Introduction to SEO
What does SEO mean ?
The notion of SEO (“Search Engine Optimization”) refers to all the actions implemented in order to obtain a better natural visibility on search engines. Aimed at optimising what is known as “natural referencing”, an SEO strategy does not include the purchase of advertising inserts, also known as SEA (“Search Engine Advertising”).
What is the point?
For companies, SEO offers a very clear advantage: improving the visibility of the website at low cost on search engines and the web awareness of their activity. For the self-employed, VSEs and SMEs, it is particularly local referencing, and especially on the search engine Google which holds 92% of the market share in France. It allows you to position yourself on localized expressions.
Natural referencing is the best way to improve your visibility on search engines. However, it is a medium and long-term strategy that requires time and energy.
10 tips for a good SEO strategy (onsite and offsite)
To improve your SEO, you need to adopt a well-oiled SEO strategy and respect a number of key principles:
1) Produce quality content
The content published on your site must not only provide quality information, but it must also be well written and unique. Duplicate content is detrimental to your search engine ranking. Regular publications will allow you to expand your content and improve your ranking.
2) Target the right keywords
For each page, you should focus on a main keyword and its associated semantic field. However, be careful to not place excessive keyword. Don’t forget that your content must be pleasant to read. Keep in mind that you are writing for Internet users !
3) Improve the technical performance of the site
A site that takes too long to load, pages that cannot be consulted by search engines, URLs that are too long, a site without a common thread… All these technical faults can harm the SEO of your website.
4) Think “responsive” and “mobile first”
This term refers to the ability of your website to adapt to various media (computer, smartphone and tablet). According to Médiamétrie data (2020 figures), 37.4 million French people have access to Internet every day with their mobile, compared to 22.6 million with a computer and 11.4 million with a tablet. 4 out of 10 Internet users only use their smartphone for internet.
5) Implement a netlinking strategy
This process consists of asking your partners, service providers or suppliers to link to your site from theirs. This allows you to improve the popularity and referencing of your site.
6) Security
Great content doesn’t feel authentic if your website isn’t seen as reliable. So to ensure secure access, use HTTPS encryption. This encryption allows you to protect the information that users may enter on your site.
7) Indexability
Indexability is a key factor in search engine optimization, allowing search engine crawlers to find your site.
8) User engagement
Apart from the “technical” optimisation of your site, you must first meet the needs of Internet users with engaging content. Google evaluates criteria such as click-through rate, time spent on the site (dwell time, bounce rate). Beware of over-optimisation with keywords ! As previously stated, you write for the user and so your site must be user-friendly!
9) Social Networks contribute greatly to natural referencing !
Being active on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Xing… is a great way to boost engagement. By integrating links to social networks, you can easily increase traffic to your website. This is a huge source for your SEO.
10) Respect the optimisation rules:
- Your company’s referencing starts with the integration of keywords in the main tags of the page (the title and subtitles, and the meta description in particular)
- Also include links between the different pages to improve the so-called “mesh” of the site. However, links should be relevant and used sparingly. To increase their visibility, use the keyword of the landing page rather than the phrase “Also read”.
- Remember to add photos (either your own or royalty-free). Don’t forget to rename them and give them a name related to your subject.
