Table of Contents

When we are looking for something, the first option is searching in Google. For example, if you want to order a pizza, you first search for the restaurant, and sometimes you may add the name of your neighborhood at the end of the world. Now the question is, how is the restaurant ranking first in google search results? You might think it’s luck, or Google decides which site to display in a higher position, but it’s not! The issue is that Google ranks better for websites that prove they deserve first place. Here another question arises, how is this worthiness measured? This is where we come to the word SEO or search engine optimization, which means doing an operation on the site to prove to Google that I deserve the first rank and have a proper website. What is SEO or search engine optimization? What are the SEO KPIs? This article on smart strategy blog explains SEO or search engine optimization in three sections: internal SEO, external SEO, and technical SEO. 

What is SEO or search engine optimization?

SEO is an abbreviation of three words Search Engine Optimization. SEO is a set of continuous operations that lead a site to good rankings for the target keyword. You can increase your website traffic and get a better position in Google search results through search engine optimization. Following the instructions and techniques in the technical section of the site and content production, as well as the operations carried out outside the website, you can increase the number of visitors. Search engines seek to rank websites that are useful for users and ultimately optimized for humans. If a user feels better on your site and spends more time, a positive score will be considered for you. Search engines seek to provide the best services to their users. In other words, search engines aim to deliver results on search pages that, in addition to having the best quality, have the most relevant content to what the searcher is looking for. Search engines explore and examine different websites to better understand the topic and quality of their content. As a result, SEO is optimizing online content to provide a better user experience for the audiences. 

We can perform site SEO operations in three different ways:

  • Black hat SEO or criminal operations
  • Gray hat SEO or healthy processes with a minor offense
  • White hat SEO, which is an entirely legal operation

In the black hat SEO, it is illegal to carry out the operation, and maybe the results will reach the first page of Google sooner, or perhaps you will be identified and fined by Google. 

The operation is legal in the gray-and-white hat SEO, but sometimes there are minor violations in the gray method. It is done to trick Google, which is not done in the white hat method.

What are the 3 main steps to perform SEO operations?

It doesn’t matter the method you want to carry out search engine optimization, white, gray, or black. Anyway, SEO (search engine optimization) is done in 3 steps. 

First, you need to solve the site’s technical problems, internal problems, and finally, external improvement or off-site operations. Of course, these 3 steps can also proceed in parallel, which requires more expertise. 

1. The first step of Technical SEO 

2. The second step of internal SEO or On-Page SEO 

3. The third step of external SEO or Off-Page SEO 

We will review each step separately to know what operations are included.

What is Technical SEO?

SEO Technical audit means improving a website’s technical aspects to increase its pages’ ranking in search engines. The technical elements of search engine optimization are to make a website’s content understandable for the search engine and make its review process quick and easy. In other words, technical SEO helps search engines find and analyze your website more easily. Technical SEO has nothing to do with the content of your website, and its primary goal is to optimize the infrastructure of your website.

What is internal SEO or On-Page SEO?

On-Page SEO is the process of optimizing a website’s content for both search engines and users. In addition to publishing relevant and high-quality content, internal SEO or On-Page Seo includes optimizing the title, tags, and images. Internal SEO makes your website more useful and valuable to users. The more efficient and helpful your website is for users, the more traffic and views you will receive, And this means improving your ranking in search engines.

What is Off-Page SEO?

Off Page Seo is all the activities done outside the website to improve the ranking of pages in search engines. For example, a site with more valuable backlinks will usually rank better than a similar website with fewer backlinks. Search engines consider backlinks a sign of quality content that can be referenced and cited. But many think Off Page Seo to be the same as link building, while it is not, and link building is only a large part of this optimization method. For example, social media marketing strategy and branding are also considered external SEO. In other words, Off Page Seo is all the work done outside of a website so that search engines believe that website is reliable and valid.

What is the difference between Search engine optimization and internet advertising?

Below are some of the main differences between website search engine optimization and internet advertising:

  • SEO is much more economical than the hefty cost of advertising.
  • You can quickly build a brand and improve your reputation through SEO, but internet advertising differs.
  • There is a critical difference between broad internet advertising and showing your site on Google. This difference is that when you do internet advertising widely, all target and non-target users will see your advertisement and may like to enter your site. Still, when you do SEO, only the target audience who searched for your keywords will visit your site, and you will bring more valuable traffic.
  • After search engine optimization, site traffic increases in a practical and targeted manner, and you can have good sales.
  • Choosing the right keywords is one of the most critical steps in doing SEO. If you use the right keywords for the targeted pages, you can quickly increase the number of members on your site.

What is the difference between SEO and Google Ads (AdWords)?

Google Ads, formerly known as Google AdWords, is Google’s advertising tool that allows users to advertise their business in search engines. Google Ads is provided for the public to benefit from advertising services, from small and start-up businesses to large and established companies. Google ads are paid, and you are charged for each click you receive from search engines; That is why it is also called a click advertising campaign. Google ads are done in several ways. Including advertisements on the search results page, banner or display ads, video ads, and mobile ads. 

Google AdSense is also a network created by Google that connects advertisers to ad publishers. This way, the website owners register in Google AdSense and declare they are volunteers for installing Google ads on their site. Google also chooses advertisements to be displayed on those sites according to the content and theme of volunteer sites. 

Google Ads effectively increases traffic and drives actual customers to your business at best possible time. When is there the most significant possibility of buying? When customers are searching for products or services. The most common form of Google advertising is on the search results page. The presence of the Ad symbol next to the results is the way to distinguish these advertisements from the actual results.

 

Important concepts used in SEO operations

Like any other specialized industry, search engine optimization (SEO) has its vocabulary, definitions, and abbreviations. To better understand the SEO category, we have prepared a list of basic concepts and standard terms used, along with their descriptions. 

 

What is SEO, and what is its application?

SEO means search engine optimization, but in definition, it refers to website optimization for search engines. SEO increases site traffic for related searches. 

 

What is HEO, and how is it different from SEO? 

HEO means optimization of human experience. It means that the appearance of your site is suitable for the user and does not cause confusion. 

In 2017, semantic SEO emerged; that is, Google trains its robots to understand the meaning from a user’s point of view. Therefore, if your site is optimal from a user’s point of view, it is also optimal from Google’s point of view. 

If you have a beautiful photo and appearance on your site and give a lot of importance to HEO, it will make the user feel better on your site and stay longer. 

 

What is SMO, and how does it relate to SEO? 

SMO stands for Social Media Optimization. In general, SMO refers to the optimization of a website by encouraging users to use and share the links of that website on social networks. 

SMO enhances your online presence in the places where your customers are and creates and expands your relationships with your audience. 

 

What is Social Signal, and what is its use in search engine optimization? 

Social signals are human activities on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit, Instagram, etc. Actions are called signals, including likes, dislikes, shares, votes, comments, and views. 

Of course, Social Signal means when the content published on these social networks is related to a website. 

In other words, Social Signal means the feedback you receive from social network advertising and users about the content of your website. Social signals indicate that your site and the products or services you offer are being discussed among social media users. And this will improve your site’s ranking on the search engine results page.

 

What is SEM, and how is it different from SEO? 

SEM is the abbreviation of Search Engine Marketing. SEM is a marketing method using paid advertisements displayed on search engine results pages (SERPs). 

These ads are often known as click ads. SEM is a digital marketing strategy carried out in search engine results pages to increase the visits to a website. 

What is the difference between SEM and SEO? In the application of SEM, businesses pay for their ads to be displayed, while in search engine optimization, companies do not pay Google for the visits they have. Only by following Google’s principles and standards are they ranked according to the quality of their performance. In general, SEM includes the following:

  • Site optimization in social networks
  • Site optimization in Google
  • Site optimization in advertising and marketing through Google AdWords

 

What is SMM, and what is its application? 

SMM or Social Media Marketing is marketing in social networks. All the activities you do in your social networks that cause more visibility and attract users are called SMM. 

SMM includes advertising on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. 

 

What is PPC, and what is its use? 

PPC is pay per click. It is a type of advertisement where the payment is not determined based on the duration of the ad, and the period that your advertising exists can be unlimited. Instead, you pay for every click the user makes on your ad. 

 

Who is a webmaster, and what do they do?

A webmaster is responsible for building and maintaining one or more websites. In other words, a webmaster is someone who designs, manages, and develops a website. In general, the description of the duties of a webmaster is as follows:

  • Registering and maintaining a website domain name
  • Web Design
  • Add New Content
  • Modify or delete outdated or inaccurate content
  • Content organization
  • Site traffic monitoring
  • Link building and link monitoring
  • Ensuring the proper functioning of servers and software
  • Answering users’ questions and comments

 

What is a URL? 

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator), also known as a web address, specifies the location of a resource (such as a web page) on the Internet. 

 

What is Stop Word? 

Search engines, including Google, ignore common words to keep their database space free and speed up their crawling and indexing processes. 

Words like from, to, with, in, on, and for do not have meaning and will not affect the search results. 

For example, when you search for “common SEO terms,” the word “in” does not change the meaning of the words before and after. As a result, the search engine ignores it and provides results for “common SEO terms.” 

 

What is Spam Score, and what is its use? 

The spam Score indicates the percentage of sites with similar characteristics that will lead to fines and penalties by Google. This score was created by the SEO software company Moz. The spam score is calculated based on 27 common characteristics among millions of sites penalized by search engines. The higher your site scores, the more likely it will be spam and eventually punished. But it is noteworthy that a high spam score is not a definitive criterion for a site being spam; Rather, it can be a sign that it is necessary to pay more attention to the quality and relevance of its content. 

 

What is SEO Friendly Content? 

Seo Friendly Content is created so that search engines give it high rankings. 

 

What is the Yoast SEO plugin, and what are its features? 

Yoast SEO plugin is one of the most popular free WordPress plugins. This plugin makes it easy for your site to achieve the highest technical SEO standards and includes the following features:

  • Readability analysis
  • SEO analysis
  • Keyword optimization
  • Snippet preview
  • Internal linking

 

What is Evergreen Content? 

Evergreen Content is Content that never goes out of mode. Evergreen content is highly impactful, foundational, and deep content with a lifespan of one or two years for many industries. For example, the phrase “optimization techniques 2020” will no longer be searched in 2021 and will lose its effectiveness. But on the other hand, the term “the importance of search engine optimization” is an excellent example of evergreen content and will never lose its effectiveness. 

 

What is Skyscraper Content? 

Skyscraper Content is a marketing technique that will give you the best and most complete content. This technique includes the following:

  • Finding topics with high link value and good search engine performance
  • Making them better, more attractive, and longer
  • Introducing your content to sites that linked to your original content so that they relate to your top content instead

 

What is a search engine, and what is its use? 

A search Engine is an online tool that looks for related results in its database based on the content searched by users. 

These results are usually websites that semantically match the content searched by the user. Search engines list the results based on unique algorithms in the form of a list. 

Currently, many search engines are available. The most well-known of which is Google. Besides Google, Bing and Yahoo are examples of the most popular search engines. 

 

What is Algorithm, and what is its use in SEO? 

Search Engine Algorithms are complex systems used to retrieve information from search engine databases (called indexes) and immediately provide the best possible results for a searched item. 

Each search engine uses algorithms and ranking signals to serve web pages. These algorithms are constantly changing and updating, and search engines always keep them private with accuracy. 

These algorithms consider many factors and criteria, such as the words you searched for in your content, the pages’ relevance and usability, the sources’ expertise, location, and preferences. Therefore, the emphasis of search engines on each factor and criteria will differ depending on what you searched for. For example, in the search for current topics and news, Content freshness plays an essential role in ranking the pages. These criteria are determined based on publicly available guidelines. 

Some examples of Google algorithms are:

 

What is Google Sandbox, and how to get out of it? 

Sandbox is a metaphorical term to explain why most new websites rank low in search engine results pages. Google’s sandbox is a metaphor for the sandbox that children play in so as not to hurt anything. 

Since Google has never confirmed the existence of such a system, some may be unaware of its existence; But it seems that Google’s sandbox is a filter that was added to Google’s algorithms around 2004. So when you first create a website, even if you’ve done everything right, it will rank well in Google’s results pages once the term is over. 

This period lasts about several months. This is because the newly created website has the status of a baby that needs to be assured of its health, and it will take some time to achieve such assurance. The reason for creating this filter is that new websites may not be as relevant and helpful as the old ones or even spam. Therefore, preventing new websites from appearing on search results gives Google time to evaluate the quality of those websites and fight spam. 

There is no need to worry; if your website has a standard and desirable structure with quality, valuable and relevant content, it will find its way out of Google’s sandbox and get the rank it deserves in search engine results pages. 

 

What is Google Honeymoon, and what is its importance? 

When a website is first created on the Internet, Google may give it a high ranking in its search results pages for a while. This period is called Google Honeymoon. 

Google Honeymoon is done to evaluate the quality of the website’s performance and to check its content’s relevance to users’ searches. By doing this, Google wants to know if a website gets good rankings, what feedback it will have, and how users will respond.

In other words, Google wants to give the site a chance to prove what it’s got. So if your website gets good clicks during this period and has a low bounce rate, it likely will stay pretty high in rank after this period. But on the other hand, if your website has a low click rate and a high bounce rate, expect a significant drop in ranking after the honeymoon period ends. 

 

What is the bounce rate, and how to reduce it? 

Bounce rate is the percentage of visitors who leave a web page without interaction (such as clicking a link, filling out a form, or making a purchase). So now, why is bounce rate considered a critical measure in SEO? 

Let’s assume that a site is ranked on the first page of search results. Naturally, this site receives a lot of traffic. But most of its visitors leave the site within 5 seconds or even less. So we conclude that this site cannot be good; Because hundreds of people click on it, but 90% of them leave the website in less than 5 seconds. So we don’t include such a site in our top 10 results because our goal is to provide the best results and the most helpful content for users. So, the lower this rate (percentage), the higher the rank of our site. 

But how to reduce the bounce rate or bounce rate?

  • Increase your website speed
  • Have quality and optimized Content
  • Get relevant backlinks
  • Have a simple navigation (the user can quickly go to different parts of the site and find the way) and have a clear structure for the site.
  • Avoid annoying pop-ups
  • Have a user-friendly design and pay attention to the UI
  • Have reasonable and practical internal linking
  • Make your site mobile responsive.
  • Be honest with your readers.

 

What is the conversion rate, and how to improve it? 

Conversion happens when a visitor takes the desired action. In other words, from just a visitor to becoming an applicant. The action you want to take will vary depending on the type of website and your activity.

For example, if you have a website to sell products, your desired action will be shopping. 

Of course, this is your primary goal, and your short-term goal could be: 

  • Entering a specific page, 
  • Filling out a particular form, 
  • Registering on the website and 
  • Creating a user account. 

Conversion rate refers to the percentage of visitors who converted and took the action you wanted them to do. For example, if your conversion criteria are buying, and out of 100 visitors, 5 of them buy from your site, your conversion rate will be 5%. You can see your conversion rate using Google Analytics. 

You can improve your conversion rate by optimizing your site and traffic. 

 

What is redirect, and what are its types? 

A redirect is a way to send both users and search engines to a different URL than what they requested. A redirect happens when a person intends to open a specific page but is sent to another page. For example, it often occurs when the site owner deletes a page and uses redirect to direct visitors and search engine crawlers to another relevant page. 

Websites change the structure, delete pages or move from one domain to another. In these cases, it is vital to use redirects correctly instead to prevent rank drop and help search engines better understand these changes. In general, the three most important types of redirects are as follows:

  • 301 Redirect

The most common type of redirect is the 301 redirect, which is used to redirect a URL to a new address permanently. A 301 redirect tells users and search engines that the URL in question has been permanently moved to another address and that they should use the new URL for future references. When search engines encounter this type of redirect, they transfer the old page’s rankings to the new page.

  • 302 Redirect

A 302 redirect tells users and search engines that the URL in question has been temporarily moved to another address and that they should use the original URL for future references. 

  • Meta Refresh

It is a type of redirect executed at the page level instead of at the server level. For example, Meta Refresh is usually accompanied by a 5-second countdown and text saying, “If you’re not redirected to the desired page after 5 seconds, click here.” This type of redirect is usually slower and is not recommended for SEO.

 

What is a SERP?

SERP stands for Search Engine Results Page. SERP refers to a page that displays related to a user’s search term.

 

What is UI Design, and what is its application in website SEO?

UI stands for User Interface. Technically, UI is the graphic layout of a site and includes the button that the user clicks, the text that they read, slides, images, text input fields, and all other ones that the user deals with. 

In other words, any visual elements the user sees and interacts with on a website are considered UI Design. The more attractive and user-friendly a site is, the more audience it will attract.

 

What is UX Design, and what is its application in SEO?

UX stands for User Experience. A site’s UX defines how users interact with that site. For example:

  • Did you have a pleasant and smooth experience or an unpleasant experience? 
  • Are users confused when using the site, or
  • Is it logical and clear to users? 
  • When using the site, do users have problems achieving their goals, or 
  • Are they effectively successful in achieving their goals? Technically, UX is the ease or difficulty of functioning elements designed in UI for site users. 

 

What is a landing page, and how is it different from web pages?

In digital marketing, a landing page is created specifically for marketing and advertising. A landing page is a page that a user enters after clicking on a link in Google ads, in an email, on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, or similar web pages. 

Unlike web pages, which are usually created with different goals, landing pages are made with only one goal. 

This focus on only one specific goal has made landing pages the best option for increasing the conversion rate of marketing and advertising campaigns and reducing sales costs. 

This goal can be purchasing, registering, or remembering a website. 

The question is, why not use the same web pages instead of landing pages? In response, web pages have many different topics and titles, and there may be many links in them. By creating a landing page, you intend to make your audience entirely focused on the goal and avoid distractions and the possibility of clicking on other links.

 

What is Google Penalty, and why does it happen?

Google wouldn’t exist if it provided unsatisfying and ineffective results for users or a bad experience for them. Google’s task is to provide users with the most appropriate and relevant search results. From Google’s point of view, any site that attempts to manipulate search results is interfering with Google’s proper functioning. 

Google Penalty is a punishment for websites whose content conflicts with the terms of use of Google’s services, policy and marketing methods. Google’s penalty can be due to updating Google’s algorithms or using black hat SEO techniques. Since we all rely on search engines to get traffic, we must know the latest updates to search engine algorithms.

There are two types of penalties: 

  • Manual penalties
  • Algorithmic penalties. 

A manual penalty occurs when a person (Google employee) penalizes your site, but an algorithmic penalty occurs systematically and automatically.

 When a site is penalized, it is deprived of all its valuable rankings and will not be displayed in the search results; This means a significant drop in site traffic. 

The way to get rid of the Google penalty is to try to solve and fix the problem. 

In the past, if a website were penalized, the website’s keywords lost their ranking and no longer be displayed on SERPs. 

In 2017, Google made changes in one of its updates. After that, a website that commits a violation (Stuffing) by using a specific keyword will only lose its rank on that keyword and will no longer be displayed on the search results pages. While on other keywords, it will maintain its level and remain in its position.

 

What is Black Hat SEO? 

The terms black and white hat was first used in Western films in the 1920s. Using white and black hats was an easy way to distinguish the positive and negative roles of the movie. Later, this term was used in various industries, including the search engine optimization industry. 

Black Hat Seo is a set of actions against the rules and strategies of search engines to raise the ranks of a site in search engine results pages. 

Users of black hat SEO techniques ignore the interests and satisfaction of users and try to cheat the system and get high rankings on search engine results pages. 

Some of the black hat SEO techniques are as follows:

  • Buy Backlinks
  • Keyword Stuffing
  • Using duplicate content
  • Publication of poor-quality content
  • Using misleading redirects
  • Creating spam comments
  • Using invisible texts
  • Using Link Farm

 

What is White Hat SEO?

White Hat SEO means following the rules and regulations and acting within the framework of search engine strategies. In other words, white hat SEO includes any action that, while complying with the terms of use of search engine services, leads to improving the site’s ranking in search engine results pages.

 

What is Gray Hat SEO? 

Gray Hat SEO is neither black hat nor white hat; Rather, it is between these two. Therefore, it’s not something you’re willing to let search engines know you’re doing, and it’s not something you should automatically be penalized for.

Gray hat SEO is not necessarily a bad practice, but it is done to get ahead in the rankings. So, for example, when we write textual content with the sole purpose of ranking, it only has enough keywords to get traffic, but it only has a little value and doesn’t work much for the visitor.

 

What is Zombie Page, and how does it affect SEO?

Zombies are moving dead creatures that, in the world of movies and fictional and scary books, desire to eat humans under the influence of an unjustified virus. Zombie pages are pages on your website that do not generate traffic; They are just there. Pages that are completely dormant and inactive; because they generally do not have interesting content and are not attractive to anyone. Zombie pages have no motivation and value for visitors or search engines; they only exist because someone once intended to rank for specific keywords.

 

What is an orphan page, and why is it a problem for SEO?

Orphan Page refers to a page that has no backlinks. But why are orphan pages a problem for SEO? Search engines, including Google, usually find web pages in two ways. First, a crawler follows a link on a page to reach a new page. Second, the crawler finds the URL listed in the sitemap and thus comes to that page. So search engines cannot find orphan pages by links. As a result, they remain unindexed and will never appear on search engine results pages. So even if your orphan pages are listed in your sitemap, they are still a problem for search engine optimization.

 

What is Impression?

The amount of visibility and search in the world of the Internet, which you can see detailed statistics in Webmaster Tools. For example, when you want to know how many monthly visits and searches a keyword has, you should check the Impression for that keyword.

 

What is Hit, and what is its use?

It means the number of requests on a page. Pay attention to this example to fully understand the Hit: a page with a title, a photo, and text has 3 hits.

 

What is Visit?

Every time someone accesses your site from somewhere outside the domain of your website, a visit has taken place. A visit occurs whenever a person on another website clicks on a link that directs to your website. A visit ends when the visitor leaves your site; Either they click on an external link, and a page from an external site replaces your site page, or they close their browser window. Therefore, if a person with the same IP visits the same website twice, it will count as two visits. 

 

What is Visitor?

The user who visits the site is called a visitor. A visitor is not considered a person; Rather, each IP is considered a visitor. For example, a single person may visit a site with two electronic devices (mobile and computer), which will be regarded as two visitors. Two visits have been recorded if a person visits a site twice in the morning and evening. 

 

What is a Unique Visitor?

When a user visits a website, a cookie is stored on his computer. Cookies contain data that is used to identify the respective browser. If a user repeatedly visits a website, this is automatically recorded by a cookie. A unique visitor is a browser that visits a website several times during a specific period.

 

What is Page View?

A page view occurs when a browser loads a page of your website. If a visitor refreshes a page several times, each time is considered a separate Page View.

 

What is Traffic?

Traffic refers to the visits of users to your website and is a common way to evaluate the effectiveness of a digital business in attracting audiences.

 

What is Anchor Text, and what are its types?

Anchor Text is the text you see in a link, and you can click on it. Anchor Texts are often visible in blue color in modern browsers (although their color can be changed). In other words, Anchor Text is the letters and phrases that can be seen in the links. There are different types of Anchor Texts:

  1. Exact Match

The link’s text should precisely follow the keyword that reflects the page to which the link is given. For example, a link with the title “SEO” is given to a page about SEO.

  1. Partial match

The link text should be slightly different from the keyword of the linked page. For example, a link with the title “SEO strategies” should be given to a page about search engine optimization.

  1. Branded

The text of the link is the name of a brand. For example, a link with the title “smart strategy” is given to a page on the smart strategy’s site.

  1. Naked Link

The link text is a URL. For example, a link with the title “smartstrategy.ca”

  1. Generic or general

The text of the link should be a general word or phrase. For example, a link with the title “Click here.”

  1. Pictures

When an image is linked, Google uses the Alt tag of the image as its Anchor Text.

 

What is Link Building, and why is it essential in search engine optimization?

It is called a linking operation on the web level. Simply put, link building is getting other websites to link to your website, which is done in natural and artificial ways. In other words, the method of making backlinks is called link building which increases the credibility and traffic of your site. 

A link is a way through which users can navigate between Internet pages. 

Backlinks are essential for search engines in determining which sites rank better for which keywords. 

Link building is one of the main techniques used in search engine optimization (SEO). 

Links for search engines are a sign that your site is a valuable and high-quality reference in a specific field and contains citational content. For this reason, sites with more backlinks get better positions.

What is a Wiki, and how does it work?

A wiki is a site for users to create or update content. These types of sites use the knowledge and information of a group of people to create the best possible source of information. Through a broad collaboration, contributors can create a resource and reference that is superior and more comprehensive than anything we could make alone. A prime example of a wiki site is Wikipedia, which is written in multiple languages, and anyone can edit it.

 

What is HTTP?

HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) is the platform on which we open the site. It is used to send and receive information. In general, HTTP transfers data between the server and the client.

 

What is HTTPS, and how is it different from HTTP?

It’s the same as HTTP, but it’s in Secure mode, which Google has officially announced will help optimize your site. However, using HTTPS slows down the site speed.

 

What is Programming Language?

A programming language allows us to give instructions to a computer in a language it understands. Just as there are many languages for human communication, programmers can use a set of programming languages to communicate with computers. In the following, you will see the most important programming languages that may be used in the SEO category.

 

What is HTML, and where is it used?

HTML is a markup language and an acronym for Hypertext Markup Language, which is used to create web pages. HTML allows you to view texts and images on the Internet differently in your browser.

 

What is Java, and what is its application?

Java is another programming language to develop software, video games, smart mobile applications, and plugins. For example, Java is the basis and core of Android application development.

 

How is Java Script a language, and what is its application?

Java Script is a client-side programming language that runs in the user’s browser and processes command on the user’s browser instead of processing them on the server. Contrary to the name suggests, Java Script has nothing to do with Java and is an independent language. JavaScript is used to code more advanced things, such as printing the time and date and creating a calendar, which is impossible using HTML. 

 

How is PHP a language, and what is it used for?

PHP is an open-source server-side scripting language. PHP was designed and built to create dynamic web pages that work with databases. Platforms like Joomla and WordPress use this language. PHP is also used in mobile application development.

 

How is CSS language, and what is its application?

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets and is a language for making changes to documents written in markup languages ​​(such as HTML). Consider HTML as the skeleton of a structure and CSS as components to beautify its appearance. CSS allows web developers to make changes to the formation of web pages. 

CSS allows you to design your site template, make your site responsive for display on different devices such as mobile and Windows, and customize the font and color of various components of your site pages. 

In general, you can make your website user-friendly by using CSS.

 

What is content marketing, and how does it affect search engine optimization?

Traditional marketing is losing its effectiveness more and more. Therefore, there must be an alternative to Traditional marketing, which is content marketing. It means attracting and retaining the audience by producing valuable, relevant, and helpful content, thus improving our site’s SEO. 

Content marketing provides efficient, valuable, and relevant content to the audience to solve their problems and help them instead of lecturing about our products or services.

 

What is Server-Side Rendering, and how does it work?

Rendering is the process of converting content coded in HTML language into content that users can read.

Server-Side Rendering refers to converting HTML files into usable information in browsers on the server. 

Whenever you visit a website, your browser sends a request containing that website’s content to the server. When the request is processed within a few thousandths of a second, your browser receives the interpreted HTML code from the server and displays the website’s content as visible content (not code) for you on the screen.

If you want to open another page, this operation will be repeated, and the page will be loaded for you.

 

What is Client-Side Rendering, and how does it work? How is it different from server-side interpretation?

Client-Side Rendering interprets information (converting HTML files into information visible to users) in the browser. This information conversion is done in JavaScript language. In this case, when you visit a website, the browser receives HTML files from the server and converts them into visible content for you. 

The initial loading of the site may take a little longer, but after that, it happens much faster. In this method, the SEO evaluation by search engines does not happen correctly, and search engine optimization is harmed.

 

What is Ajax, and what is its use?

Ajax is the communication technology between the client and the server without refreshing the page. For example, on some websites, we use Ajax when we want to see changes on the page without reloading.

 

What is Tittle, and how does it affect search engine optimization?

The title is considered the most crucial part of the SEO of an article. Although, in the title of an article, we must use the primary keyword on which we want to be SEO. The presence of the keyword in the header will significantly impact the site’s search engine optimization.

 

What is the Text to HTML Ratio, and why is it important in SEO?

Every web page contains a certain amount of code and text. Text to HTML Ratio indicates the percentage of text on a web page compared to the HTML code. It tells you what percentage of the entire page is text. Technically, the existence of little text compared to the codes of a page makes the crawlers of search engines need more information in evaluating the nature and content of your website.

Also, the presence of more codes means slower page loading speed; And page loading speed is also an essential factor in the SEO of the site from the point of view of search engines. 

So the higher this percentage (the ratio of text to code), the better it will be for search engine optimization.

 

What is Over Optimization, and how does it harm SEO?

Excessive use of site optimization techniques to get a better rank in search engines in a way that damages the quality of the website is called over-optimization. For a better understanding, we have given two examples that Google may identify as over-optimization:

  1. If you do a lot of keyword stuffing and repeat a word on a particular page, you are telling Google that this page is SEO optimized for that word.
  2. Artificially generate too many links for a specific word

The existence of such things makes it difficult and annoying for your audience to read the text and reduces the quality of your content.

 

What is crawling, and how does it work?

Crawling is the process by which search engines send a team of robots, known as crawlers and spiders, to find new and updated content on websites. The site’s content can include text, images, audio, video, PDF files, etc.; But regardless of format, contents are found through links. 

Bots start by crawling a few web pages and then discover new URLs by following the links on those pages. While following links, bots also find new content and add it to their index (a database of discovered URLs) called caffeine. This is done so that when someone searches for something that matches the content of these URLs, search engines can retrieve that content and display it on the search results page.

 

What is indexing, and what is its use?

The index is another name for the database of search engines. Indexes contain all the information that search engines have been able to gather from websites. If search engines do not index a site’s content, users will not be able to find and access it. Indexing refers to the process of adding web pages to search engines. In other words, indexing refers to collecting content found during the crawling process. For relevant searches, content on indexed pages can appear on the search results page.

 

What is Domain Authority, and what is its use?

Domain Authority is a search engine ranking score created by the SEO software company Moz. Domain Authority predicts how a website will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs). The Domain Authority score ranges from 1 to 100, and the higher the domain score, the higher the domain’s ability to rank. Domain authority is calculated by evaluating several factors, including the total number of incoming links to the site. Domain Authority is not a criterion that Google uses to determine the site’s rank in the search results pages, and it does not affect the site’s ranking. Instead, Domain Authority is just a tool to predict the rank range your site will get in the search engine results pages. In the Link Explorer section of the Moz site, you can measure the validity of your site’s domain by entering its URL.

 

What is Page Authority, and how is it different from Domain Authority?

Page Authority, like domain authority, is a search engine ranking score created by the SEO software company Moz. The difference is that this score predicts how a particular website will rank in search engine results pages. A number between 1 and 100 also determines the Page Authority score, and the closer this score is to 100, the higher the page’s ability to rank in search engines. 

Page Authority is determined by considering several factors and criteria. Moz constantly updates its Algorithm in determining this score; Therefore, your page score may be different timely. 

In general, Page Authority predicts and estimates the ranking ability of a website’s specific page. In contrast, Domain Authority estimates the ranking ability of the entire site in search engine results pages.

 

What are Sitewide Links, and how do they affect your site’s SEO?

Sitewide links exist in the header and footer of the site or, depending on the type of website format, in the site’s sidebar. These links are seen on most or all pages of a website. An example of these links is the FAQ link at the bottom of the site pages.

Backlinks have always been critical in search engine optimization. Since Sitewide links were an easy way to get a lot of backlinks quickly, in the past, sites considered quantity, and in this way, they got a lot of backlinks and eventually got good rankings for themselves. 

But during one of its updates, Google’s Penguin algorithm removed unnatural link building (links created to manipulate page rank), and that’s how quality took precedence over quantity. After this Google update, sites that used Sitewide links for black hat SEO were penalized, and today we will no longer see such links.

But does this mean that Sitewide Links will harm our site’s search engine optimization? The answer is that in the case of natural links, we don’t need to worry about being penalized by Google. But the problem is that Google pays little attention to such links, and if these links are not harmful to your site’s search engine optimization, they will not be helpful.

 

What is cloaking, and why is it a threat to search engine optimization?

Cloaking is a black hat SEO technique where the content shown to search engine crawlers differs from the content displayed to users. This is possible by analyzing IPs. As mentioned, each visitor has a unique IP. 

It is possible to distinguish whether an IP belongs to a crawler or a real user by applying some tricks. By changing the server settings, the site owner determines that if an IP belongs to the crawler, a different version of the web page is displayed to that IP. If the search engine detects cloaking, it will penalize the offending website and permanently remove it from its index. As a result, that website will no longer appear on any of the search results pages.

 

What is Google Webmaster Tools (GWT) or Google Search Console?

Since GWT became a valuable resource for many people besides webmasters (SEOs, designers, business owners, regular people, etc.), Google changed its name. In 2015, Google changed its name to Google Search Console to be more suitable for a different group of users and not only for a specific group (webmasters in Google Webmaster Tools). 

Google Search Console offers free services to users. With it, you can get good information about your website and the people who visit it. Information such as: how many people visit your site, how they find it, more people visit your site via mobile or computer, and which pages are the most popular. 

It can also help you to find and solve your website errors and have a sitemap. In general, by using Google Search Console, you can benefit from the following services:

  • Being informed of the most searched content that has caused your site to rise on the results page
  • Knowing which content on the site has generated the most traffic for you
  • Find out which websites have linked to your website.
  • You are checking the mobile version of your website and evaluating how functional your website is for users who visit your site on mobile and tablet.
  • Find out how many visitors you have.
  • Helping you find your site’s errors and fix severe problems like the presence of malware
  • Being informed that your site has been hacked if you have been the target of cyber attacks
  • Speeding up the indexing process of site pages
  • Having a site map
  • Removing and adding links

 

What is Google Analytics, and what is its use?

Google Analytics is an analytics tool provided by Google. This tool provides valuable information about your website traffic. Google Analytics and Google Search Console may seem to give the same information to users, but there are critical differences between these two Google products. 

Google Analytics information is more about who visits your website. For example:

  • How many visitors do you have, 
  • How they got to your site, 
  • How long they spent on your website, 
  • Where they are from. 

On the other hand, Google Search Console provides more internal information:

  • Who is linked to you, 
  • whether there is malware or a problem with your site, 
  • what search terms your site is showing up in search results pages.

You can connect these two Google tools to get the best results. By combining these two tools, you will integrate the information received from both sources and get additional reports, which you can only access if you connect them.

In general, here are some of the questions you can answer about your website using Google Analytics:

  • How many people visit my site?
  • From which geographical area are the visitors to my site?
  • From which websites do I get traffic to my site?
  • Which of my marketing strategies brought the most traffic to my site?
  • Which pages of my website are the most popular?
  • How many of my site visitors have become customers?
  • Where did my site visitors come from, and what pages did they visit?
  • Which pages were closed earlier?

 

What is Google AdSense, and what is its use?

Google AdSense provides a platform for site owners to monetize their online content. Google AdSense is Google’s advertising platform where site owners can get paid by placing ads, depending on the number of clicks or views.

Google AdSense is a supplement to Google Ads. In such a way, site owners declare their readiness to receive Google ads by registering in Google AdSense, and on the other hand, advertisers give their desired ads to Google using the Google Ads tool. 

Google also gives the advertisement of these people to the volunteer sites if it is related to the type of content and visitors of the websites registered in Google AdSense. Site owners can also place Google ads on their website pages wherever they want.

 

What is Organic Traffic?

Organic traffic is a term that refers to visits to a website that come from the natural results of search engine results pages and not from paid advertising. When users search for something in search engines, they are presented with a set of results that includes naturally ranked high and advertising pages (which are distinguished by the Ad symbol from natural results). 

When a user clicks on one of the natural results and visits that site, natural search traffic or Organic Search Traffic for that site is recorded in the Google Analytics tool.

 

What is Hierarchical Structure?

One of the first things you should consider before building a website is designing the overall structure of the website. This structure should be easy to follow and align with users’ preferences for how to navigate your website. 

Website navigation means moving from one page to another on a website. The easier this placement is, the better the website is said to have good navigation. 

The excellent website navigation makes it easy for visitors and crawlers to find what they want. In addition, users and search engines love findable and well-categorized content. 

Therefore, your website should have a clear and transparent structure.

Consider a hierarchical structure for a website, like a family tree. A page can have a parent, child, brother, or sister. Such pages are placed in a particular structure, and with a little effort, you can use this structure to strengthen and improve your site’s SEO. In a hierarchical structure, you consider a particular classification and order for the pages. For example, a web page is viewed as a parent if it covers other thematically related pages. Also, child pages are viewed below its pages and cannot exist without the parent page. Child pages are usually created more explicitly and with more detail. 

In other words, you can use the parent page to cover a broad and general topic (like this page) and describe each section individually in more detail in the form of child pages.

A parent page can have multiple child pages, but child pages can only have one parent page. In addition, a child page can also have sibling pages. 

For example, consider the “Digital Marketing Strategies” page as the parent page. In this case, the “email marketing,” “content marketing,” and “social media marketing” pages will be your child pages.

 

What is A/B Testing, and how does it affect the site’s SEO?

A/B Testing, also known as split testing, compares two versions of a web page or a mobile application. 

This test is to determine which version performs better. A/B testing is an experiment in which two or more models of the same page are randomly shown to the users to determine which model performs better to achieve the desired goal by examining and analyzing each one statistically. 

 The main page and its modified version are usually compared in this test.

To be successful in search engine optimization, we need to understand how users behave and interact with our website. 

Why is it said that website testing harms SEO?

The reason is that these tests either involve changing the content on a page or presenting duplicate pages with little changes. Therefore, by running these tests, you may encounter problems such as cloaking, duplicate content, and inappropriate redirects, which are considered black hat SEO. 

But there is no need to worry; you can improve the site’s performance without damaging the SEO. 

To keep search engines happy while running tests, you need to do the following:

  • Ensure you’re providing the search engines with the homepage content you want to rank for (not the test page).
  • Do not create pages that are entirely different from each other
  • Just use the 302 redirects where necessary
  • Save the home page and make updates there
  • Run tests only for as long as necessary
  • Avoid running tests when you plan to make significant changes to your site.

 

What is RankBrain, and what is its use?

RankBrain is a system by which Google can better understand the user’s intent from searching for a phrase. 

In 2015, Google officially confirmed that it had updated its algorithms with an artificial intelligence system that allowed machines to learn things. 

About 15% of the words searched on Google daily are new and have never been explored. 15% on a large scale (billions of searches that Google has daily) is a considerable number. Before RankBrain came into play, Google would search pages for those words (no less or more) when faced with these words. But since these words were entirely new, Google could not find any results. 

Today, RankBrain tries to understand the meaning of your search, Just like a natural person. For example, if RankBrain sees a word or phrases it’s never seen before, it can guess what other words or phrases might have the same meaning and filter the results based on those. 

Also, RankBrain provides the most relevant results based on specific search signals (such as the device the person searched with, the person’s search history, and their geographic location).

 

What is Click Through Rate (CTR), and why is it important in SEO?

Click Through Rate (CTR) measures the number of people who click on a link compared to the total number of people who can do so. In other words, the click rate or CTR shows the percentage of impressions that ended in a click. For example, if your website link is displayed on search engine results pages for 100 people, and out of those 100 people, 20 people click on your link and enter your website, your click rate will be 20%. 

This is why ranking 1 on search results pages is much better than ranking 10. It’s no secret that ranking 1 on search results pages has a much higher click-through rate than ranking 10 on these pages. 

In general, the click rate or CTR is critical for two reasons:

  • First, more click-through rate equals more traffic. For example, increasing your click-through rate from 10% to 20% could easily double your website traffic without needing better rankings.
  • Click-through rate, or CTR, is a key and essential measure in search engine rankings.

 

What is Dwell Time or Time on Page, and why is it important in SEO?

Dwell Time or Time on Page is the time a visitor spends on a web page. This period starts when a person clicks on a link in the search engine results pages and ends when they return to the search results page or close the page.

Let’s say you opened the first result (rank 1) of a search results page for a specific phrase, but you didn’t find it valuable. So, return to the search results page and click on the second result (rank 2). The content was so interesting this time that you spent 10 minutes reading it. The totality of this incident tells the search engines (including Google) that rank 2 has provided more valuable content to the user than rank 1.

Although Google has not officially announced that Dwell Time is a metric in SEO rankings, we know that Google values ​​user experience. And Dwell Time is essential in determining how satisfied users use a page.

 

What is WordPress, and what is it used for?

WordPress is an open-source content management system. WordPress is a popular and accessible tool for people who want to create a website or blog but have no coding knowledge or experience. More than 36% of all existing websites use WordPress.

 

What is Breadcrumb, and how does it affect search engine optimization?

Breadcrumbs are links on a website that allows users to navigate to the page they are currently on and know how far they are from the website’s main page.

 You have probably heard the story of Hansel and Gretel, that in order not to get lost in the forest and to be able to find their way back home, they broke the piece of bread they were carrying and threw it on the ground behind them. This is the reason for naming this tool in today’s digital world.

You’ll usually find them at the top of the website page, separated by a plus sign (<). Breadcrumbs show which categories you click to get to the page you’re viewing.

Also, it makes it easy for you to return to the previous page when needed. 

Breadcrumb is a useful UX feature that makes site navigation easy for users. In addition, breadcrumbs can directly affect your site’s SEO. In addition to helping users navigate the site more efficiently, they also help search engines and crawlers to categorize and navigate the site more easily. 

Breadcrumbs on search results pages give users a general understanding of where that page is located on your website.

In general, Breadcrumb brings the following benefits for site SEO:

  • Improves UX
  • Improves site ranking
  • It keeps users on the site for longer

 

What is Google Trends, and how to use it for better search engine optimization?

Google Trends is a free tool that displays the popularity of searching for a topic on Google at a specific time and place. Google Trends ranks the popularity of a search in terms of all searches performed on Google between 0 and 100. It can also be used to compare the popularity of up to 5 guests. Google first released this tool in 2006. 

But how can you use this tool to improve your site’s SEO?

  • Find keywords that are trending or falling in popularity
  • Find related keywords
  • Find local searches
  • Find seasonal keywords (those that become popular during a specific period)
  • Find popular topics for your articles
  • Find popular keywords for YouTube videos

 

Common concepts and terms in Technical Seo:

Using Technical Seo, you ensure that your web pages are optimized for crawlers and users. Since a website’s technical structure can significantly impact its performance and is vital in its optimization, digital business owners must familiarize themselves with its general rules and principles. But it will only be possible to achieve this important with understanding its terms and concepts. For this reason, we have tried to collect technical SEO terms in this section.

 

What is Page Speed, and how does it affect SEO?

Page Speed ​​is how long it takes for a web page to load. Various factors play a role in determining the Page Speed ​​or loading speed of a page. 

Factors such as: 

  • site server, 
  • Size and volume of one-page files and image compression. 

Since 2010, Google has included page loading speed as one of its ranking criteria, and in 2018, by updating its algorithms, it increased its importance.

However, the page loading speed affects the SEO of the site with its impact on the user experience. If your pages are very slow and take a long time to load, your users will give up waiting for your page to load and return to the search engine results page to try other results. This will increase your site’s bounce rate and, as a result, harm your site’s SEO.

 

What is a sitemap, and what is its use?

As the name suggests, a sitemap is a map of your site that helps search engines find, crawl, and index all the content on your website. A sitemap is an XML file filled with the URLs and has the authority to archive all the pages and contents of the site. A sitemap also tells search engines which pages on your website are most important.

 

What is Responsive Design, and how does it affect search engine optimization?

Responsive design means no need to have different versions of a site for mobile, tablet, and computer anymore, and the site will be compatible with any screen size. By using responsive design, all the content on your website will be readable and accessible in some way, regardless of what device the visitor uses to access your site.

Websites that do not have a responsive design are often complicated to navigate on devices other than computers. Google is built for users, Those who search the web. In a world where users use internet services through mobile phones, search engines favor and support sites that meet the needs of these users and prefer them. So, it is easy to understand that websites with responsive design get better rankings in search engine results pages. 

In general, by designing a responsive website, you achieve several goals:

  • Improve the usability of the site
  • You increase the speed of your pages
  • You reduce the bounce rate of your site
  • You prevent the publication of duplicate content
  • You make it easy to share your content on social networks

 

What is a domain name, and how to choose it?

Domain Name is the unique internet address of any website. Each domain name consists of three parts: optional subdomain, domain name, and extension. Also, the combination of the domain name and its attachment is the main domain.

Choosing the right domain name can be one of the most important decisions you make for your digital business. Here are some things to consider when choosing a domain name:

  • Does it fit your brand?
  • Does it reflect your brand well?
  • What comes up when you search for your brand on Google?
  • Is it easy to read, spell and remember?
  • Do not use a dash in it
  • Can it be optimized without being known as spam?
  • Is it as short as possible?
  • What extension did you consider for it?
  • Is it unique?

 

What is a Snippet, and why is it important?

The snippet refers to a single result from search engine results and generally includes a title, URL, and page description. Google shows the URL in black, and in the first line, the title in blue, and the second line and the meta description, which tells the page’s subject, under the title. 

Snippet content matches parts of users’ searches, and they can see the keywords they searched for in its description in bold. In addition, search engines often use elements of your content to form snippets. In most cases, search engines will create the best possible snippet for you; But you can replace your description by adding Meta Description to your page. 

The snippet is one of the most valuable things used in digital business. The snippet is the gateway to your site. You need users to click on your link and enter your website, So you have to make it as attractive as possible.

 

What are Rich Snippets, and how is it different from Snippets?

A rich snippet is a snippet that is displayed with more information. This additional information is usually extracted from the markup data contained in the HTML of the page. Rich Snippets allow search engines to understand the information on pages better and help users find what they are looking for. Common types of Rich Snippets include: 

  • photos, 
  • ratings (stars), 
  • reviews, 
  • prices, 
  • location, 
  • recipes, 
  • and events. 

Rich snippets are more impressive than regular snippets and will help increase traffic to your site as a result.

 

What is Featured Snippet, and what are its uses and types?

A featured snippet, an answer box, is the selected content displayed on search engine results pages. To better serve users, Google brings these snippets above the typical results and below the ads. These snippets quickly answer searchers’ questions so that the user does not have to open the result and visit its page. 

Types of Featured Snippets include:

  • Paragraph (the answer is displayed in the form of a text. A box with text inside, or a box with text and a picture inside)
  • List (the answer is shown as a list)
  • Table (the answer is shown in the form of a table)

What is a Rich Card, and how is it different from a Rich Snippet?

Rich Card is a particular way to display content in mobile searches. They can be considered as evolved versions of Rich Snippet. Just like Rich Snippet, Rich Card content is displayed in a different visual format to improve the experience of mobile users. The main difference between Rich Card and Rich Snippet is that Rich Snippet does not change the hierarchy of search results, While Rich Card is the results displayed in the form of cards above other search results.

 

What is Permalink?

A permalink is a complete URL you see and use in the address bar for any web page or post. Since it is a permanent link, it is named Permalink (derived from Permanent Link meaning permanent link). Therefore, even if you update the content of a page, these links will remain unchanged.

 

What are HTTP Status Codes, and what are the most important of them?

The HTTP status code is the server’s response to the browser’s request. For example, when you visit a site, your browser sends a request to that site’s server, and then the server responds to the browser’s request with a three-digit code. This code is called the HTTP status code. In other words, these status codes are conversations between the site server and your browser. By using these codes, it is determined that everything is reasonable, suspicious, or there is a problem. 

Using these status codes will help you detect site errors and minimize downtime. You can even help search engines and users find your site using some of these codes (like 301). 

The first digit of these three-digit codes starts with a number between 1 and 5. So we will have 5 status code models.

The most important status codes (HTTP Status Codes) effective in SEO

  • HTTP Status Code 200

This is the ideal status code for your standard, healthy page, indicating that everything is as it should be.

  • HTTP Status Code 301

It tells users and search engines that the page has been permanently moved to a new address.

  • HTTP Status Code 404

It means that the server did not find the requested file or page. But it does not specify that the source is temporarily or permanently lost.

  • HTTP Status Code 410

The permanent type of code is 404, indicating that the desired resource is permanently unavailable and destroyed.

  • HTTP Status Code 500

This status code indicates a problem with the site’s server, and you should try to fix the issue as soon as you encounter it.

  • HTTP Status Code 503

This status code indicates that the server will be unavailable until further notice (for a short time).

What is a Static Web Page, and how is it different from a Dynamic Web Page?

Web pages can be static or dynamic. Static pages contain the same pre-created content every time they are loaded, while dynamic pages contain different content for different visitors.

Static pages are written with client-side programming languages ​​such as HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.

When a site’s server receives a request for static pages from a browser, it responds to the request without any additional processing. As a result, these pages will be visible through the browser. 

Dynamic pages are written with server-side programming languages ​​such as PHP, Java, ASP, and JSP. Since these codes run directly on the server, the server can generate new content every time dynamic pages are loaded. As a result, the content of these pages will be displayed differently for different people. For example, dynamic pages are used for weather sites or sites that provide currency and stock prices that require further information at other times.

It should be noted that dynamic pages take longer to load than static pages.

 

What is Robots.txt File, and what is its use?

The Robots.txt file tells search engines which parts of a website they can go to and which they can’t. In other words, the Robots.txt file is a text file that webmasters create to teach search engine robots (spiders) how to crawl their website pages. Of course, it should be noted that some search engines (except Google, Bing, and Yahoo) completely ignore these files and enter the parts they shouldn’t.

 

Common concepts and terms in On Page Seo:

You may have a topic or keyword in mind for which you want to produce content and get a good ranking. But how do you do this, so search engines understand and consider it worthy of ranking on the first page of search results? 

Smart SEO experts believe that On Page Seo or internal SEO should be a priority at all stages. Since the search landscape is constantly changing, ensuring your internal search engine optimization knowledge is up to date is essential. Furthermore, to master a subject, one must first understand it correctly. Therefore, it is vital to understand a topic as extensive as On Page Seo, to know its concepts and common terms. 

For this purpose, we have prepared a list of these concepts and terms for you.

 

What is a keyword, and why is it so important in SEO?

A keyword is an idea and a topic that determines what your content is about. In SEO terms, keywords are words and phrases that searchers enter into search engines. Keywords play a vital role in search engine optimization; Because they are the link between what people are looking for and the content you provide to answer that need. Your audience finds you using keywords. Therefore, you need to use the right seed keywords to find the visitors you want and need. Because then your content doesn’t match what your potential audience is looking for. So, using appropriate and relevant keywords will lead to better rankings, and better rankings will lead to more traffic.

 

What is a long tail keyword?

A long tail keyword is a multi-word phrase that is more specific and less common. In other words, long tail keywords are longer and more specific phrases that visitors usually use when they are closer to the purchase stage. For example, the term “internal SEO” is a short-tail keyword and the phrase “guide to using internal SEO techniques” is a long-tail keyword that refers more specifically to what the user is looking for.

 

What does the LSI keyword mean?

LSI stands for Latent Semantic Indexing and means hidden semantic index. LSI Keyword refers to words and phrases that search engines consider semantically related to a topic. For example, when talking about cars, car, motor, road, tire, and signposts are synonymous keywords.

 

What is keyword research, and why is it so important?

Keyword research is the process of discovering and analyzing the terms that people are searching for. Keywords are the foundation and pillar of all other activities that are done for search engine optimization (SEO). Therefore, using the right keywords is the most critical step in a site’s search engine optimization process. Keyword research is the only way to discover what people are searching for. Creating content about terms that no one searches for is a massive mistake for website owners. Additionally, keyword research will help you find answers to the following questions:

  • Which word among the set of similar phrases is the best option to get rank?
  • How hard is it to rank for a term?
  • How much traffic will I get if I rank for a keyword?
  • What kind of content do I need to produce for a keyword to rank?

 

What is Keyword difficulty, and what is its use?

Keyword Difficulty is evaluating and measuring the difficulty of ranking in search engine results pages for a specific phrase. The higher the word difficulty score, the harder it is to rank on the first page of search results. Because the more complex a word is, it indicates that the competition for that word is more. Estimating the difficulty of a keyword depends on various factors such as domain authority, page authority, and content quality. Keyword difficulty is essential to keyword research and helps you choose the best keywords for SEO.

 

What is Keyword Stuffing?

Keyword Stuffing is a black hat SEO technique and is the act of inflicting website content with keywords in an unnatural way, aiming to get better rankings on search engine results pages. Unfortunately, using this method will lead to being penalized by search engines.

 

What is keyword density?

Keyword Density refers to the number of times a keyword is used on a page relative to the total number of words. Keyword density is calculated as a percentage.

 

What is Meta Tag, and what is its use?

Meta tags provide information about a web page in HTML files. This information is called Metadata and is visible only to search engines and crawlers. For example, search engines use meta tags to rank and display snippets on search results pages.

 

What are Meta Keywords, and how is it different from keywords?

Meta Keyword is a meta tag that helps search engines understand the page’s topic. Meta keywords are different from regular keywords; Because they appear behind the scenes (in the code file of the page) and not on the page visible to users.

 

What is Meta Title Tag, and what is its use?

The Meta Title Tag is the page title that search engines display in snippets of their results pages. Users click on the same blue-colored links in the search results page to enter that page. These titles summarize the pages’ content and play a vital role in the site’s search engine optimization. If your title is impressive and attractive, it will stand out from other titles and generate more traffic.

 

What is Meta Description, and what is its importance?

Meta Description is one of the meta tags that describe the page topic. Google displays meta descriptions in snippets of search results pages and under titles. A meta description should be a relevant summary of a page’s topic that informs and interests users. In addition, these descriptions can convince users that this page is what they are looking for.

 

What are Heading Tags or Header Tags, and what is their use?

Heading Tags or Header Tags are HTML tags used to identify the headings and subheadings in the content of pages (H1 to H6) from other types of text (such as paragraphs). Headings help search engines and users to read and understand the text. Title tags give structure and texture to your article. Each heading should give the reader an idea of ​​the information in the text below.

 

What is Alt Text, and why is it so important in SEO?

Alt Text stands for Alternative Text and means alternative text. Alt Text is placed in the HTML codes of a page and describes the appearance and use of an image on that page. If a photo fails to load and display, Alt Text will be displayed instead of that photo. In general, Alt Text is crucial for the following four main reasons:

  • Improves accessibility
  • Improves subject communication
  • It helps to rank your site in Google images
  • It works as Anchor Text in image links.

 

What is an internal link, and what is its importance in SEO?

An internal link is a link that goes from one page on a website to another page on the same website. Both users and search engines use internal links to find content on a website. Internal links are vital because they help search engines find, understand, and index a site’s pages. If you use them strategically and plan, they can also transfer credibility to pages. In short, internal linking is critical for any site that wants higher search engine rankings.

 

What is duplicate content, and how does it harm the site’s SEO?

Duplicate content exists in more than two places on the Internet. In other words, duplicate content is any content that is similar or the same as other content on another website. Since search engines, when faced with two different URLs with duplicate content, do not know which one to rank higher in the search results pages, they may rank both of them lower and prefer other sites.

 

What is Hidden Content, and what has changed today?

Hidden content is a website’s textual content or links that exist in the source code but is not visible to visitors. Hidden content is generally considered a black hat-SEO technique. In the past, web admins would create long, search-engine-optimized articles to get better rankings. But instead, users saw content that typically wouldn’t rank well.

Today, there are ethical ways to hide text and images following search engine guidelines that won’t result in a penalty. For example, it’s okay if the content is hidden behind the “read more” button. If users can read content by clicking on it, search engines can too.

 

What is Above the Fold, and why is it important?

Above the fold is the content visible on a website before the user scrolls the page. This content includes photos, text, video, and everything the eye can see. Above the Fold term is taken from the newspaper world. As you know, newspapers are folded in half, and only the top half is visible; It means the upper half of the publications use to attract the maximum attention of the readers. It is the same in the digital world. Above the fold has particular importance; Because it is the first view a new user sees of your website. In 2012, Google created the Page Layout algorithm to reduce the ranking of websites that used too many ads in Above the Fold space.

 

What is Below the Fold, and how is it different from Above the Fold?

Below the fold is the content that is not visible to users when the site is first loaded, and to view it, the user must scroll down the page. Therefore, placing content below the fold on a page can significantly reduce the likelihood of that content being seen. Because if users leave the page without scrolling, they will not know the content.

 

Common concepts and terms in Off Page Seo:

Another essential criterion in search engine optimization (SEO) is Off Page Seo or external SEO. By using external SEO techniques, the ranking of the site pages can be increased. But what is considered a prerequisite in learning these techniques is knowing the concepts and terms related to them. In the following, we will examine the most important and commonly used concepts and terms in Off Page Seo or external SEO.

 

What is an external link, and what are its types?

An external link is a link that goes from one site to another. There are two types of external links:

A backlink or Inbound Link: Links from other sites are given to your site.

Outbound Link: Links from your site are provided to other websites.

 

What is Outbound Link (OBL), and what are its types?

An outbound link (OBL) is a link that sends your website to other websites. OBL is usually used to confirm facts or direct people to reference sources. The links you provide to other websites can help search engines understand the content of your page. However, since spam sites also link to reliable sources, outgoing links from your website do not add to the credibility of your page. There are two types of outgoing links:

Follow Links / Dofollow Links: These links tell search engines to follow the links. Also, these links transfer the credibility of your page to the target page. If you send people to another site with a Dofollow link, you give that site a vote of trust and credibility.

NoFollow Links: These links tell search engines not to follow the links. If you send people to another site with a NoFollow Link, you only promote that site but don’t trust it. As a result, you will not give them credit.

 

What is a link farm, and why does it harm the site’s search engine optimization?

A link farm is a website or a set of websites that are created only for link building. Every website links to the site or websites it wants to get better rankings in search engine results pages. This black hat SEO technique creates huge problems between you and the search engines. As mentioned, one search engine optimization criterion (SEO) is the number of backlinks on a website. Black hat SEO experts use the link farm to increase the backlinks of their target website.

 

What is Reciprocal linking or Link Exchange, and what is its use?

Reciprocal Linking or Link Exchange happens when two brands (two websites) agree to improve their sites’ credibility and rankings by exchanging links. This agreement is known as “You link me, and I link you.”

 

What is Natural Link, and how is it different from an Unnatural Link?

A natural link is a link that webmasters or website owners give to your content (text, photo, audio, video, product, etc.); Because they think it is helpful for their readers and adds value to their site or page. On the other hand, unnatural links are links that are bought.

 

What is Link Bait, and what is its use?

Have you ever noticed that some pages on your website naturally get backlinks better than others? In the SEO world, these pages are called Link Bait. Link Bait is the process of creating content designed to get backlinks. Sometimes the content is so attractive, valuable, and unique that any webmaster can hardly not link to it. These links can help improve your site’s ranking in search engine results pages. Link bait can be any content, But it is usually one of the following:

  • infographic
  • comprehensive guide (resource) (like this article)
  • Interactive content (such as calculators, competitions, etc.)
  • Image, gif, or video

 

What is a Broken Link or Dead Link, and what are its types?

Broken links or dead links no longer lead the audience to the content. Instead, a 404 message indicating the page is unavailable is displayed. There are two types of broken or dead links:

Internal links

External links

 

What is Crawler Robot Spider, and how does it work?

Google robots visit your website according to your habits in updating the site. This means that if you update your site daily, these robots will visit your site daily and read your content, or if your site is updated monthly, these robots will visit your website monthly.

 

What is a SiteWide Link?

SiteWide Links that are repeated on all pages of the site. For example, we can mention headers, footers, and sidebar, which will not have a particular effect on the SEO of a website.

 

What is Page Rank?

The rank or score Google assigned to sites and pages last year has been stopped for a year.

 

What is Site Speed, and how important is it in search engine optimization?

Site speed is considered a critical point in SEO, especially in 2018, and has been emphasized more now. Generally, a website always available from the user’s and Google’s points of view will get a higher rank.

What is PBN, and how does it work?

PBN stands for Private Blog Network and is a network of reputable websites used for link building to get higher rankings for the target website. In other words, a person creates a network of reputable websites that rank well in search engines. It is enough to give a backlink to the desired site from any PBN to raise your leading website in the SERP.

 

Conclusion

In this article on smart strategy, we deep dive into different sides of SEO (search engine optimization).

Smart strategy as a leading digital marketing agency providing SEO services in Canada. For more information about our SEO services and a consultation with our SEO strategist, please contact us.

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