Complete Guide to the Basics and Types of SEO
Learn the fundamentals of SEO, its various types, how it works, and how it can enhance your website's online visibility and rankings in search engines.
Learn the fundamentals of SEO, its various types, how it works, and how it can enhance your website's online visibility and rankings in search engines.
Learn what SEO is and understand how it works, and explore the different types from on-page to technical SEO, so you can start boosting your website’s visibility today.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) means making your website more visible to people searching for specific products or services. When someone types a query into the search engine’s search box, SEO helps to determine whether your website appears on the first page of search results or not.
SEO is not keyword stuffing. It is a mix of technical setup, quality content, and authority signals. All of those together send the following signal to search engines: "This page is relevant and useful."
To put it simply, SEO helps search engines to better understand your site so they can show it to the right person at the right time.
You may be thinking, Why SEO is so important? Today, you might have noticed many businesses adapting SEO practices in their business strategy. Businesses have started to realize the positive impact of SEO on business visibility, sales, traffic, and conversions. So, SEO has become very important since:
Over 90% of all search queries begin with a search engine like Google..
Organic search is worth more than social media or ads.
The top page of search results gets over 70% of all clicks.
That's why SEO is important.
Even excellent content gets overlooked with the wrong SEO. But excellent SEO makes your site more visible, more credible, and more regularly visited. And unlike ads, SEO provides long-term benefits without ongoing cost.
Therefore, irrespective of whether you have a blog, company website, or online shop, SEO investment is very important for long-term success.
There are mainly three types of SEO. Knowing them tells you what you should do to do better. To use a good SEO strategy, you need to familiarize yourself with its three types: On-page SEO, Off-page SEO, and Technical SEO.
Figure: Types of SEO
On-page SEO means optimizing everything within your site. This includes the site content, site structure, titles, description, and other on-page elements. It includes:
Keywords are the words and phrases people type into search engines. For example:
If someone searches “seo company in Nepal,” that’s a keyword. And keyword research is the process of finding relevant keywords that you want to rank for and analyzing their search volume and ranking. So to do so, you need ot first figure out what your readers are searching for. You can use the following keyword research tools to conduct your research.
Google Keyword Planner
Ubersuggest
Ahrefs
SEMrush
Identify keywords with high volume and low to moderate competition. Then, implement them naturally within your content, but do not stuff them.
Meta Title is the blue title text that you see on the result page when you search for certain queries. People and search engines read this first. So it is better to make it SEO friendly.
Figure: Meta Title and Meta Description
Meta title should always be:
Descriptive
The length of meta title character must be 50 to 60 characters.
With the target keyword
With an engaging hook
Example:
"10 Powerful On-page SEO Tips for Beginners"
This is the brief description that appears below your meta title in search results. An effective meta description raises click-through rates and engagement. So it is better to keep it under 150 to 160 characters and include the target keyword.
A URL is your page address. A URL structure means how a website’s URLs are organized and formatted. A clean and well-structured URL helps search engines understand the content of a page and improves user experience. An SEO-friendly URL includes relevant keywords, uses hyphens to separate words, and is short and descriptive. An optimized URL doesn’t use unnecessary parameters or special characters.
Header tags help create structure for the content of a webpage for both users and search engines. Generally, H1 is for the main title of the webpage, H2 for secondary headings and so on. When properly applied header tags improve the readability of a page and help search engines understand what is more important, where the headings are, and the keywords applicable to the entire page.
Internal linking is the process of linking one page of your website to another page on the same website. It helps to guide users to related content on a page and keeps them engaged longer. It also allows search engines to crawl and index the website more effectively and pass on link equity between pages as well.
Off-page SEO is all the optimization work you do away from your own website in an effort to improve your search engine rankings. In comparison to on-page SEO, which is typically focused on optimizing your content and site structure, off-page SEO is focused on building authority, credibility, and trust with your users and search engines.
Think of it like your website’s reputation in the digital world. The more trust your users and search engines have in your site, the greater the chance you have to rank higher on search engines.
Let’s discuss the key elements of off-page SEO
Backlinks are external sites linking back to your website. It is also called inbound links. They are extremely important to use for SEO since they are similar to "votes of confidence." If an authoritative site links back to your content, it will tell the search engines that your page is credible, authoritative, and relevant.
Figure: Backlink
But all backlinks are not created equal. Some of them are high-quality, while others are low-quality. So, it is advisable to focus on acquiring high-quality backlinks to raise your authority.
This is all about creating and posting content that is so valuable, so engaging, or so unique that people will be inclined to pass it on or reference it. The most popular types of content marketing formats are:
Blog posts: Comprehensive guides, how-to, and tutorials
Infographics: Visual data storytelling and easy to share
Case studies: Real-life results that can prove that your product or method works
Videos: Explainers, demonstrations, or entertainment that educates
The better your content is, the more likely it is to earn backlinks. So, focus on quality content that addresses user queries and provides value to them.
Guest posting is the process of writing articles for other websites in your niche. And in exchange, you will receive a link back to your site, typically from either your bio as the author or from within the body of the content.
It is a win-win scenario to build trust and authority in search engines.
Technical SEO is about optimizing your website to make it easier for search engine crawlers to find your website, understand it, and store your content. It relates to the backend structure and setup of your site. Although it is not what users see, it is what search engines see, and is crucial.
Let’s break down the main factors of technical SEO that you need to know:
Crawlability is about how easily the search engine bots (also called crawlers or spiders) can crawl your website’s pages.
The bots use links to move from one page to another. So, optimizing for technical SEO means making it easier for web crawlers to find your website content. You can control which pages should be crawled and which should not be crawled. If some of your pages are “hidden” due to broken links, noindex tags, or disallowed in the robots.txt file, they will not be crawled, and therefore, they will not be ranked.
After being crawled, the next step is indexing. This refers to Google putting the content into their database so that they can show it in search results whenever a user searches for relevant queries..
However, not every page should be indexed in search engines. For eg, Thank-you pages, admin logins, and duplicate content shouldn't be indexed in search. For that, we can use meta robots tags, robots.txt, or set up canonicals.
Site speed means the time it takes your website to load when someone clicks on it. It is one of the most important factors of Technical SEO.
Figure: Website Loading Speed (Page Speed Insights)
If your site is slow, visitors won’t stay. For most people, they expect a website to load in under 3 seconds. If it takes longer than that, they usually leave and find a competitor. This is what “bouncing” is, and it is bad for your rankings.
Google also measures page speed as a ranking factor when it calculates rankings, especially for mobile users. This means that the faster websites will typically rank higher in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
An XML Sitemap is like a map of your website that you create purposely for search engines.
It provides a list of important pages of your site so that Google (and other search engines) can find, discover, and understand your site content more easily.
If you think of your website as a shopping mall. Your XML Sitemap is like the directory at the entrance to the mall or where each store (page) is located.
SEO can seem like a mystery, but when you realize how it all fits together, it makes a lot more sense. Try to think of SEO as a collection of practices that allow your website to get crawled by search engines like Google, so your stuff shows up when people are searching for things related to your business.
Let's break it down step by step.
Before studying SEO, you must study search engines and how they work. Google and other search engines use special bots (also called spiders or crawlers) to surf the web and collect data on web pages. The bots surf from link to link, jump from page to page, and collect data on what they find.
Here's what they do:
Crawl: Discover new and revised pages.
Index: Place the information they've found in a massive database.
Rank: Decide on which pages will be most useful for any given search and list them in order of utility.
The more web page content and design information your website has, the quicker it will be crawled and ranked correctly by the search engines.
Now that we know how search engines work, the next thing is to find out how people search on the internet. This is where keyword research comes in. It's a question of finding out what your audience is typing into search bars.
You'll want to:
Discover relevant keywords and search terms.
Analyze your competitors to see which keywords they are ranking for.
Check trends and search volume using tools like Google Trends, Ubersuggest, or Ahrefs.
This phase of research lays the groundwork for everything that follows. It tells you what to write about and what issues you need to cover.
Once you’ve got the data, it’s time to turn it into a game plan. Your SEO strategy is like a roadmap that guides all your optimization efforts. This includes choosing your primary and secondary keywords, planning content topics, and setting clear goals for traffic, engagement, and conversions.
Key elements of a solid SEO strategy:
In-depth SEO audit
Prioritize both short-tail and long-tail keywords.
Plan link-building opportunities
Plan content that aligns with different stages of the buyer’s journey.
Add technical SEO enhancements(e.g., improving site speed or mobile-friendliness).
A good plan also includes timelines, so that you can track your progress over time.
Here’s where the real action happens. It's the stage where you implement your SEO strategy and optimize your website.
Some of the key tasks involve:
On-page SEO: Rewriting title tags, meta descriptions, and heading structures; making sure your content has keywords naturally.
Technical SEO: Making your website load quickly, work on mobile, and use HTTPS
Off-page SEO: Building backlinks from other websites to improve your domain authority.
You don't need to be a tech genius in order to implement SEO, but using the right tools (and occasionally some professional help) can get you a long, long way.
SEO is not a "set it and forget it" strategy. It's a process that needs to be maintained constantly. You're going to need to keep an eye on how your pages are performing and observe them regularly.
What should you be watching?
Website traffic: Are more people visiting your website?
Keyword rankings: Are you moving up in search rankings?
Bounce rate and time on page: Are people engaging with your content?
Website Friendliness: Does your website load quickly and is user-friendly?
Google Analytics and Google Search Console are excellent (and free) tools to help you track these metrics.
The final step is analyzing the data you've collected. What's working? What's not? Are you achieving your goals?
Regular SEO reporting enables you to:
Refine your strategy based on real-world results.
Know what type of content your audience loves.
Explain the ROI of your SEO efforts to stakeholders or clients.
Keep track of your SEO effectiveness.
Be it through quarterly analysis or monthly SEO reporting, reporting and analysis ensure your SEO is sharp and effective.
Investment in SEO is not just to get on top of Google, it is to build a strong, long-term online presence. Let us look at the ways SEO benefits your business.
Figure: Benefits of SEO
Every day, billions of searches are made on Google. SEO helps ensure your business shows up in those results. When your site appears on the first page, you’re more likely to be discovered by users actively looking for your product or service.
With better visibility:
You attract more clicks and visits.
You drive more targeted traffic.
You build awareness without paying for ads.
Paid advertisements are excellent for instant visibility, but they're costly, and as soon as you stop paying, your visibility disappears. SEO, however, provides long-term value.
Here's how it's more cost-effective:
Your content continues to draw in visitors well after your site is optimized.
After ranking, a page can bring in traffic 24/7.
There is no cost per click (CPC).
Though there's an initial investment in content creation and optimization, the long-term ROI is usually considerably greater than PPC campaigns.
When individuals see your brand name repeatedly showing up in search results, trust is automatically built. Over time, this brand awareness is translated into brand equity. People begin to recognize and remember your business.
Consistent rankings communicate to individuals that your website is an authority and a reliable source within your industry.
SEO levels the playing field. Small businesses can rank above big businesses if they are smart about it. If you invest in quality content, optimize your site, and build backlinks, you can compete and even surpass bigger competition in your niche.
A solid SEO strategy means:
You outrank competitors in search results.
You offer a better user experience, which improves engagement.
You adapt quickly to trends and algorithm changes.
If you have a local business, SEO enables you to obtain customers within your area. Local SEO makes your business appear in local search, especially those "near me" searches.
This means more people will:
Visit your store after finding you online.
Read reviews and trust your business.
Choose you over other competitors who have not optimized for local search.
Tools like Google Business Profile and local citations (like Yelp, TripAdvisor, etc.) play a crucial role in driving that real-life traffic.
If you want to learn the basics of SEO and be familiar with it, you’re on the right path! Getting started doesn’t require a high degree or a tech background. It just requires a willingness to learn and a bit of patience.
Here’s a simple roadmap to begin your SEO journey:
1. Learn the Basics: Know how pages are ranked by search engines and what SEO is all about. Google's SEO Starter Guide or Moz's Beginner's Guide to SEO are good places to start.
2. Do Keyword Research: Know what your users type in using tools like Ubersuggest, Ahrefs, or Google Keyword Planner.
3. Create Quality Content: Create helpful, useful, keyword-composed content that answers real user questions.
4. Optimize Your Site: Improve page load speed, fix broken links, and make sure that your site is mobile responsive and easy to navigate.
5. Start Building Links: Request guest post opportunities, collaborate with bloggers, or add your company to relevant directories.
6. Monitor Your Progress: Use tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to monitor your traffic and performance over time.
Just remember: SEO is a never-ending process. It's not a one-time fix solution. The more you refine and improve your strategy, the better your results will be.
If you don't have time or a team to manage your SEO, then we are here to help you build your online presence with data-driven SEO solutions.
At Abstract Infosys, we provide expert, performance-based SEO services designed to match your business goals. If you're starting from the ground up or want to enhance your existing approach, our experts can help with:
Increasing organic traffic
Improving rankings on the search engines
Generating improved quality leads
Increasing your business's online presence
Making your website user-friendly
We bring proven tactics, complete analytics, personalized support, and transparent reporting to build real results that grow alongside your business.
Let's discuss your project! Contact us and let's see what smart SEO can do for your brand.
1. What is indexing in SEO?
Indexing is the technique whereby search engines such as Google save and index your site's content after crawling it. Indexed pages only can show in search results. You can verify and ask for indexing in Google Search Console.
2. What is sitemap in SEO?
A sitemap is an XML file listing all your site's pages. It alerts search engines to your site's structure and enables them to index your new content faster. Sitemap submission via Google Search Console may speed up indexing.
3. How long should a meta title be?
The ideal length for a meta title should be 50 to 60 characters. This ensures your title appears in full on search results without being cut off, but still communicates the primary subject of the page and keywords.
4. What is the ideal length for a meta description?
The ideal length for a meta description is 150 to 160 characters. This provides enough space to briefly summarize the content of the page while maintaining maximum visibility within search snippets.
5. What are SEO keywords?
SEO keywords are the words and phrases that people type in search engines to find content. Using keywords relating to your content within your content allows search engines to identify that your page is about something and rank your page for that search. Example: If someone types "best seo company in Nepal," that search term is an SEO keyword.
6. What are the 3 main types of SEO?
The three main types of SEO are: On-Page SEO: search engine optimization of individual web pages (content, titles, keywords). Off-Page SEO: building authority through backlinks and social signals. Technical SEO: optimizing the site's backend architecture for better crawling and indexing.