of the concepts.
Internal site optimization (onpage seo) is the improvement of site pages from the point of view of search engines and users. The main task is to make the page as relevant as possible to the relevant search query or group of queries.
UPD 22.02.2022 – as of the specified date, it is still necessary to mention optimization for user intent (information need). For example, if a user wants to see a video based on a certain request, no matter how much you optimize the page with text for these requests, it will be impossible to reach TOP1-2-3.
The main factors of internal SEO optimization
- tags and meta-tags;
- internal relinking;
- site structure;
- page content
- image optimization;
- URL structure;
- micro marking;
- social factors;
- design and usability.
UPD 02/22/2022 – in recent years, there have been no changes in basic optimization, but factors such as E-A-T, which can be translated as Expertise-Authority-Trust, have been added. This is a topic for a separate article. For now, I’ll just say that because of this update, it has become much more difficult to get high positions without these factors. And as always, for example, articles on medical topics written by a reputable doctor will be ranked higher (but this rule also applies in other topics).
Which includes external optimization
Basically, external optimization (off-page seo) is reduced to obtaining external links to the site.
External link – to put it very simply, this is an article on websites on the Internet in which there is a link to your site. Although there are actually many different types of links.
To explain simply, the more your resource is talked about and referred to, the more popular and authoritative it appears to search engines. Accordingly, they raise it in the search results.
In words it sounds simple. But there are many additional factors, for example:
- the quality of resources that refer to you;
- anchor text (link text);
- traffic to the page with the link;
- number of links from one page;
- inflammation of donors;
- much more.
If you are not aware of all the points, there is a risk of getting a search engine filter.
In addition to links to the resource, external optimization can include:
- social factors (likes, shares);
- mentioning (also called “quoting”) your site (without a link);
- presence in authoritative directories (dmoz, Yandex directory) (UPD 22.02.2022 – not relevant as of this date, the dmoz directory no longer works);
- registration in mapping services (google business, Yandex directory);
- CTR in search (work on snippets).
If you plan to promote the site yourself, I recommend reading the recommendations of the search engines themselves on site optimization:
- Yandex
Or sign up for SEO promotion courses with me – although I don’t conduct them regularly.
I hope the article was useful for you. Do not forget to share on social networks and ask questions in the comments.