What Are The Different Types Of SEO?

What Is SEO?

SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization.” It is the process of optimising a website or web page to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). This is typically done by making changes to the content, structure, and code of a website to make it more attractive to search engines and users. The goal of SEO is to increase the number of visitors to a website by improving its ranking in search results for specific keywords or phrases.

What Is Organic SEO?

Organic SEO refers to the practice of improving the visibility and ranking of a website or web page in search engine results pages (SERPs) through non-paid, or “organic,” means. This contrasts with paid advertising or “pay-per-click” (PPC) campaigns, where a website is promoted through sponsored links that appear at the top of search engine results.

Organic SEO typically involves optimising a website’s content, structure, and code to make it more attractive to search engines and users. This can include things like:

• Researching and targeting keywords that are relevant to the website’s content
• Creating high-quality, engaging content
• Building backlinks from other websites
• Optimising meta tags, images, and other elements of the website’s code
• The goal of organic SEO is to improve a website’s visibility and to rank in search results for specific keywords or phrases to increase the number of visitors to the website.

It takes time to see results, but it is a long-term strategy for the website to maintain its visibility and ranking in the search results.

What Is SEM?

SEM stands for “Search Engine Marketing.” It is a form of digital marketing that involves promoting a website or web page through paid advertising on search engine results pages (SERPs). SEM campaigns are typically managed through platforms such as Google Ads and Bing Ads, where businesses can create and manage their ads and bid on keywords or phrases to target specific audiences.

The goal of SEM is to increase visibility and drive traffic to a website by appearing at the top of search engine results for specific keywords or phrases. The most common form of SEM is Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, where businesses pay a fee each time their ad is clicked.

SEM can be a valuable tool for businesses that want to quickly increase visibility and drive traffic to their website, especially when they are targeting specific keywords.

SEM can be an excellent complement to organic SEO as it can help to drive more traffic to a website in the short term. In contrast, organic SEO improves a website’s visibility and ranking over the long term.

What Is PPC?

PPC stands for “pay-per-click,” it is a form of online advertising where the advertiser pays a fee each time one of their ads is clicked. PPC ads typically appear at the top of search engine results pages (SERPs) or on other websites participating in the advertiser’s PPC network. The most popular form of PPC is through search engines such as Google and Bing, where businesses can create and manage their ads and bid on keywords or phrases to target specific audiences.

PPC advertising allows businesses to reach a targeted audience quickly, as ads can run as soon as the campaign is set up and approved. Advertisers also have much control over the targeting, budget, and other aspects of the campaign. With PPC, you can target specific keywords and demographics, set a budget that works for you, and adjust the campaign as needed to optimise performance.

PPC can be an excellent way for businesses to drive targeted traffic to their website and generate leads, but it can be costly if not managed properly. It’s important to carefully consider the targeting, budget, and other aspects of a PPC campaign to ensure that the return on investment (ROI) is positive.

What Is Local SEO?

Local SEO refers to the practice of optimising a business’s website and online presence to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) for local search queries. Local SEO focuses on promoting a business to a specific geographic area, such as a city or neighbourhood.

Several strategies can be used to improve a business’s local SEO:

• Optimising the business’s Google My Business (GMB) listing, which appears in Google Maps and Google search results
• Creating local content on the website, such as blog posts or pages focused on specific neighbourhoods or cities
• Building backlinks from local websites and directories
• Encouraging customers to leave reviews on sites like Google, Yelp, and TripAdvisor
• Optimising meta tags and other elements of the website’s code to include local keywords and contact information
• The goal of Local SEO is to help local businesses to appear in front of the right audience, who are searching for the products or services they offer in a specific geographic area. It can help to increase visibility and drive more foot traffic to the physical location of a business, and also increase the conversion rate.

What Is Technical SEO?

Technical SEO is the practice of optimising the technical aspects of a website to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). Technical SEO encompasses a wide range of elements, including the website’s structure, code, and server configurations, that can affect a search engine’s ability to crawl and index a website.

Here are some examples of technical SEO:

• Making sure that the website is easily crawlable by search engines by using a sitemap and a clean and organised URL structure
• Optimising the website’s code to make sure it is clean, valid, and free of errors
• Ensuring that the website is mobile-friendly and responsive
• Improving the website’s page loading speed
• Utilising structured data (schema markup) to help search engines understand the content of a website
• Making sure that the website is secure with HTTPS
• Managing redirects properly.

Technical SEO can be a complex process, but it is vital to ensure that search engines can easily crawl and index a website. When technical SEO is done correctly, it can improve a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results and provide a better user experience.

What Is On-Page SEO?

On-page SEO refers to the practice of optimising the content and structure of a website or web page to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). It involves making changes to the website’s content, meta tags, images, and other elements of its code to make it more attractive to search engines and users.

Here are some examples of on-page SEO:

• Researching and targeting relevant keywords
• Creating high-quality and engaging content
• Optimising title tags and meta descriptions
• Incorporating header tags (H1, H2, H3) to organize content
• Optimising images with alt tags and file names
• Incorporating internal linking
• Optimising the website’s URL structure
• Utilising structured data (schema markup).

On-page SEO is an essential aspect of SEO as it provides search engines with information about the website’s content and structure, which helps them to understand the website’s purpose and relevance to specific keywords. By optimising the on-page elements of a website, businesses can improve their visibility and ranking in search engine results and attract more relevant traffic to their website.

What Is Off-Site SEO?

Off-site SEO refers to the practice of optimising a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) through activities that occur outside of the website itself. It includes activities to increase the number and quality of external links pointing to a website, also known as backlinks.

Here are some examples of off-site SEO:

• Building backlinks from other websites
• Building links from directories, business listings and social media
• Optimising social media presence
• Guest blogging
• Influencer marketing
• Brand mentions
• Getting listed in online directories
• Creating an online business listing.

Off-site SEO is important because search engines use the number and quality of external links pointing to a website to indicate its authority and credibility. A website with many high-quality backlinks is seen as more valuable and relevant than a website with few or low-quality backlinks. Therefore, off-site SEO can help to improve a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results and also increase its trust and authority in the eyes of both search engines and users.

What Is Blackhat SEO?

Blackhat SEO is a set of practices used to manipulate search engine rankings that violate the search engine’s terms of service. These practices are considered unethical and are used to achieve quick, short-term gains in search engine rankings rather than building a website’s visibility and ranking through legitimate, long-term efforts.

Examples of blackhat SEO techniques include:

• Keyword stuffing: the practice of cramming a large number of keywords into a website’s content or meta tags in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Hidden text or links: the practice of hiding text or links on a website in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Cloaking: the practice of showing different content to search engine crawlers than is shown to users in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Link farms: the practice of creating large numbers of low-quality links to a website in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Link buying: the practice of buying links in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Duplicate content: the practice of using the same or similar content across multiple pages or websites in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings.

Using these techniques can lead to penalties or even the banning of the website from search engine results. Search engines constantly update their algorithms to detect and penalise websites that use black hat SEO techniques. Therefore, It’s important to avoid these techniques and focus on building a website’s visibility and ranking through legitimate, long-term efforts.

What Is Greyhat SEO?

Greyhat SEO refers to a set of practices that are considered to be in a grey area between what is considered “white hat” (ethical) and “black hat” (unethical) SEO. Search engines’ terms of service do not explicitly prohibit greyhat SEO techniques, but they may violate the spirit of the guidelines.

Examples of Greyhat SEO techniques include:

• Private blog networks (PBNs): the practice of creating a network of websites that are used to link to a website in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Article spinning: the practice of taking an existing article and making slight modifications to it in an attempt to create unique content
• Doorway pages: the practice of creating pages on a website that are optimised for specific keywords but are not meant to be seen by users and exist only to manipulate search engine rankings
• Link scheming: the practice of engaging in a variety of tactics to create links to a website in an attempt to manipulate search engine rankings
• Paid reviews: the practice of paying people to write positive reviews of a product or service in an attempt to influence search engine rankings.

Using these techniques can be risky, as they may not be in line with the search engine’s guidelines and may lead to penalties or even the banning of the website from search engine results. Greyhat SEO techniques can be effective in the short term, but they may need to be more sustainable in the long term, and the risks outweigh the benefits. It’s essential to stay within the guidelines and focus on building a website’s visibility and ranking through legitimate, long-term efforts.

What Is Whitehat SEO?

Whitehat SEO refers to a set of ethical practices that are used to optimise a website’s visibility and to rank in search engine results pages (SERPs) in a way that complies with the search engine’s terms of service. These practices are focused on providing a good user experience and creating high-quality, relevant content that is in line with the search engine’s guidelines.

Examples of whitehat SEO techniques include:

• Researching and targeting relevant keywords
• Creating high-quality, engaging content
• Optimising title tags and meta descriptions
• Incorporating header tags (H1, H2, H3) to organize content
• Optimising images with alt tags and file names
• Incorporating internal linking
• Optimising the website’s URL structure
• Utilising structured data (schema markup)
• Building high-quality, relevant backlinks from other websites
• Optimising social media presence
• Guest blogging
• Influencer marketing
• Brand mentions.

Whitehat SEO takes a long-term approach and focuses on creating a website that is valuable and relevant to users. These techniques can help to improve a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results and attract more relevant traffic to the website. The website will be more sustainable in the long term and less likely to be penalised by search engines.

What Is International SEO?

International SEO is the practice of optimising a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) for different countries and languages. This is particularly important for businesses that operate in multiple countries or that want to reach a global audience.

Several strategies can be used to improve a website’s international SEO:

• Creating country-specific versions of a website, also known as “ccTLDs” (country-code top-level domains) or subdomains
• Creating language-specific versions of a website, also known as “hreflang” tags
• Optimising the website’s content and meta tags for different countries and languages
• Building backlinks from relevant websites in other countries
• Utilising structured data (schema markup).

International SEO can be complex, as it involves optimising a website for different countries and languages and considering cultural and language differences. When done correctly, international SEO can help to improve a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results for different countries and languages and also increase the reach of a business to a global audience.

What Is eCommerce SEO?

E-commerce SEO refers to the practice of optimising an eCommerce website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) for relevant keywords and phrases. E-commerce SEO is similar to traditional SEO, but it has some specific considerations, such as product pages, categories, and other elements unique to eCommerce websites.

Here are some examples of eCommerce SEO:

• Optimising product pages with relevant title tags, meta descriptions, and product descriptions
• Utilising structured data (schema markup) to help search engines understand the content of a website
• Creating category pages that are optimised for relevant keywords
• Building backlinks from relevant websites
• Optimising images with alt tags and file names
• Utilising internal linking
• Creating a site search function
• Creating and optimising a blog
• Optimising the website’s URL structure
• Optimising the website’s speed.

E-commerce SEO can be challenging as it involves optimizing a large number of pages and products, and also it has to be in line with the search engine’s guidelines. However, when done correctly, eCommerce SEO can help to improve a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results and also increase the number of relevant visitors to the website, which can lead to more sales and revenue for the business.

What Is Content Strategy SEO?

Content strategy SEO refers to the practice of creating and optimising high-quality, relevant content that is in line with a website’s overall SEO strategy. It involves creating a plan for the types of content that will be published on a website, how it will be organised, and how it will be optimised for search engines.

Here are some examples of content strategy SEO:

• Researching and targeting relevant keywords
• Creating a content calendar
• Creating high-quality, engaging content
• Utilising internal linking
• Building backlinks from relevant websites
• Utilising structured data (schema markup)
• Optimising images with alt tags and file names
• Creating and optimising a blog
• Utilizing header tags (H1, H2, H3) to organize content
• Optimising meta tags and title tags.

A content strategy SEO plan can ensure that a website’s content is aligned with its overall SEO goals, and it also helps to keep the website fresh and relevant to both search engines and users. By creating and optimising high-quality, relevant content, businesses can improve their visibility and ranking in search engine results and attract more relevant traffic to their website.

What Is Mobile SEO?

Mobile SEO refers to the practice of optimising a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) for mobile devices. As more and more users access the internet through mobile devices, mobile SEO has become an increasingly important aspect of SEO.

Here are some examples of mobile SEO:

• Creating a mobile-friendly version of a website
• Utilising responsive design
• Optimising images and videos for mobile devices
• Utilizing structured data (schema markup)
• Optimising meta tags and title tags
• Improving page loading speed
• Utilising internal linking
• Building backlinks from relevant websites
• Creating mobile-friendly content.

Mobile SEO is important because search engines treat mobile devices differently than desktop devices. Websites not optimised for mobile devices may not rank as well in search results or may not be easily accessible to mobile users. By optimising a website for mobile devices, businesses can improve their visibility and ranking in search engine results and also provide a better user experience for mobile users.

What Is Negative SEO?

Negative SEO refers to the practice of using unethical techniques to try to lower a competitor’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). Negative SEO is considered a form of online sabotage, an attempt to harm a competitor’s website’s reputation and organic visibility in search engines.

Examples of Negative SEO techniques include:

• Building low-quality or spammy backlinks to a competitor’s website in an attempt to harm their search engine rankings
• Copying a competitor’s content to duplicate it and outrank them
• Hacking a competitor’s website in an attempt to damage their reputation or steal their content
• Creating fake reviews or social media posts to damage a competitor’s reputation.

Negative SEO can be very damaging to a business, and it is illegal. Search engines have ways to detect and penalise websites that engage in negative SEO techniques. It is essential to focus on building a website’s visibility and ranking through legitimate, long-term efforts and not to engage in any unethical or illegal activities.

 

SEO takes many paths for marketing, content creation and analytical metrics. If you need help with your website, please get in touch with me today and let me grow your online business.