Core SEO Principles, Part 2

SEO can be nebulous. It’s more than just keywords, more than the proper use of images and links, and more than simply ranking on a search engine. (Although, it is all three things, to be fair—just not one of them alone.)

It’s mainly about helping search engines understand the content you’re creating so that your target audience can easily find your site. And this list of Core SEO principles is a surefire way of helping you reach that goal.

In Case You Missed It: Core SEO Principles, Part 1

As discussed in our previous installment, here are the first six (of many) of the core SEO principles to know:

1. Importance of Usability
2. ADA Compliance
3. Improving Site Usability
4. Improving Site Crawlability
5. Reducing Load Times
6. Reducing Bounce Rate

Thank you for your time. Now that you’ve had that quick refresher, let’s move on to the rest of the list!

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      7. Social Media

We’re in the age of social media. Influencers are becoming millionaires, brands are developing even more personable voices, and blue birds have turned into black Xs. Unless you’re living under an actual rock or enjoying a hermit’s lifestyle, it’s pretty hard to avoid. So, it’s more necessary than ever to leverage it to reap the benefits later.

Simply put, the easier it is for users to share content, the quicker they’ll be able to send it off to their friends, colleagues, or business associates. Meaning you’ll have more eyes on your site and a higher chance of netting a few dedicated followers or potential clients. Sharing is caring, after all.

      8. Keep It In-Line

“Do the right thing” might be Google’s (rather ironic) motto, but it’s still incredibly sound advice when creating and writing for SEO. That said, don’t be evil.

Avoid black hat SEO techniques and make sure to deliver on the content you’re promising. Promoting an article as anything other than what it contains will land you in SEO purgatory, which completely derails (and potentially delists) your site.

      9. Check Ad Placement

Breathe in. Breathe out. Let’s talk about web advertisements.

You know, those things that pop up and won’t go away no matter how many times you hit the “X” that’s smaller than the tip of a needle? Google recommends following the Better Ads Standards for advertisements. (Whether people actually follow their recommendations is another thing entirely.)

Mainly, make sure to properly implement the ads on your website so that they don’t obstruct your content or site navigation. Once your website becomes more advertisement than actual content, you’ve run into a problem.

      10. Shorter Long Tails

A long tail keyword is typically anything over two words (and usually no more than five). While you could push it over the limit, it’s not recommended—as I’ve discussed in our Guide to Mobile SEO.

Namely, over half of all search results on Google are performed on a mobile device. And because of that, once your keyword gets too long, the likelihood of that specific string being searched—and your website being found—decreases.

Alternatively, if it’s too short, you’ll be drowned out in the masses. As the title of this section suggests, finding the perfect keyword is a bit of a paradox. That’s where putting in the necessary groundwork comes in handy to find that SEO sweet spot.

      11. Research, Research, Research

Approach creating content like you would a paper in college. (Unless you were a procrastinator.)

It all starts with brainstorming. See what your competitors are doing and improve upon that benchmark. Start with seed keywords (the words or phrases used as a keyword building point) and work up from there. Utilize one of the million keyword research tools out there to find the search volume and related keywords.

Look at how your existing articles have performed and see if you can capitalize on past success. Look for content gaps on your own, or on your competitors’, sites and take advantage of the opportunity with something never before seen on the internet (so as long as people are going to search for it).

      12. Establish Your Authority

This one is a two-parter.

Part one: Websites are given domain authority scores (from 1 to 100) by Moz, which are similar to Google’s search engine rankings but not quite the same thing. The higher the domain authority, the more likely the site is to be ranked on search engines.

Part two: Backlinks are links that come from another site and link to a page on your own. Needless to say, they’re important. However, backlinks are from a brutalist society which eats its young, crushes its old, and turns everyone else into a fine paste. Point being: backlinks aren’t created equal.

Having more backlinks to your site creates authority. But if they come from sites with low domain authority, then the impact on your own isn’t as great. The best way to build up backlinks is by starting small. Try to create easily linkable or shareable content. Make visually appealing infographics or informative long-form guides. Make new connections, write guest blogs, request backlinks. The opportunities are quite nearly endless.

Where Do You Begin?

Well, that depends on what your situation is. What does your site look like? What’s your current search engine ranking? What are your metrics telling you?

Not getting the clicks you want? Reevaluate your keywords. Is your domain authority low? Time to start networking. Incredibly high bounce rate? Check your ads and your site’s usability

Or, you could always reach out to your friends right here at OneHum. We know a thing or two (or twelve) about helping you maximize your SEO potential.

Alec Sarnowski is a content writer, SEO junkie, and serial comma abuser for one of the most dynamic content agencies in Atlanta.