Organic SEO refers to the process of optimizing your site using various strategies like keyword research, link building, and content creation. This type of search engine optimization is effective for ranking higher on search engine’s organic listings. When you rank high on search engines, your site will be more likely to get noticed by users searching for keywords that you have optimized for on your site. Indeed, this is different from the very top listings on search engines, which are designated for paid listings that businesses bid for. Organic listings will always appear below the paid listings (usually labeled as “ads”). Now that we’ve discussed what organic SEO is, let’s take a closer look at how to optimize your site for organic listings.

How Do You Optimize Your Site for Organic Listings?

While there are various methods to slay your site optimization strategy, here are some five basic steps to get you started.

1. Perform Keyword Research

Performing keyword research is a crucial step, which will help you identify specific keywords that will help you rank on search engines. The key ingredient is to choose keywords that have high monthly volumes and low competition. Start by looking up your products and/or services on major search engines like Google and Bing. As you search, search engines will provide suggestions based on what other online users have looked up. This information can help you identify what people are interested in and how popular the keywords are.

As you research, consider looking at both short-tail and long-tail keywords. Short-tail keywords are more general like website design. This is a very general keyword phrase, which will be high in both monthly volume and cost per click. On the other hand, long-tail keywords are much more specific, such as Wilmington website design. This provides a specific location and product, which will have a lower monthly volume but hopefully high cost per click. This means you will have a greater chance of ranking well on search engines as the keyword’s competition is low. 

2. Create Awesome Content Based On Your Top Keywords

Now that you have identified some specific keywords for your site, the next tip is to create awesome content based on your top keywords. Since search engines consider site content when ranking, it’s important to produce high-quality, relevant content for your target audience on a regular basis. 

Here are some content ideas to consider:

  • Weekly blog posts that include your top keywords.
  • Long-form articles that add additional useful information about your brand’s products and/or services.
  • Social media posts that educate users about your niche market and show how you are different from your competition.

3. Add Awesome Images to Your Content

Just like content, images play a key role in helping your site rank well on search engines. Have you ever tried reading an online article or blog post without a single image? It’s boring, right? Today’s users appreciate and expect online content to be engaging, informative, and easy to read. By incorporating relevant visuals on your site, users will be more likely to enjoy their time on your site and read the content. If they like what they read, they may convert from visitors to customers or at least share the content with someone that may be interested in it. Furthermore, the longer users stay on your site, the better your site will rank on search engines. 

4. Optimize Your Site’s Loading Speeds

If your site’s loading speeds are longer than a few seconds, it doesn’t matter how amazing your site content is. Online users will not stay around long enough to check out your site. Studies show that over 53 percent of users leave a site that takes longer than 3 seconds to load. That is not a lot of time! 

How do you optimize your site so it loads faster? Consider these quick tips to boost your site’s page speeds:

  • Compress your site images: Use a free online tool to compress your images, while still maintaining their image quality.
  • Browser caching: Caching stores temporary files on a user’s local computer after their first visit to your site. When the user returns, they will enjoy a much faster loading speed as they will not need to wait for the site to download all the site’s resources for every visit.
  • Decrease the number of site redirects: While site redirects serve a purpose, it’s a good idea to limit the number of site redirects you have. The reason for this is that it can slow down your site’s loading speeds.
  • Choose a better quality hosting provider: The old saying, “You get what you pay for,” rings true in the website realm too. If your site is running slower than other sites, it’s possible that a high-quality hosting provider can help boost your site speeds. Cheap or free providers are appealing for the money saving opportunities, but if you are running a business, their inadequate servers can hinder your site from gaining new leads and business. 

5. Use Backlinks

When ranking your site, how others view your site’s reputation is a key factor. Your site can increase its reputation and trustworthiness by other established sites linking back to your site. A backlink refers to a link back to your site from another site. If other sites are well-known in your niche industry and are ranking well on search engines, having backlinks from their site will help increase your site’s organic SEO rankings too. 

To request backlinks, research similar sites that are in your niche market. If you find an article that looks promising, you can send the author an email requesting a backlink from their article to your site. It helps to include what you will offer them in return, such as a backlink from your site to one of their articles. This can lead to a positive digital partnership, such as doing guest posting, interviews, webinars, and more.

As you can see, organic SEO is an effective strategy for ranking on search engines. There is no guarantee that your site will rank as the top organic search results. However, these tips will help establish a solid foundation for your site to start ranking and getting noticed by your target audience. After all, the most important result of this strategy is that those that are seeking your brand’s products and/or services can discover them and hopefully will learn more about your company and expertise. If you are looking for a website partner that cares, look no further than Awesome Website Guys in Wilmington, NC.