Search engine optimization has been one of the easiest and free ways to gain traffic for a website. From ages, webmasters have been utilizing this free source of traffic for their own benefits. In the process, the search engines have been getting optimized for generating better results.
This relation of mutual benefits kept growing and search engines started rolling more filters and updates to keep themselves on top of their search results. On the other hand the website owners kept updating their sites and blogs so that they could stay on top of the competition.
With each passing year, and finally 2023 on the rise, the SEO landscape has fairly changed. In order to keep the organic traffic flowing, it is important to make sure that the latest SEO tips are employed. Here, in this article, we are going to discuss 13 SEO tips to keep you ahead of the competition.
1. Links: This is one of the most difficult to fake algorithm filter as getting high quality and relevant link from a really strong domain is still something that is nearly impossible to do. Most other algorithm requirements can be forged but to get a good link, one has to work their way to it.
This is one of the main reasons why links will always be an important part of the search engine algorithm.
2. Check for duplicate content: When you run a site for a long time and have accepted content from guest bloggers, contributors etc. then it is good to check the site for duplicate content, just to be sure.
3. Meta Tags: While the Meta tags are getting less and less valuable now, but keeping things relevant is always helpful. If your keyword or the description tags are missing on certain pages then perhaps updating it with the correct details will be helpful.
3. On-Page SEO: Sometimes the keywords and the long tails are missing in the content body and sometimes they are overused. The content has to be written for the humans but that said, the terms have to be mentioned to an optimum level so that it stays readable and optimized.
4. Improve loading speeds: The loading times of a website makes a huge different in the rankings now. If your site loads fast, it will automatically get a better position in the SERPs. Basic technical fixing, like optimizing images, removing unwanted plugins etc. speeds up the site and helps it to rank well.
5. Keep the content readable: If the visitor goes to the site and bounces back, then it is one of the worst SEO signals. Make sure that your content is readable, write in really small paragraphs, add catchy images and make good use of the headings tags.
6. Internal Links: While getting links from other sites is important, linking to own content is equally important. Make sure to link to a few articles or pages that are related to the current article, from every new article that you add. This way, a good number of posts will get internal links and they will start to rank higher on the search engines.
7. Build links from unique Domains: look for ways to get a link from as many unique domains as possible. There are certain sites that are easy to get linked from, article submission sites, web directories, web2.0 submission sites etc. Make sure to look for dofollow links from such domains.
8. HARO: When it comes to getting editorial links then Help a Reporter Out is a great place to get started. Look for offers that fall into your area of expertise and then respond to the questions that the reporter might be having. If something matches up and goes well, you might end up with a really strong backlink.
9. Guest Post on Premium Sites: There are a lot of really good sites and blogs that still accept guest posts. Actively keep looking for such places and when you find one, it is time to work your way up. Share their content, post comments on their posts, perhaps even buy a product or service that they might be selling. It is important to get into their radar first, let them recognize you somewhat, and when the fielding is done, reach out to them with a guest post request.
10. Work on your Bounce Rate: If your visitors aren’t happy with your content or your design, then they will bounce off, making your site look even weaker on the search engines. To fix the bounce rate, make sure to use catchy images and infographics. Use Canva to make your images stand out which will keep the users a bit longer on your site and help you beat the bounce rate.
11. Hire experts instead of writers: With the starting of 2023, it is becoming even more important to make sure that your content is written by experts from the practical field. For example, medical and health related content must be written by doctors instead of writers who can research and write.
12. Get your site audited: Sometimes when you try to do too many things including SEO, PPC, email marketing, all by yourself, you do run into chances of over looking many areas of your website. In such a case, getting your site an SEO audit might bring out the things that you are missing. An audit will only tell you what needs to be done, it is ultimately up to you to follow the report and fix the issues.
13. Fix dead pages: Overtime, it is natural to have some dead pages on your site that are giving 404 errors. Use a plugin to re-direct these pages to other valuable on-site pages so that the errors are fixed and the link juice is also retained. The dead pages aren’t just bad for SEO but they are also pretty disturbing for the end users and needs to be fixed from time to time.
SEO will keep evolving with time and as more times passes, the standards of website, content, design and links will get an upgrade for the good. It is a constant battle to keep the website on top of these filters and algo requirements, but the same thing is being done by the competition, so one has to keep up.