How does SEO work?

Today, it has become quite normal for people to search for answers to their questions on Google. For everything you are interested in, it will be enough to enter a question or keyword.

So you get thousands or millions of results.

However, you probably don't know how it all works?

All search engines, including Google, use a process called indexing and thus provide you with the best result in their opinion.

Web site indexing can also be done in Google Search Console. You can index all pages, but you don't have to.

The decision is up to you.

If the page is not indexed, you will never be at the top of the search.

Many people think that just creating a website is enough for positioning, but things are not like that.

When you index a page in GSC (Google Search Console), Google sends its Googlebot to do the job. Our advice is that whenever a page ends, you let Googlebot index that page.

For many reasons.

One of the more important is content theft. Because the first person to index some content is the owner of that content for Google. And that means that your effort will be taken over by someone else.

In other words, Google will ignore your page and you will be treated as if you copied the text.

When the page is indexed, the Google algorithm compares your page with other results it already has in the database.

It seems very simple, but it is actually very complicated.

No one knows how that algorithm works and there are only assumptions.

There are some other factors that affect the ranking of any page, such as:

If you noticed this is mostly about Search Engine, but where is the optimization?

The very optimization of any web site essentially boils down to content, i.e. written content. To make it easier for you to understand, we will explain how Google works. He doesn't look at how interesting a site is and whether it has nice photos.

He doesn't understand photos and that's why he's looking for as much text as possible to find out what you do and what you can offer users.

That's why good content is the basis of every On Page SEO!

That's why a post like this one will try to explain to you and Google what SEO is. There are tools like Ahrefs or Semrush that can help you a lot in market and competition research.

Their only drawback is that they are not cheap. But do some research, there are some alternative approaches to them.

If you want to overtake the competition, you have a big job ahead of you. You need to first analyze what factors brought them to the first page.

It can be quality text, good backlinks, high DA (Domain Authority), and maybe all of that together.

You can determine everything through Ahrefs or Semrush.

Sometimes it will be very difficult to position yourself for some strong keywords, and sometimes just a little effort will be enough.

Quality content that loads quickly is always the best way to start your climb to the first page of Google search.

Such text should explain to your visitors as best as possible what you can offer them, and at the same time you will provide search engines such as Google with keywords, title, meta descriptions and internal links.

So Google will clearly know what you do and when and to whom they should show your website page.

These are just some basic factors that determine whether you are successful in SEO. Of course, we will mention some more later.

What are SEO factors?

This is a bit more complicated question, but we will try to be as clear as possible.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is used to increase three separate factors of any website.

Those are:

SEO is based on predicting how visitors will ask a query.

On the basis of these answers, SEO begins.

The point is to create an avatar and view the search from his point of view.

Of course, there are tools like Semrush that will help you with this.

You must have content that will appeal to your ideal customer.

Knowing the customer's intentions will allow you to more easily connect with quality customers who are looking for a product or a solution to their problem on the Internet.

How to write text for SEO?

We have already mentioned that you should not repeat the keyword too many times in the content. You should write simply so that everyone can understand you. Take care that not every visitor of yours is knowledgeable about what you are writing about, so think about him and let him be in your head while you write.

Most often, SEO writing is equated with writing blog posts, which is partly true.

However, the blog and its posts should serve to help some people and explain to them how to solve a problem. Of course, every post should have a link that will lead to the sales page of your products or services.

There are SEO writers who know exactly how to write content for websites.

Whether it is a post, landing page or some other page, each of them has its own rules for how to write and link. An SEO writer knows how to highlight keywords in text and headlines. A good SEO writer isn't cheap, but it's money well spent.

You receive a text that is your property and can only be used by you. Good content will raise you on the Google ladder and increase visits to your website.

And with the increase in entries, sales on the website also rise proportionally.

If, for example, you are a website that deals with the sale of flowers and plants, it would be good to have, in addition to all the necessary pages for work, a blog where you will publish posts. These can be articles like "how to grow flowers" or "top 10 products you can buy from us online".

By writing such texts that are detailed, you will convince your visitors that you are an expert in that field. And through the titles and text, you will insert keywords for better positions on Google.

Let's not forget to mention the links to other pages on your website. Be sure to link to other posts that link to the page your visitor is on.

Of course, don't forget the CTA (click to action) button that will take them to your sales page.

Once you've mastered all of that, be sure to explore the WDF IDF formula.

What are keywords in SEO and what types are there?

When people search for something on Google, Yahoo, Bing or any other search engine, those are actually keywords. That is, what they type in the search box. For example, if you want to buy a new 55-inch TV, one way to search will be to type in 55-inch 4k TV.

The keyword in this case is 55 inch 4k TV and if you want to appear on Google for this keyword your H1 will need to read just like that.

If you have well-done SEO, quality backlinks and high website authority, it will be easier to take a place on the first page.

There are still a lot of things to do, but we will write about that in another text. If you have not done the title, meta description and basic and mandatory settings well, it will be difficult to expect anything.

In that case, everything depends on how your competition did the job.

There are many types of keywords, but the basic division is into Short Tail Keywords and Long Tail Keywords.

Both types are very effective. Mostly, there are more monthly searches for short keywords, there is a lot of competition and they know how to be general.

Long keywords have a smaller number of searches, the competition is much smaller, but sales are much more certain with them.

An example of a short keyword would be a t-shirt, where you don't know if it's male or female, what color it is, and if it has a collar. That's why we say that short keywords can have a broad meaning.

However, a good long keyword would be navy polo shirt for men.

And that's why she's better because she hits such a shirt exactly.

Short Tail Keywords consist of 1 to 3 words. They are most effective when your goal is to attract a large number of visitors. Regardless of the fact that they have a larger number of searches, it is not easy to position yourself for them.

Even in some niches, it is very questionable how effective they are in sales. But don't give up on them, but do research in some tool on how much it makes sense to have a short keyword in the title of the page.

Long Tail Keywords, they always have more than 3 words. The longer they are, it means you can enter a short description of the product.

For example, a dark blue men's two-button polo shirt. This will make it much easier to target your audience, and visitors will get exactly what they were looking for.

Are short tail keywords more sought after than long tail keywords?

No, because 70% of Google searches are based on long tail keywords. Long Tail Keywords overall will not generate as many visits as Short Tail Keywords.

But in the largest number of niches, it will be easier to rank high with the help of Long Tail Keywords, and sales will certainly be more successful.

How to find the best keywords for SEO?

Before starting any website work, start with keyword research. However, this is not necessary because the majority of websites do not include optimization of the website for search engines.

This is done only by those who know that it is necessary for good placement on Google and who, of course, have a budget that will cover all these costs. However, you know that SEO can always be done, at any time.

Even if you work at the very beginning of SEO, later you will have less work and it will be easier for you.

Researching the best SEO keywords for any website page is done by an SEO writer. He researches keywords, changes them and adjusts depending on the situation in relation to the competition.

Analysis for specific concepts within a niche is very important, and without a good understanding, mistakes are easily made.

That's why it's a job where you don't rush and where it's always better to do something then wait for tomorrow and do another research.

Keyword research always reveals more questions to ask the employer.

You will discover a lot of illogicality, but actually these are the search results.

None of us think in the same way, and that's why it's impossible to do quality research without help, that is, using good tools. Keyword research is always a work in progress because the rankings of all types of keywords change over time.

However, when the work is well done, re-analysis will be sufficient once or twice a year.

In SEO, 70% of the work is analysis.

You need to have basic keywords prepared and do further research based on them. Then, with a good tool, you'll find out about similar keywords being searched for that might be better than the ones you thought were the best.

There you will get how many monthly searches they have on average, how difficult it is to position for each of them, which months have the least and most queries and much more.

But these few facts are enough to get you started.

How to start SEO for a website?

We wish there was a universal answer to this question, but there isn't. Each website requires a different approach and work on it. That's why tools like SemRush are essential. With them, you will best understand what the situation is in that niche and what the competition is like.

Based on the results obtained, it will be much easier for you to see how much time and money should be invested in optimizing the website for search engines. You will see how much content needs to be written, how many backlinks your competition has and literally the entire situation in your niche.

When you create a website or a page on it, you should immediately do the indexing process in Google Search Console in order to appear on Google as soon as possible.

We are not talking about other search engines because it is understood that SEO is done in 99% of cases for Google. Very soon after that you will find yourself in search engines. We advise that when you create a page or add content, be sure to index it immediately after creation in GSC (Google Search Console) so that you do not become a victim of content theft.

It is very important that you know that the owner of the text is the page that Google found first. Maybe this is not so popular here, but you should be careful.

You must be sure that Google has analyzed you and included you in its search. Search by entering your website address or by entering your domain name.

If after a few days you can't find your site on the Internet, you need to check a few things:

These are some basic recommendations to get you started. If it's not any of these, start further research or hire someone who understands it. A large number of problems can be solved by the hosting on which your website is located.

That's why we advise each of our clients to open an account on Google Search Console and GA4 (Google Analytics 4) when creating a website.

These two tools are necessary for every website in order to detect possible errors and make an analysis in which direction to move.

That's why a Sitemap should be created in GSC, which will give Google an order to periodically review your website. A sitemap allows Google to analyze each of your pages well. It is important that you entrust the creation of content to proven people who are capable of writing good text, that is, content that is better than the competition.

Written content is the most important, because it is the best way for Google and visitors to understand what you actually do. But don't leave out video content if you're able to make it. But if you're not good at making video content, stop at writing.

You can always "borrow" video content on YouTube.

As we wrote, you need to do keywords for each web page.

Also, each website page must have Title, Meta Description, H1.

It's amazing how many good sites there are, we won't even mention the average ones!

You can check every site with the help of a free Google extension. Search for extensions at https://chrome.google.com/webstore/category/extensions

That is why it is necessary to analyze the situation on Google before creating a website.

To begin with, here are a few facts that are most often mistaken:

Offpage SEO

All this was Onpage SEO until now and is part of the basic SEO strategy. However, when you do that job well, then you should switch to Offpage SEO. There are several areas and directions, but for us, Backlinks are the most important for Offpage SEO.

In the simplest terms, backlinks are links from a website to your website. Very difficult and painstaking work that is not for everyone.

They are one of the most important things in SEO. As a rule, first you need to arrange the website completely, and only then proceed to the creation of backlinks. Every site has its own rating and in this case it is called Authority Score.

It goes from 0 to 100 and the higher your Authority Score, the more valuable a link on a site that goes from you to it will be. Or vice versa.

Of course, for a backlink to be valuable, it must be Dofollow, never Nofollow because it will not transfer link juice to your page.

Not to confuse you, backlink juice is slang used to describe and measure how much power will be transferred from one page to another.

And it's important that that backlink is Dofollow, because with a Nofollow backlink you give Google a signal that you don't want to waste your juice and give power to another website.

Offpage SEO is not done on your website and it only includes activities that happen outside of it.

The higher the Authority Score of the site that gives you the link, the better result you will get. Quality is important here, not quantity. Because you can buy thousands of backlinks for $100 that will be completely useless to you.

In fact, never buy backlinks like this because Google can penalize you for it. It often happens that Google bans you because of this practice.

There are bad backlink farms that your competition can use against you.

And it's almost imperceptible!

Google will never inform you about this and will not tell you the reason for which you are penalized. That's why using a tool like SemRush is a lifesaver in such situations. There you can easily find contaminated backlinks, copy them and enter them into GSC (Google Search Console).

So you will give up these backlinks and tell Google that you don't want them.

Many have this problem without even realizing it. They spend huge sums on content and other SEO methods without knowing that toxic backlinks are a problem.

Unfortunately, it's cheaper for the competition to destroy you like that, without you even realizing it!

However, Offpage SEO is not just about backlinks.

They are the most important, but there are a few more important things that you still need to pay attention to, namely:

These may be some advanced techniques, so to begin with, focus on quality links to your website. Pay attention to the strength of their website, especially the strength of the website from which they send you a link to your website. And be sure to ask for it to be Dofollow!

Black hat / White hat SEO

As in any other industry, in SEO optimization you will come across different approaches to get the best results.

In this case, how best to optimize a website. Thus, in SEO there are two directions, two schools - Black hat and White hat. You can probably guess that one way is correct and the other is not.

Here we will briefly explain what and how these two directions work. Of course, we will also give you a few examples.

We will also mention Gray Hat SEO, which slips between them. This is a very important topic that you need to know something about so that you don't put your business at risk.

So let's go!

What is White hat?

In short, it is the correct and honest way to optimize a website for Google and other search engines.

It is based on three principles:

What is Black hat?

It is the opposite of White hat, which means that Google prohibits it, that is, punishes those who apply it.

Black hat is the other side of the coin and it has principles on which it is based, which are:

Now you are probably wondering, what should we do?

Our advice is the same as in life - Be committed, work honestly and you will be rewarded!

There are no shortcuts to success online either. Even if you get away with something and manage to bypass the Google algorithm, you won't have the value that others can offer.