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Helpful and Actionable SEO Tips

A strong online presence is necessary in the digital age and search engine optimization (SEO) is key to building such. However, SEO is constantly changing and is a complicated field, making it difficult to perform well without proper knowledge. Luckily, there are a number of SEO tips and tricks that can help you navigate your way through the industry and help your website perform better.

While StatCounter analytics will help you track your progress with SEO, we also offer a number of helpful tips and tricks to help your website rank and perform better in search results. In this tutorial, you will learn some of the best SEO tips and tricks that have helped countless members improve their websites. SEO is constantly in flux, however, so you should be sure to stay up on the latest industry trends to keep your website performing well in search results. For further help, you can view the pages provided below. Otherwise, read on to get a close look at some essential SEO tips.

SEO Tips: How to SEO a Website

Search engines look at a number of variables to determine which sites will best suit the search user's’ intent, and provide such sites in search results for any given search term. Regardless, any SEO strategy should start with extensive keyword research, which can then be employed across the site to begin ranking for the selected keywords.

Finding and Utilizing Keywords

Of course, stronger and more authoritative websites will dominate heavily searched terms, but you can get your website competing for these terms over time with a bit of work. And while it may be difficult to rank for competitive keywords, you can start with lower search volume keywords and slowly work your way up to the more competitive, high-volume search queries.

Choosing the right keywords can be a daunting task, but with keyword research the process can be made much easier, and it can help you to build a sound SEO strategy. The tricky part is using keywords correctly. Alt tags for images, header tags, title tags, and meta descriptions should contain the keyword you’d like that specific webpage to rank for. Use the keyword sparingly in the text, though, and be sure the content sounds natural and not forced.

While keyword ranking is important, it shouldn’t be your main concern. You should also focus your attention on click-through-rate and bounce rate, as these are better indicators of how your content is performing for various keywords. You could be ranking number one for a keyword, but if users ignore your webpage or are dissatisfied with it, that ranking is nearly meaningless and will soon drop accordingly, as search engines focus on serving the best webpages to their users. Getting users to visit your site and keeping them there will benefit your website far more than a single keyword ranking. In short, ensure you’re using your keywords to write quality and appealing content. If you were searching for the same keyword, consider what you would like to read.

Backlinks

Essential Definition

Backlinks, also known as inbound links, are any link to your website from another, external site. In other words, if another website adds a link to your website on any of their pages, you’ll have acquired one backlink.

Another important aspect of SEO is building a strong backlink portfolio. Backlinking may not be as important today as it was 15 years ago, but it still contributes to a site’s strength. In fact, backlinks help to build a website’s domain and page authorities, which directly contribute to higher search engine rankings. Seeing as backlinks continue to serve a valuable purpose in SEO, you will want to be sure to build a strong backlink portfolio for your website.For more information on backlinks, check out the pages provided below:

DIY SEO Tips

SEO may be a complicated field, but with a little research and some effort, you can perform SEO for your website on your own. DIY SEO is popular among business owners because it gives an opportunity to grow a business without having to spend a ton of money. While you can buy paid search ads, organic search results and organic SEO is a popular and inexpensive alternative. Plus, the traffic acquired through organic search and SEO is typically far more meaningful for your website, as these users are more likely to be interested in your site’s content having come from a relevant search query.

When looking to perform SEO work on your own, you will want to take advantage of a number of the best tools for SEO. SEMRush, for example, is a great keyword research tool that also allows you to check your website’s backlinks. Moz is another popular SEO tool that allows you to perform keyword research, check backlinks, and assess your website’s domain and page authorities. Better yet, with Moz Local, you can list your website in more than 100 directories with ease.

Keyword research, on-page optimization, and writing content are all tasks that can be performed with little expertise in SEO.

5 SEO Tips to Get Started Today

If you’re ready to get started with the initial steps of SEO, the tips below are a great place to get going. Before you get started, however, you’ll need to have a list of keywords prepared. While you can perform your research with a variety of tools, you can at least start with some terms you know are relevant to your website and business. Take a look at the SEO tips below:

  • Title Tags and Meta Descriptions: Once you’ve completed keyword research, or at least have a list of appropriate keywords, you should use these to add title tags and meta descriptions to each page on your site. Title tags are the clickable, blue text in search engine results, which are followed by the meta description below. The title tag should include the keyword, your company name, and something about the page. Similarly, the meta description should include the same, though you can use a sentence or two.
  • Image Alt Text: Quite similar to your title tags and meta descriptions, any image on your website should also have an optimized image alt text. This helps search engines understand what each image is, and the text you provide will display if the image ever fails to load. Image alt text should include a keyword and be as descriptive as possible in just a few words.
  • Content: Of course, creating keyword-based content is one of the most important things you can do as you delve into SEO. Without quality content on your site, you’ll have little chance of ranking. With your keywords, you should create content that is compelling and insightful, using the keyword fairly often throughout the piece. As you write, strongly consider what the reader would like to see.
  • Social Media: To further improve your online visibility and engage your audience and potential customers, creating accounts for your business on various social media platforms is often recommended. Facebook and Twitter are perfect for virtually any business, so consider creating accounts as you’re getting started.
  • Backlinks (Inbound Links): Backlinks are a major ranking factor for search engines. If another website mentions your business on one of their pages and provides a link to your website, you’ve acquired a backlink. The stronger the sites are that are backlinking to your site, the stronger your site will be to search engines, which will help improve rankings. While great content will, in hopes, acquire inbound links itself, you can also acquire them in a variety of ways. Adding your business to directories is one way to get started. Consider Yelp! and Yellow Pages (YP).

Sign Up for StatCounter Today!

As you familiarize yourself with SEO and begin employing such on your website, you’ll want to track your efforts with StatCounter. The metrics provided in our web analytics can provide you with valuable insight as to how visitors are interacting on your site. This will help you identify areas of potential growth, and where you are succeeding to help you better improve your website’s SEO strategy. Remember, SEO is not something that will bear fruit immediately, but over the long run, it will benefit your website.

If you are in need of assistance, you can contact member support by completing the form below.

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