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You don’t have to be involved in digital marketing for very long to realize that search engine optimization — or SEO — is kind of a big deal. The practice of optimizing your content and website to increase visibility in search engine results pages is an ever-evolving cornerstone of modern marketing.
And yet, despite its continued importance, many businesses don’t know where to start with SEO. With so much to consider, it’s easy to get lost. For this reason, many people simply avoid it altogether.
But that’s a mistake that can cost you a lot of great business opportunities. Why leave so much on the table when you can improve your business with great SEO?
In this article, we’ll show you how to do search engine optimization the right way so that you can climb the rankings to reach your audience in 2024 and beyond.
In this blog, you’ll learn the following:
SEO takes time and patience. It’s easy to get lost among the weeds and to lose faith when you don’t notice much impact for weeks or months at a time. Here are ten aspects to focus on to ensure your SEO campaign reaps the rewards down the line:
The bounce rate is the percentage of visitors that leave your website after viewing just one page. Here is a bounce rate scale to help you out:
Google analyzes user behaviors online, collecting data on billions of searches every day. If people exit your website after looking at only one page, it’s a signal to Google that your website doesn’t provide the answers people want.
According to Google:
Bounce rate is single-page sessions divided by all sessions (or the percentage of all sessions) on your site in which users viewed only a single page and triggered only a single request to the Google Analytics server.
It doesn’t matter if someone leaves after three seconds or ten minutes — it’s still a bounce, and a high bounce rate is a problem that could send your website plummeting in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Here are several possible reasons for a high bounce rate:
Google prefers fast-loading sites, as a slow site offers a poor user experience (UX). People can bounce from a site if it takes any longer than a few seconds to load.
Your meta title and description act as a hook in SERPs, catching attention to attract clicks and traffic to your site. However, if the content isn’t aligned with your metadata, it may frustrate visitors, and they may bounce soon after landing.
An exceptionally high bounce rate may be a result of an error, such as a 404 or blank page. Test your pages on all devices and browsers to ensure there are no such problems.
A high bounce rate from referral traffic may be down to some misleading anchor text. Keep an eye on your backlinks and disavow any that may be from reputable sources.
The concept of affiliate marketing is to direct traffic away from your site to a merchant’s site. So, a single-page website (like a sales landing page for your eBook) will naturally have a high bounce rate in this scenario.
Sometimes, a high bounce rate happens because your content lacks quality or that it isn’t optimized for online reading. Even great writers can produce poor online content.
Double-check the following:
Ultimately, you need to create well-written, well-researched, relevant, current content that people care about, and it must be presented in an easily-digestible way that people like to read and share.
People expect websites to be smooth and simple to navigate. Include clear menu bars, a search box, and crisp design features to enhance the UX. If the site is cluttered or confusing, people won’t stick around.
Nowadays, you must have a mobile-responsive website that looks good on all devices and all screen sizes. If people encounter a wacky-looking site on their mobile, they’ll quickly exit. Mobile first indexing and approach is becoming important now.
Regardless of the reason behind your high bounce rate, there are plenty of solutions available for you to tackle the problem. Here are some SEO tips to reduce your bounce rate:
Here are some ideas you can try out to make your content more reader-friendly:
A powerful CTA evokes emotion, making people feel an impulse to act, even if it’s something as simple as reading another blog post. Great copywriting can give you the CTAs you need to minimize your bounce rate.
Most people scan online content rather than reading every line. With storytelling, you can stand out from the pack, captivating readers in a way that fosters a connection. When you do that, you can get people to read more content, more often.
Great content alone is not enough — you must be consistent. If people really like your content, they’ll come back for more, so you must keep things flowing, or people will lose interest in your site.
When you want to attract high-value traffic, target keywords that show purchasing intent. You can build content around long-tail terms that denote the searcher’s desire to learn more about specific topics, products, or services.
Get clever with your meta descriptions to attract more clicks. Make sure to include the keyword, and weave some curiosity into the description to persuade people to visit your site.
For every unique keyword (product or service) you must have its own landing page. If you have 10 products then have 10 different pages for its detail and explanation. In this way you make your site navigation much easier for users. Aim to create as many landing pages as possible, and link to all of them from your homepage to offer a rich, smooth experience for every visitor.
Learn more: What are the key components of a landing page?
If your site opens external links in the same tab, it creates an easy exit for your visitors. Instead, you should set external links to open a new window, so that you keep people on your site for longer.
If you want to encourage people to browse more of your site, you need to make it easy. You can improve your navigation, your menus, and search filters so people can quickly find what they want. Also, within each post, try including a table of contents with internal anchor links.
While SEO is mostly about search engines, don’t forget that you are writing for humans. Keep user intent in mind as you create content.
Learn more: What is the difference between bounce rate and exit rate
If somebody visits your website and then returns on the same device within two years, Google considers them to be a Returning Visitor. Here are a few ways to increase your returning visitor rate:
As mentioned earlier, a flow of fresh content will keep people interested. If you continue to offer actionable, helpful content, you will build loyalty with your readers.
Content creation is only part of the game. After you hit publish, you must get to work on marketing your content. Through social media, you can reach a wide audience and find people to amplify your brand message.
Whereas social media isn’t for everyone, email is almost universal. You can build relationships through email to encourage more return visits to your website.
Building customer loyalty is the key to sustainable business. If you reward visitors, they will come back again, which strengthens the reputation of your site in Google.
With remarketing strategies, you can target the people you know and trust your brand. They may already visit your site, so they are low-hanging fruit for future sales.
Voice search optimization will continue to grow in years to come, changing the face of SEO. People who use voice search tend to:
Therefore, marketers should optimize content with voice search in mind. Here are some strategies to think about:
You can make content that Google likes by focusing on E.A.T.
You must communicate your message in a way that shows your knowledge and experience of the topic. Here’s how to do it:
When other brands or experts use your site as a source, it helps build your reputation in the industry. Consider the following when you want to improve your authority:
While expertise and authority are factors that influence SERP placement, trustworthiness — or rather a lack thereof — can tank your rankings on Google.
Think about the following:
Video SEO is the practice of optimizing video content to rank in SERPs for relevant keyword searches. Here are some tips to improve your video SEO results:
Great SEO is not just about writing for search engines. You should always write for people first and search engines second. Rather than trying to game the system or stuff high-volume keywords into unrelated posts, it’s much better to devise a solid content strategy that aims to deliver quality, relevant, actionable information to your audience.
Eventually, Google will realize that your content is excellent because readers keep returning to your site, sharing posts, and spending time on your pages.
Structured data helps you reach the first page of the search results and even the featured snippet position.
People like easy-to-use websites with smooth navigation and a clear user interface that makes everything easy to see and find. Here are some ideas for structured data that you incorporate into your site design:
Also, it’s a good idea to include a search bar feature so people can find things easily, even on a large website.
When people search for your business on Google, you want to claim the top spot. Ranking for branded terms is important, as it helps you build your reputation.
SEO may change over time, but branding is an evergreen strategy that no company should ignore. Even if you struggle to rank for other terms, you should have little trouble getting visibility for your branded keywords.
Conversion is the end goal for most campaigns, and hopefully, it’s the beginning of a new relationship with a valuable new customer. So, instead of focusing too much on the top-of-the-funnel, make sure your leads have what they need to convert.
Load them up with sterling reviews, consumer case studies, and persuasive content that convinces them you have the solution they need. By investing more in conversion optimization, you are sure to generate a higher return on investment (ROI).
As mentioned earlier, you need to have a mobile-responsive website that looks good on all devices. A poor mobile experience will lead to high bounce rates and low conversions.
Furthermore, mobile-friendliness is a ranking factor, so you need to make your site mobile-ready to get in Google’s good books. Otherwise, your website will slide into obscurity.
So, there you have a comprehensive guide on how to do SEO for website step by step in 2024. There is a lot to think about and a lot to be gained. Take it one step at a time, making small changes to your site and social channels.
SEO is a long-term game that can deliver incredible results for months and years, making it a vehicle for sustainable business growth in the digital age. It takes time, patience, and a lot of trial and error. But, with the right strategy, it has all you need to establish your brand and business as one that customers will always remember.
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