Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of making sure that your website ranks as high as possible in search results. If you’ve ever completed an SEO campaign and seen good results, only to find a month later that your positions have dropped drastically, then this article is for you!
Many people believe that their site can be optimized once and then forgotten about. But this would be a mistake. Search engines are constantly updating their algorithms and search methods. And your competitors are likely engaging in their own SEO to top you.
This is why SEO should be thought of as a marathon, not a race. It is an ongoing process.
A solid SEO campaign is an ongoing process that continually adapts to changes in search engine algorithms, user behavior, and market dynamics. Ongoing SEO involves the continuous effort to optimize a website to maintain and improve its visibility and rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs).
This article explores the various components of ongoing SEO and why it is crucial for sustained online success. We'll cover a bit of each of the 5 Core Components of SEO.
Understanding Ongoing SEO
Ongoing SEO is the practice of continually updating and refining your website's content, structure, and technical elements to ensure it remains optimized for search engines and users. These practices involve all of the same facets as one-time SEO. However, unlike one-time SEO efforts, ongoing SEO acknowledges that achieving and maintaining high rankings requires persistent attention and adaptation.
Key Components of Ongoing SEO
1. Content Updates and Expansion
Regular Content Creation: Continuously adding new, relevant content to your website is vital. This can include blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, and other content forms. These should engage your audience and address their needs.
Content Refresh: Update existing content to ensure it remains accurate, relevant, and valuable. This might involve adding new information or links to an old blog. It might mean optimizing your page for new keywords. And it’s a great idea to improve readability, which can lead to higher engagement.
2. Technical SEO Maintenance
Monitor Site Performance: Regularly check your site speed, mobile responsiveness, and overall performance. This is imperative! Search engines favor fast, user-friendly websites. And so do users!
In fact, according to bloggingwizard.com, 7% of your users will leave your website (bounce) if your page takes just 1 second to load. And if it takes 3 second, your bounce rate wll increase to 32%. Check out their graphic below for more.
So you can see how important this is!
Fix Errors: Identify and fix all issues such as broken links, duplicate content, and crawl errors. Free tools like Google Search Console can help detect these issues. For a more thorough check, I highly recommend Screaming Frog’s SEO Spider.
3. Keyword Optimization
Having solid keywords on your site will be your best friend. But you have to know how to navigate the many opportunities available. Not all keywords are worthy of your time.
Keyword Research: Continuously conduct keyword research to identify new opportunities and trends. Check out your online (and local) competitors. Make note of what they rank for. Ask yourself: “how can I surpass their results?”
Keyword research also helps in updating content and targeting the most relevant search terms. Remember that some keywords aren’t going to be worth spending any time on. This could include keywords that you were previously ranking for.
On-Page Optimization: Regularly revisiting on-page elements like meta tags, headers, and image alt texts to ensure they are optimized for the latest keywords. That’s right! Your keywords should appear once in each of these locations!
4. Link Building
Earn Backlinks: Develop strategies to earn high-quality backlinks from reputable sites. This includes creating link-worthy content and engaging in outreach activities. Can you write a guest posting on another site to earn a backlink? Can you create something on your site that other people want to link to?
Monitor Existing Backlinks: Keeping an eye on your backlink profile to ensure the quality and relevance of the links pointing to your site. If you have low-quality, irrelevant backlinks, it may be worth reaching out to the linking authority to ask them to remove the link.
5. User Experience (UX) Enhancements
Design and Navigation: I can’t stress this one enough. Work to continuously improve the design and navigation of your site to ensure a seamless user experience. This includes simplifying navigation menus, enhancing readability, and making the site visually appealing.
Trends and styles change frequently. If your site is very old fashioned, it may turn many potential users away.
Engagement Metrics: Monitor user engagement metrics such as bounce rate, time on site, and pages per session. High engagement indicates that users find your site valuable. You can do this for free using Google Analytics.
6. Competitor Analysis
Keep an Eye on Competitors: Regularly analyze competitors' SEO strategies to identify strengths and weaknesses. This helps in refining your own approach and staying competitive.
Adapt to Market Changes: Adjusting your SEO strategy based on changes in the market, such as new competitors, shifting user preferences, and emerging trends.
Why Ongoing SEO is Essential
1. Algorithm Updates
Search engines frequently update their algorithms to improve the accuracy and relevance of search results. Ongoing SEO ensures that your site adapts to these changes and maintains its rankings.
2. Evolving User Behavior
User preferences and behaviors evolve over time. What worked a few months ago might not be effective today. Ongoing SEO helps you stay in tune with your audience's needs and preferences.
3. Sustained Visibility
The online landscape is highly competitive. Without ongoing SEO efforts, your site can quickly lose its visibility and rankings to competitors. Especially those competitors who continuously optimize their websites.
4. Maximizing ROI
SEO is an investment. Regularly optimizing your site ensures that you get the best return on investment (ROI). SEO helps by attracting organic traffic, generating leads, and driving conversions.
Conclusion
Ongoing SEO is a critical aspect of any successful digital marketing strategy. It involves continuous efforts to optimize your website's content, technical elements, and overall user experience.
By staying proactive and adapting to changes in search algorithms and user behavior, you can maintain and improve your site's visibility and rankings, ensuring sustained online success. Embrace ongoing SEO as a vital practice to keep your website competitive and relevant in the ever-evolving digital landscape.
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And if you prefer to let someone else handle your SEO needs, get in touch with Purple Cow today and see how we can help keep your site visible in search engines. For a comprehensive list of top Ohio SEO agencies, check out DesignRush.
