SEO has been changing rapidly over the past couple of years and Google and other search engines are getting smarter. For 2015, it is important to stay on top of knowing what search engines want and how to optimize your quality of the content and overall experience of your site to better your business. Here are some of the SEO essentials for 2015:Search Engine Optimization - Magnifying Glass

Considering the goals of Search Engine companies is a good place to start when thinking about your SEO strategy. The two most important things to consider are making sure that your site has the best quality content for keywords relevant to your site and making sure that Google and other search engines are aware of this. Over the past few years, Google and other search engines have become smarter in understanding both website content and user experience.

Making sure your site is free of spam, malware, and other problems is crucial to making sure that your site is reputable. Excessive ads, pages filled with nothing but links, and any deceptive practices are signs that your site is not reputable. If you sign up for notifications in Google Webmaster tools they will tell you if they detect any issues on your site. The fastness of your site is also a huge factor in ensuring quality experience for your users. Studies have shown that just a one-second delay in page load time results in a 7% decline in sales. Alexa Site Audit is a tool that can help detect your sites slowest pages to make sure your performance is optimized. Alexa Site Audit also helps monitor your site for broken links.

It is also important to be aware of the “freshness factor” when it comes to the quality of your site. A site that hasn’t been updated in months or years is most likely lower quality. With out of date content, this also probably means the site hasn’t earned any new inbound links. Without fresh content on your site, search engines will most likely pass over your site for newer, more current content.

Quality content that is original, clearly written, and relevant is integral for your website and business overall. Making sure that your content is effective in making the connection between what people are searching for and the pages of your website is crucial. The pages of your site should be more focused on individual topics rather than individual keywords. But, choosing the right keywords for your content is one of the most important parts of SEO. When choosing keyword phrases for your content, it is important to keep track of which ones drive traffic to your site, which ones drive traffic to your competitors sites, and how often people search for certain keyword phrases. The Alexa keyword tool, which is part of the Alexa Advanced subscription, can help you find keywords driving traffic to your competitors’ sites.

SEO has grown tremendously over the past couple of years and Google and other search engines are getting smarter and smarter. Staying on top of the current changes and changes in SEO is crucial in deepening our understanding of how to use it to our advantage. I the world of internet marketing, SEO is the key to understanding our customers’ needs and making sure you’ve got it.