SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization” or “optimization for search engines” and is a set of strategies and techniques aimed at improving the visibility of a site in the search results of search engines such as Google.

When we say search engine, we will always think of Google because its dominance is incredible.

In Serbia in 2024, Google occupies 83% of the search engine market, while the second is Bing with only 6%.

The main goal of SEO is to increase organic (unpaid) traffic to the site by improving its position on search engine results pages (SERP – Search Engine Results Page).

SEO optimization of a website is divided into two main categories:

Why is SEO important?

SEO optimization of a website is important for the success of any site for several reasons:

1. Increases Organic Traffic: Organic traffic is traffic that comes from unpaid search results. This means that visitors come to your site because they found it relevant to their queries.

SEO optimization increases the chances of your site appearing at the top of search results, thus increasing the number of visitors.

2. Improves visibility and reputation: A better position on search engines increases the visibility of your site.

Users tend to trust sites that are at the top of search results, which can significantly improve your brand’s reputation.

3. Brings Qualified Visitors: SEO helps you target the right keywords that your target audience uses.

In this way, you attract visitors who are already interested in what you have to offer, which increases the chances of conversions.

4. Provides long-term results: Unlike paid campaigns that stop giving results as soon as you stop paying, the effects of SEO optimization are long-term.

Once you reach a good position, you can enjoy increased traffic for a long time with minimal maintenance costs

Key elements of SEO

We will try to mention only the most important key elements of SEO, but we know there are many more.

That is why we will treat them separately in another text that we will publish on our blog.

For someone entering the SEO world, always keep these 4 elements in mind:

For a successful SEO strategy, it’s important to use the right tools that can help you with keyword research, competitor analysis, performance monitoring, and technical problem identification.

Some of the most popular SEO tools include:

SEO optimization of a website is a complex and continuous process that requires dedication and professional knowledge.

Through the proper implementation of SEO strategies, you can significantly improve the visibility and performance of your site on search engines, attract more qualified visitors and increase the chances of conversions.

Why is SEO optimization important for every website?

Website SEO optimization is essential because it allows search engines to understand your site’s content and how it can be useful to users.

Although search engines are getting smarter, they still can’t see and understand a web page the same way humans do.

Website SEO optimization helps search engines understand exactly what your website is about and how it can be useful for users. People make the mistake of thinking that good photos will improve SEO.

Maybe they will, but the truth is quite different. Google can’t see your photo and you have to explain to it in text what is in it.

So never leave out the Alt Tag for any photo on your website!

Limitations of automatic browsers:

What’s going on behind the scenes at Google?

Search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo play a key role in directing users to relevant information on the Internet.

To understand how SEO works, it’s important to know how search engines work and what happens behind the scenes when we enter a query into a search engine.

Query types and their purpose

1. Transactional Queries: The goal of these queries is to perform a specific action, such as purchasing a product, downloading an application, or booking a service.

2. Informational Queries: Users are looking for information on a specific topic, for example, “how to make a cake” or “the history of Rome”.

3. Navigational Queries: Users search for a specific site or page, for example, “Facebook Login” or “Amazon Store”.

Browser limitations

1. Online Forms: Showing the form and how browsers can’t access the content behind it.

2. Duplicate content: Examples of duplicate pages and how it confuses search engines.

3. Blocked in code: Display of robots.txt file with prohibited parts of the site.

4. Poor link structure: Visualization of poorly organized link structure.

5. Non-Text Content: Displaying different types of content that search engines cannot read.

Key factors for SEO success

In order for your SEO strategy to be successful, it is necessary to take into account several factors that affect the ranking of your site on search engines.

These factors include:

1. Quality of content: Quality, relevant and original content attracts users and increases the likelihood that your site will be ranked highly.

2. Keywords: Proper use of keywords in titles, meta descriptions, URLs and the text itself on the site helps search engines understand what your site is about.

3. Backlinks: Quality backlinks from other authoritative sites can significantly improve your site’s ranking.

4. Technical Optimization: Site loading speed, mobile friendliness, SSL certificates and proper URL structure are important for technical optimization.

5. User experience: Good design, easy navigation and interactivity of the site affect how long users will stay on your site, which is a positive signal for search engines.

SEO is a continuous process that requires dedication, analysis and adjustment of strategies in order to achieve the best results.

By understanding how search engines work and applying the best SEO practices, you can significantly improve the visibility and performance of your site on search engines.

It requires a lot of work and at least 6 months of patience!

Basics of an SEO optimized website

Browsers are limited in how they search the web and collect its content. A website doesn’t always look the same to us as it does to human beings and to the automatic search engines that analyze and record its content.

We will focus on specific, technical aspects of creating (or modifying) web pages so that they are identical to search engines and real visitors.

Content accessible to search engines

Your most important content should be in text format. Images, Flash animations, Javascript and other non-text content are often ignored or have little impact.

Therefore, do not attach any special importance to them from the SEO point of view.

The easiest way to ensure that the words and phrases you show your visitors are visible to search engines is to put them in the text of the page.

Advanced options to help search engines:

Availability of links

Links must be accessible to search engines so that they can move from one page to another and find all the content on the site. Hundreds of thousands of sites make the mistake of structuring their navigation in such a way that search engines cannot access all of the site’s pages.

Don’t let something like that happen to you!

Website structure and hierarchy

The basic structure and hierarchy of a site play a key role in its optimization for search engines. A well-organized site allows search engines to easily search and index all pages, while a poorly structured site can cause problems in indexing and ranking.

Website architecture is very important. Make sure that the customer can get to the product they want in no more than 3 clicks.

Planning the structure of the web site

Be aware of the following facts:

1. Clear hierarchy: It is important that your website has a clear hierarchy of pages. The home page should lead to the main categories, which further lead to subcategories or specific pages. This structure not only makes navigation easier for users, but also for search engines.

2. Use of URLs: URLs should be short, descriptive and contain keywords relevant to the content of the page. Avoid long and complicated URLs with lots of parameters. Nobody likes signs, not even Google!

3. Internal Links: Internal links help search engines discover and index new pages on your site. They also help users find related content more easily. We have noticed that a lot of websites do not attach importance to internal links, which are very important for Google to go through your website as well as possible and understand what you actually do.

Display of the optimal hierarchy of the site

These are some basic website options:

1. Homepage: The central point of navigation leading to the main categories.

2. Main categories: Sections that include related topics or products.

3. Subcategories and individual pages: Specific content within the main categories.

Using keywords for SEO

Keywords are the core of SEO strategy. They allow search engines to understand what your page is about and how to relate it to user queries.

The use of keywords must be carefully balanced – excessive use (keyword stuffing) can negatively affect the ranking of your site.

Therefore, make sure that the keywords for each page must be found in the following places:

1. Headings and subheadings: Use keywords in headings (H1 tag) and subheadings (H2, H3 tags). This helps search engines quickly understand the structure and main themes of your content. Each page may contain only one H1 tag. He should always be on top and the biggest. This does not apply to other H tags. It is important that they go in order and you must not skip them. For example, H2 must not be followed by H4, but necessarily by H3.

2. Meta Descriptions: Meta Descriptions (Meta Descriptions) do not directly affect the ranking, but they are still important for attracting users to click on your site in the search results. Include keywords and an attractive description to make it easier for users to click on your website. Check out how those on the front page wrote them to find out what the best rapping is.

3. Body text: It is natural to include keywords in the body text. Focus on creating quality and useful content that answers user queries. For advanced writers and website owners, we recommend using a tool that works according to the WDF IDF formula. You’re not even aware of how many secondary keywords you’ve left out of your text.

4. Alt text for images: Adding alt text to images not only improves SEO but also site accessibility. Alt text should be short and describe the content of the image. It’s actually the only way to explain to Google what’s in your photo.

SEO optimization for mobile phones

An increasing number of users access the Internet via mobile devices, so site optimization for mobile devices has become necessary. Google uses “mobile first indexing”, which means that the search engine primarily uses the mobile version of the site for indexing and ranking. Today, almost 2/3 of searches through Google Chrome are performed on mobile phones.

In fact, anyone who is serious about building websites pays a lot of attention to mobile first indexing. That is why it is important to take care of the following things to display the website on a mobile phone:

1. Responsive design: Your site should be responsive, which means that it automatically adapts to the screen size of the device the user is using. This is not a big problem for people who have experience in building websites.

2. Loading speed: Mobile users expect speed. Optimize images, reduce the number of scripts and use fast servers so that your site loads quickly on mobile devices. There are a lot of good online tools that can show you where the squeaks are.

3. Simple Navigation: Navigation should be simple and intuitive. Avoid complex menus and buttons that are hard to reach on smaller screens. Make sure everything runs smoothly and that users can easily get to the page or product they want.

Analytics and constant content improvement

SEO optimization of the website is not a one-time job.

It is a continuous process that requires regular monitoring and adjustment of strategies.

Using analytics tools, you can monitor your site’s performance and identify areas for improvement.

By regular monitoring and optimization, you can ensure that your site remains competitive and ranks well on search engines, attracting more relevant visitors and increasing conversions.

Because SEO optimization of the website is not something that is done once and never again. You must monitor and react to the changes that occur with each Core Update.

Trust us, it’s no problem at all if you’re a regular at it!

Selection of keywords for SEO

It all starts with the words entered in the search field. Keyword research is one of the most important activities when it comes to site optimization. Ranking for the right keywords can make all the difference in whether or not you exist online.

So the question is how to determine the value of the keyword?

In our opinion, the following three facts are important:

1. Relevance: Is the keyword relevant to the content of your page? Will the user find what he was looking for on your site?

2. Competition: How many sites are already competing for that keyword? Are there Google Ads ads above the search results?

3. Google Ads Campaigns: Create a Google Ads campaign to test keyword value and track impressions and conversions.

Long tail keywords

Long-tail keywords or phrases have a lower search volume, but can bring more conversions. For example, “black elegant men’s shoes price” is more specific and more likely to generate sales than just “shoes”.

For the keyword “shoes” there is certainly a big search and a lot of competition.

That’s why we think that for such keywords it doesn’t make sense to fight with much stronger websites than yours.

For “shoes” you do not know whether they are for children, women or men, whether they are sporty or elegant, what color the user is looking for, whether it is just an informative query, whether price or quality is important to him, etc.

And that’s why this is your chance!

How does content affect the position on Google?

Search engines are constantly improving their processes to provide users with the best possible results. Quality content is key to any good search engine ranking.

You mustn’t skimp here!

In this way, you not only help Google understand you better, but also provide users with a lot of useful information that they cannot find on other websites.

Quality content must have the following characteristics:

1. Clear navigation: The site should be easy to use and have clear navigation.

2. Relevant information: The content should provide direct and relevant information about the given search term.

3. Professional design: The site design should be professional and adapted to all browsers and resolutions. First of all, we think of mobile phones.

4. High-quality content: Content should be informative and useful for users. Without it, there is no success in the long run. Check out the best websites and you’ll understand what we’re talking about.

Impact of user experience (UX) on rankings

Google analyzes how users react when they visit your site. If users stay on the site, share the content and link to it, these are positive signals for Google.

We like to use Hotjar on our websites to analyze how visitors move through our pages.

Very useful app, be sure to try it! You will be surprised how some visitors view the pages on your website.

Customizing content for users and browsers

Quality content does not only mean providing information, but also adapting it to both users and search engines like Google. Content that is easy to understand and at the same time optimized for search engines allows for better visibility and a better user experience.

And that ultimately means a better position for you!

So the question is, what is important for content adaptability and relevance? We will be very brief.

According to us, they are:

1. Quality and originality:

Content must be original and of high quality. Plagiarism can not only lead to legal problems, but also negatively affects the site’s ranking. Search engines prefer unique and informative content that provides value to users. If you copy some text, at best your page will be ignored by Google.

If they find out that you do it every day, someone can report you and you risk a manual penalty. Unlikely, but not impossible! A common practice by Google if it notices that you are buying backlinks.

2. Use of keywords:

The integration of keywords into the content must be natural and must not compromise the readability of the text. Keywords should be distributed evenly throughout the text, including headings, subheadings, and key sections of the text.

And here we advise the use of the SEOlyze tool, which is perfect in this situation. There are many other good WDF IDF tools, but as far as we know, only SEOlyze has an option in the Serbian language.

3. Content length:

Longer, more in-depth articles often rank better because they provide comprehensive information on a topic. However, length must not come at the expense of quality. The focus should be on informative and relevant content that satisfies the user’s request.

In fact, no page should be less than 500 words. A little more important no less than 1,000 words, and the most important at least 2,000 words.

We know from experience that it is impossible to describe or explain something well with fewer words.

Engaging and retaining users on the website

User engagement is a key factor affecting SEO performance. Search engines track how long users spend on your site, how many pages they view and how often they return to your site. These metrics can significantly affect your position in search results.

That’s why it’s important to pay attention to the following:

1. Visual content:

The use of images, videos, infographics and other visual elements can increase user engagement. Visual content helps convey information better and can increase time spent on the site.

But in combination with a good text, the best results are achieved.

2. Interactive elements:

Surveys, quizzes, and comments allow users to actively participate on the site. These elements not only increase engagement, but also provide additional signals to search engines about the relevance and value of your content.

But not only to search engines, but also to users.

3. Regular content updates:

Constantly refreshing content and adding new information shows search engines that your site is active and up-to-date. Blog posts, news and updates are great ways to keep your content fresh.

This means a lot if you want to be successful in searches!

Technical Aspects of SEO optimization of the website

The technical aspects of SEO optimization of the website are just as important as the quality of the content. Without a technically optimized website, your quality content can go unnoticed by search engines.

1. Website loading speed: Loading speed is crucial for both users and search engines. A slow site can turn away visitors and negatively affect rankings. Image optimization, reducing the number of scripts and using fast servers are key to fast site loading.

2. Mobile Optimization: With the increase in the use of mobile devices, mobile optimization is essential. Sites that are not mobile-friendly can lose a significant number of visitors and have lower rankings. Take care of this!

3. Structure of URLs: URLs should be short, descriptive and contain keywords. Avoid complicated and long URLs with unnecessary parameters and characters.

Why does all this matter?

Search engines are becoming more sophisticated, but they are still limited in how they understand content.

SEO optimization of the website not only helps search engines index and rank your website properly, but also ensures that your content is useful and accessible to users.

By combining quality content, technical optimization, and user engagement strategies, you can significantly improve your search engine rankings, attract more visitors, and achieve better results.

SEO is an ongoing process that requires attention and adjustments, but the results can be extremely beneficial to the long-term success of your site.