Web Development/Search engine optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) refers to the techniques that help a website rank high in organic search results. There are the two types of listings that appear when using a search engine: organic search and paid search. SEO aims to make a website more visible to people looking for specific information or a particular product or service via search engine. SEO falls under the umbrella of Search Engine Marketing (SEM). SEM is a form of internet marketing that involves the promotion of websites by increasing their visibility in search engine result pages primarily through paid advertising. Paid search campaigns can be costly and sometimes useless as most search engine users never click on paid search ads.

There are three types of SEO, on-page, technical, and off-page:

1. Off-page SEO mainly consists of factors that do not involve the modification of a website such as, history and reputation – all of which can greatly impact a website even though they are not technical factors. History could pay attention to something such as content substance; it may draw a red flag if you introduce a topic that hasn’t been covered. Reputation may focus on user feedback; A site that delivers valid relevant information will have a better reputation than a site that deliver outdated false information.
2. On-page SEO involves optimizing individual web pages to rank higher in search engines. This includes optimizing elements like meta tags, web content, information architecture, images, and URLs to make them more search engine-friendly and user-friendly. Key aspects include keyword optimization, HTML markup, page speed, content quality, and internal linking.
3. Technical SEO involves optimizing a website's technical aspects to improve search engine visibility and user experience. It includes tasks like speed optimization, mobile-friendliness, crawlability, indexability, site architecture, and structured data markup. This ensures efficient crawling and indexing by search engines, leading to better SERP rankings and improved user experience.

Most internet users do not know all of the factors that contribute to SEO. As the most popular search engine, Google interrogates web pages, asking around 200 questions to determine which pages have the best results and how they should be ranked. Google provides the public with a few of these constantly changing questions.

Many SEO factors found on the internet are practical, but they are also hypothesized; practical meaning that it makes sense why one would deem a SEO factor appropriate, and hypothesized because the information is not verified by Google. It is not necessary to memorize all SEO factors found online, but it is important to keep essential factors in mind. Factors such as keyword research/usage, accessible URL’s, delivery of reliable information and crawlability have been consistent throughout the years. Crawlability is the ability of a search engine to crawl through the entire text content of a website and easily navigate through web pages without encountering unexpected dead-ends. As SEO techniques are constantly evolving, it is best to research and learn the current SEO practices. Although SEO is a job specialty, SEO it is not required for most people to know in depth. Knowing what it is, how it works, why it is important and staying abreast of changes that occur is often sufficient.