A to Z of SEO
A is for Algorithm – Search engines use complex algorithms to determine which sites to rank. Google uses over 200 factors when ranking websites, which makes it very difficult for anyone to second guess exactly how googles algorithm works
B is for Backlinks – Backlinks are links pointing to your website from other web pages. A large part of search engine ranking algorithms are attributed to link analysis. Search engines consider the quality and quantity of Backlinks when ranking a site. You should aim to attract high-quality links to your site to increase your chances of ranking
C is for Content – Content is part of a web page that could have value to the user. Search engines aim to to match up search queries with web pages in order to give the user the best selection of results. Content plays an important role as search engines value a site’s content highly when deciding its rankings
D is for Duplicate Content – Duplicate content relates to instances where there are multiple versions of web pages existing on your websites or when large amounts of copy appears on more than one page of your website. Copy that appears on other sites is also considered as duplicate content. Search engines penalise sites with large amounts of duplicate content, so it is important to ensure you are creating unique content on your web pages
E is for E-commerce – Electronic commerce or e-commerce is a term for any type of business, or commercial transaction, that involves the transfer of information across the Internet. It is currently one of the most important aspects of the Internet to emerge
F is for Fresh Content – Fresh content often has a better chance of ranking higher if it deals with trending topics or breaking news as search engines want to return the most relevant content. Updating pages with updated information can help keep your content relevant to users, which will increase your chances of ranking
G is for Google Places – Establishing local online presence is a great way to grow your business as local listings are often given high priority on search engine results pages. Adding your business to google places will increase your chances of ranking on google searches related to your business and location
H is for HTML – HTML is the language in which web pages are created. HTML is used to add formatting and functionality to web pages. HTML formatting helps inform search engine crawlers what the web page is about
I is for Indexing – Search engines use crawlers to navigate web documents in order to gather information. Indexing is the processing of the information from its crawling activities. In order for your site to rank, your web page will need to have been indexed. Google webmaster tools has a feature called “index status” which will give you an idea of how many pages google is choosing to index
J is for JavaScript – In the past SEO has warned against sites relying heavily on JavaScript as it inhibited search engines from indexing content contained within the code. That view has changed over time. If implemented correctly, JavaScript can be ready by search engines.
K is for Keyword Research – Keyword research is the process of identifying words or phrases that a user enters into a search engine. This research should form the basis of your keyword targeting for your site. Keywords should relate to your services that you offer and the content on your web pages. The main objective is attracting the right kind of visitors to your site and keyword search will help you find the best opportunities
L is for Long Tail Keywords – Long tail keywords are search engines that contain 3 or more words, which traditional have lower search volumes.
M is for Meta Tags – Meta tags are HTML tags which appear in SERP’s but are not viable on a web page. The most commonly used meta pages for SEO are “title tags” and “meta descriptions”. Adding relevant keywords within your title tags can improve your chances of ranking for those keywords
N is for No Follow – No follow is a command which instructs search engines to not allow any links on a page, or not follow a specific link. This means the link is unable to pass on any authority that would help the links page rank. White individual no follow links won’t help your search rankings, having a good proportion of no follow links will help your link profile seem natural, which does help rankings
O is for Optimization – Optimisation can refer to the content on your web page, or the Backlinks pointing to your site
P is for Penalties – Google places penalties on websites they deem to be a violation of their guidelines. Sites hit by penalties will often see their rankings slip or their site removed from SERP’s.
Q is for Queries – A query is the extract search phrase that a user enters within a search engine. Your keyword research should give you a good indication of the types of queries your patients are using
R is for Rich Snippets – Rich snippets are enhanced search results that are created by adding microdata to your web page. Microdata is a type of formatting that summarizes the content of a web page to search engines. Rich snippets help your web page stand out in SERP’s and can substantially increase the number of people clicking on your search results
S is for Social Signals – There is some debate over whether google uses social shares as a ranking signal. Studies have shown that sites with a greater number of social shares can usually be found higher in rankings. If you create good content or offer a great service, then social shares will come naturally. Having a strong social presence can help you gain more links which will have a direct impact on your ranking
T is for Trust – Trust plays an important part in determining the success of your search rankings. Adding history or information about yourself, displaying your address and contact details and linking to your privacy policy will reassure your visitors that your site is trustworthy.
U is for Unnatural Links – Unnatural links are Backlinks that are deliberately attempting to manipulate search rankings. Google is particularly strict on types of linking and will penalise sites that deem to have a large proportional of artificial links.
V is for Video – Video can present a great opportunity for brand to get search visibility. Just like web pages, videos should be optimized with keywords that relate to the content to give search engines a better understanding of what the video is about
W is for Webmaster Tools – Google webmaster tools is essential for managing your SEO. Webmaster tools helps your view your site as google sees it. The toolset will give you insight into the number of pages indexed on your website, what links are pointing to it, and your most popular keywords. Webmaster tools will automatically inform you of crawl errors, duplicate content and penalties relating to your site
X is for XML Sitemaps – XML sitemaps helps search engines crawl your site. Think of a sitemap as a roadmap which allows a crawler to navigate your sites using preferred routes.
Y is for Yoast – WordPress SEO by yoast is an extremely popular WordPress plugin that allows you to easily setup page title and meta description templates for your content, create XML sitemaps and verify your google and bing webmaster accounts
Z is for Zeitgeist – Google zeitgeist is an annual review that sums up how the world has searched during the year
If you would like any further information then please give the Dental Design team a call on: 01202 677277
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