Creating a Balanced SEO Strategy for Maximum Return

SEO aims to increase the quantity and quality of traffic to a website from search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. SEO is constantly evolving because search engines are always updating their algorithms to provide better user results. SEO experts must stay current with these changes to be effective for their clients. It's also essential to take a balanced approach with your tactics. But why? And how? What goes into it?  

First off, a balanced SEO strategy is essential for many reasons. Creating the right balance involves different tactics to help ensure that your website is optimized for both search engines and users, resulting in a better user experience, increased visibility in search engine results, and sustainable growth over time.

This blog will cover the most critical elements in creating a balanced SEO strategy. (Spoiler alert: it's a lot, it's constantly changing, and honestly, you should skip to the part where you call us, but if you want to read on, we'll still be here.)

1. Keywords

How to Identify Keywords for SEO

Keywords are specific words or phrases that describe the content of a webpage. Search engines use them to understand the topic of a webpage and match it with relevant search queries. It's essential to keep both topical and geographic relevance in mind when selecting keywords, especially if you are a local business. However, it's also crucial to consider the search intent behind a specific word or phrase. The intention behind a search can vary, such as: 

  • Navigational intent: where the user wants to find a particular page or site
  • Informational intent: where the user wants to find an answer to a specific question
  • Commercial intent: where the user wants to research brands or services
  • Transactional intent: where the user wants to complete an action

Keywords matter to SEO (search engine optimization) because they help search engines understand the topic of a webpage and match it with relevant search queries. When a webpage includes relevant keywords, it is more likely to rank higher in search engine results, leading to more website traffic. Additionally, including relevant keywords in the content, meta tags, and other elements of a webpage can help search engines understand the context and relevance of the content. There are several ways to identify keywords for SEO:

  • Use keyword research tools: There are several free and paid keyword research tools available such as Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Keywords Everywhere, that can help you identify keywords relevant to your business or industry. These tools allow you to see search volume, competition level, and other metrics that can help you determine which keywords are the most valuable for your SEO efforts.
  • Analyze your competitors: You can also identify keywords by analyzing your competitors' websites' content and meta tags to give you an idea of the keywords they are targeting and help you develop similar or related keywords.
  • Look at search suggestions: When you start typing a query in a search engine, it will often suggest a list of related keywords. These suggestions give you an idea of what people are searching for concerning your topic.
  • Use Google Analytics: Reviewing the organic search traffic data on your website using tools like Google Analytics can help you identify the keywords people are using to find your website.
  • Ask your customers: Ask your customers what they would search for when looking for a product or service like yours. Customers can give you valuable insight into the language they use and the questions they have.

Once you have identified a list of keywords, you should prioritize them based on relevance, search volume, and competition level. Then, you can start incorporating them into your website's content, meta tags, and URLs.  

2. Technical SEO

The Importance of Technical SEO

Technical SEO refers to the optimization of the technical aspects of a website that can affect its ability to be indexed and rank well in search engines. It includes things like website structure, server configurations, and code optimization. To balance technical SEO with other aspects of SEO, you can:

  1. Make sure your website is easily crawlable by search engines using a clean and logical structure, providing a sitemap, and using proper header tags.
  2. Optimize website speed and mobile responsiveness; this will ensure that your website loads quickly and is accessible on all devices.
  3. Use structured data and schema markup to help search engines understand the content on your website.
  4. Use a secure socket layer (SSL) certificate to encrypt data on your website and protect user information.
  5. Use proper redirects and avoid broken links to help search engines understand the structure of your website and make sure users are directed to the correct pages.

3. User Experience

UX Matters

The overall user experience (UX) is also a key component of technical SEO, and some important factors include:

  • Site security: your site should meet standard security criteria
  • Page speed: faster pages are ranked higher because they provide a better UX
  • Mobile friendliness: how does your content perform on a mobile device; is it easily consumable?
  • Ease of use: your site structure should be easy to follow, and users should be able to find everything quickly

4. Domain Authority

It's essential to keep in mind that while technical SEO is important, it should be balanced with other elements such as quality content, backlinks, and user experience. Collectively, these elements contribute to the site's domain authority.

Domain authority (DA) is a metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on search engine result pages (SERPs). It's a logarithmic scale from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating a greater ability to rank. It considers a wide range of factors, including the number and quality of backlinks, the content on the website, structure, and other technical SEO factors. 

How to Increase Domain Authority Scores

A website with a high domain authority is likelier to rank well for relevant keywords than a website with a low domain authority. It's important to remember that Domain Authority is not a metric used by search engines and is not a direct ranking factor. Still, it's a great tool to measure the relative strength of a website or webpage compared to others. There are several ways to increase your domain authority, including:

  1. Building high-quality backlinks: Having other reputable websites link to your website can improve your domain authority.
  2. Creating high-quality content: Search engines will favor websites that consistently produce relevant, high-quality content, which can lead to an increase in domain authority.
  3. Optimizing your website: Make sure your website is easy to navigate, loads quickly and is mobile-friendly.
  4. Promoting your website: Use social media, email, and other channels to promote your website and attract visitors.
  5. Building brand awareness: Building a solid brand and promoting it consistently can increase your domain authority over time.
  6. Building internal links: Creating links between pages on your website can help search engines understand the structure of your site and improve its authority.

It's essential to keep in mind that building domain authority takes time and hard work. It cannot be done overnight, but consistent effort over time will bring results.

5. Relevance

Is Your Site Relevant?

Relevance in SEO refers to how well a website's content matches the intent behind a user's search query. A website's relevance to a search query is determined by its content, keywords, and other on-page elements. Relevance is important because search engines aim to provide users with the most relevant and useful information possible. When a website's content is highly relevant to a user's search query, it is more likely to rank higher in search engine results, leading to more website traffic. Additionally, a website with relevant content is more likely to satisfy the user's information needs, leading to higher engagement and longer dwell time on the website.

6. DIY or Hire an Expert?

Big Benefits of Hiring an Agency for SEO (We're Available)

  1. Expertise: Serendipit's experts are well-versed in the latest SEO strategies, tactics, and best practices. We can help you identify the tactics that will work best for your website and implement them effectively.
  2. Time-saving: SEO is a time-consuming process that requires ongoing efforts. Hiring an agency like Serendipit frees up your time and allows you to focus on other aspects of your business.
  3. Resources: Agencies have access to tools and resources that can help with keyword research, tracking and analyzing data, and identifying technical issues.
  4. Objectivity: An agency can provide an objective viewpoint and help identify areas of your website that may hinder your SEO efforts.
  5. Reporting and Analytics: Agencies can track and measure the progress of your SEO campaigns and provide detailed reports on the performance and ROI.
  6. Flexibility: An agency can adjust its approach based on the changes in search engine algorithms and provide the necessary adjustments to your SEO strategy.
  7. Continuity: An agency can ensure continuity in your SEO efforts even if your internal team members change or move on from the company.

Make your site an SEO superstar!

See? We told you it was a lot. Hiring an agency for SEO provides expertise, saves time and resources, and includes objectivity, reporting, analytics, flexibility, and continuity. All these things can help improve your website's visibility and search engine ranking, ultimately leading to more traffic and revenue for your business. Ready to get started? Get in touch today!

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