Consider how frequently and why you search for products or information on Google or other search engines. We will begin by asking ourselves: ‘How does Google categorize sites and return them to users as search results?’
SEO Optimization
Understanding how SEO evolves will help you stay on top of the game as a digital marketing professional. While SEO is constantly changing in small ways, the core principles of SEO remain constant. SEO has been broken down into three parts since Google was founded in the late 90s.
Technical Optimization
On-Page SEO
Off-Page SEO
Technical optimization is a process that involves completing your website activities designed to improve SEO but which are unrelated to the content. It is often done behind the scenes.
Page Optimization is a process that ensures the content of your website is relevant and offers an excellent experience for users. This includes selecting the correct keywords in your content. It can be done using content management software.
Content Management System (CMS) is software that manages a website. The CMS software allows the uploading or editing the website content, including text, images, and videos. The CMS can be used for creating optimized page titles and descriptions for SEO purposes.
CMSs are usually user-friendly and offer drag-and-drop functionality to create your layouts. WordPress, Wix Drupal, Joomla Shopify Expression Engine, Magento, and Shopify are all examples of standard content management systems.
Page Optimization refers to the process of improving your site’s rankings in search engines through activities that are performed outside the area. Backlinks are a significant factor in this, as they help build a site’s reputation.
Computer programs are used to find clues that will give a searcher the desired results. Search engines use algorithms to determine which web pages to rank and for what keywords. Search engines are based on three main steps:
Crawling – discovering the themes and topics of a website
Indexing: registering a page in a database linked to specialized issues.
Ranking: Sorting search results by search parameters, articles, and search engine database.
Crawling
Crawling is the first step. Search engines use web crawlers that find and store information on new pages. These web crawlers are sometimes called spiders,’ or ‘robot.’ They are designed to find new web pages and to check periodically to see if the content of pages they have previously visited has changed.
Search engines crawl pages by following the links they have already found. If you link your blog to your homepage, then a search engine will crawl your homepage and look for other links to follow. It may even follow the link that leads to your blog. Some websites instruct search engines not to crawl certain pages, leaving them off the index.
Indexing
Indexing is the second step. The second step is indexing. This is where a search engine decides if it will use its crawled content. A crawled page will be added to a search engine’s index if it is deemed valuable by the search engine. This index is used to determine the final ranking. The indexing process involves storing web content or a page in a database. Indexes are used to store web pages with unique content. The index may not include a web page if it:
It’s not mobile friendly
Its content is considered to be duplicate
Its content is deemed low-value or spam.
It couldn’t crawl
The page or domain lacks inbound links
Ranking
The ranking is the third and most crucial step—search engines sort and rank results based on keywords to provide the best results possible. After crawling and indexing, ranking can take place. Once a search engine crawls and indexes your site, it can be ranked.
Search engines sort and rank content using more than 200 ranking indicators. These signals fall under three categories: technical optimization (on-page), off-page SEO, and off-page optimization. Search engines rank web pages based on several factors, including the presence of keywords in the title tag and the loading speed of a page.
Keyword Presence within Title Tag: Whether or not the keyword was used on the page and in the title tag.
The web page’s loading speed measures how quickly it loads and whether it is compatible with mobile devices.
Website Reputation: Whether or not the website and web page are considered reliable for the search topic.
Google’s Algorithms
Google Hummingbird is the main algorithm determining search engine results’ order and ranking.
Google has a sub-algorithm for its search engine based on machine learning called RankBrain.
When RankBrain encounters a phrase or word it doesn’t recognize, it uses artificial intelligence to understand it better.
By converting keywords to known concepts and topics, Google can better understand queries when they are not expected.
RankBrain does not reward websites that are the most keyword-optimized but rather those that deliver the results that users expect.
The best SEO strategy is to optimize the website for user satisfaction and to make the most of the RankBrain factor.
Three of the most effective methods to achieve this are:
Medium-tail keywords are essential to optimize for
You can optimize page titles and descriptions to increase the likelihood that your listing will be clicked when people search. Clickthrough rate is the percentage of people who click on your website after seeing you on Google. CTAs can be used to optimize CTR. Include the essential keyword and test using brackets.
Optimize your content to increase dwell times (the time visitors spend on a page) and decrease bounce rates (the percentage of people who only view one page).
Google’s three most important ranking factors are:
Links- It’s believed that this refers primarily to backlinks and other off-page optimization.
Content This applies to the on-page optimization.
RankBrain – Google’s machine-learning sub-algorithm for a search engine that rewards sites with high user satisfaction
Google launched the BERT algorithm in 2018. BERT allows search engines to understand better the context and language of the searcher to provide better results.
