Search Engine Optimization

Introduction to SEO

Definition - the practice of making changes to webpages, content, and promotion of the content to improve visibility in organic search engine results.

How search ranks a website?

• Keywords used
• Links to other sites

Action:

Check what gets some word search into paid or organic results

Approach for a good SEO

• Develop
• Prioritize
• Adjust

How to improve keyword targeting?

• Start with keyword research to figure out what your customers are looking for
• Use that info to access success and failure of your keywords
• Keep improving on your inputs to keywords

Action:

• Start creating SEO plan for your website

• Many search engines use blogs to communicate changes they made recently. Keep following to be up to date.

• Use google trends to research keywords

How to choose keywords

1. Frequency: no. of times a keyword is searched for.
2. Competition: Only few keywords have high search volume. Many keywords have low search volume. It is called “long tail” of SEO. Apt for small businesses / Local businesses.
3. Relevance: use google search console to know which page is appearing in search and getting clicked.

Note: Site content should be made for human visitors, NOT for search engines.

Action:

Brainstorm list of keywords for your most popular product and service

Research search volume for each keyword.

What are the most specific long tail keywords that apply to your product or service? Links to google’s and Bing’s keyword research tools.

Setting realistic SEO goals

-> Set goals

Business Goals

1. Conversions: Turn visitors to paying customers
2. Engagement: get your customers to interact

What content people read and respond to.

• Comments
• Followers
• Fans

Search engines such as google, bing provide analytics and webmaster tools to track and measure visitor behaviors.

3. Acquisition: getting new customers

Number of times business appears on search

How often people click thru

-> Measure, track and report results

Identify what is working and what is not.

-> Adjust

How to define success

List goals 

- improve revenue

- increase engagement

Example Problem statement:

Getting lot of customers. But not able to convert to business.

Action:

List business goals. Increase revenue? Increase customer base?

List things you want visitors to do to contribute towards your goal.

Making your web pages search friendly

In order to make web page search and user friendly, following needs to be taken care of.

• Title and Meta description
• Headings - HTML code
• Page copy

Action:

Do a search for one of the products or services you offer. Take a look at the results with a close eye on how other businesses optimise title tags and meta descriptions.

How other sites can work for you

Back-links:

• Links from other sites to yours. Shows confidence that other sites believe in your content.
• Have great content.
• Social media: promote on social media

Example of good content on “fruits and vegetables”s sites.

• Top 10 summer fruit
• 5 best dishes with broccoli.

Social media

• Use social media to promote your content with friends circle and others.

• Off-site optimization helps increase search page optimization.
• Have people share your content on social media.

Action:

Visit social media page of a company you admire. What kind of information they are sharing. What kind of content gets best response from customers.

Cross borders with SEO

• Language
• Localization
• Country targeting

Speak your customer language

Each translated page should be a different page.

Avoid using automated translation. It may be considered spam.

Higher quality content.

Multi lingual, multi national customers

Local metrics

Local address

List business hours in different time zones?

Cctld website- country specific (Ex: co.uk, co.in)

.com website - generic world wide

Country targeting tools available at google search console.

Course: International marketing and export (google)

Action:

Find websites that have multi language support.

What is the localization approach they have taken?

Do they translate all content on the pages?

Customize content such as currencies and navigation?

Which options do you provide for your internationalization plan?