What is SEO?

SEO or optimization for search engines is a set of activities that we do in website design and coding, content strategy formulation, content creation and external link building in order to gain a better position in Google search results and attract more visitors to the site.

But the definition of SEO does not end there. SEO is an abbreviation of three words, Search Engine Optimization, which means site optimization for search engines. But today;

The concept of SEO has changed to Search Experience Optimization, which is equal to optimizing the user’s experience when searching

In other words; we must pay special attention to the user’s satisfaction with the result found in Google.

Many factors affect the SEO of the site and determining its position in the search results, from the words used in the text and content to the incoming links from other sites, as well as the standardization of the structure and coding of the site (technical) for search engines, it affects the improvement of the SEO of our site.

All these factors are valuable and effective when they are in line with the larger goal of improving the user experience.

Why is SEO important to us?

Billions of searches are done on Google every day, but the reason for the importance of SEO is not only the high number of searches.

With the arrival and ubiquity of mobile phones, internet search has become a reliable and accessible tool for finding answers to questions, deciding whether to buy a product, or even finding the nearest bakery. The results displayed to the user after the search play an important role in his recognition and decision making process.

By investing in SEO, we will have the chance to be introduced to the audience at the right moment; when he needs a product or service and looks for a suitable answer for it, he turns to his trusted friend, Google.

Trust of users; it is the trump card that has made Google such a big company in the world. The fact is that; we trust what is the result of our own search in Google more than the content that has reached us in the form of advertisements (banner, SMS, email, etc.).

Traditional businesses think that having a beautiful and powerful site is enough to enter the digital marketing space.

A beautiful and powerful website design is a good starting point for an internet business, but it is not a guarantee of success!

Imagine a clothing store that offers the best brands in the world at the lowest prices, but is located in a sparsely populated city, the basement of a deserted passage or a side street in a residential neighborhood. How does this store’s sales match the quality of the products it offers? It definitely cannot use all its potentials.

Just as the location of a physical store affects the number of visits and sales, it is important for an internet site to appear in the search results and gain a position in key terms, and to realize this, we need one thing; SEO

Why do search engines need SEO?

People who are new to SEO usually face logical questions that make it difficult to understand the importance of SEO and Google’s need for it. Questions like:

Isn’t Google using artificial intelligence? Bringing together thousands of elite engineers and working for years to improve algorithms and provide the best response to the user? So why is it still unable to recognize valuable content? Why should we follow SEO standards on our site to gain position?

Let’s not forget that; Google’s goal is not only to recognize the quality of the content and the validity of the site, but their ranking is also very important to display to the user.

The first page of search results offers users up to 10 sites, and any site that ranks higher will have a greater chance of attracting the user’s attention and increasing visits. As a result;

When we talk about SEO, we are facing a tough competition.

User experience; It is a keyword that Google puts a lot of emphasis on and this experience is not only dependent on the quality of the content. Several factors such as page display speed, readability and access to content, credibility of the site and the author, etc. can affect the user’s experience and satisfaction.

There are many sites and pages on the web that provide useful and useful content but never have a chance to be at the top of the search results! Because they did not pay attention to other aspects of SEO and wasted their efforts, as a result, competitors with weaker content get more visits and sales.

What are the most important stages of SEO?

SEO, or site optimization for search engines, is a competition in which success is a time-consuming, complex and continuous process. There are many techniques and methods to get a better position in Google results, each of which can have a positive impact in this process, but they have the necessary effectiveness when they are implemented in the right direction and with a specific goal. To be successful in the SEO of any site, we need 3 main arms, which are:

1- Technical SEO

Before starting activities related to content marketing, we will need a powerful platform and standard site.

Standardization of site coding, observance of SEO principles in user experience design, standard markup (Schema) for better understanding of the nature of the page by robots, optimization of site speed, correct display on mobile, and such things are called technical SEO.

2- Content marketing

Success in SEO is almost impossible without content. Of course, we don’t mean only textual content, but the image, video, audio and even the tools we provide on our site are effective in responding to the user’s needs and Google’s understanding of the quality of our content.

Activities including identifying valuable keywords, analyzing competitors, developing a content strategy, producing valuable content, tagging and categorizing topics, creating internal links, etc. can be considered an important part of the content marketing process.

3- Targeted linking

Continuous and purposeful activity in social networks, presence in specialized forums, receiving backlinks from reliable and related sites, buying advertisement reports from popular media, etc., are called Off-page SEO. Activities that occur outside of our site will directly affect our position and rank.

In the fields that deal with the physical and mental health of the society, economy, investment, law and judgment, civil laws and generally the destiny of a human being (Your Money Your Life); Content quality and technical SEO are not enough. Another factor called credibility, expertise and trust (E-A-T) will be important here. In fact, who published the content is even more important than the quality of the content.

In other areas such as service companies, online stores or news and entertainment magazines; Focusing on providing quality content in a standard platform can get us to the first page of Google results, but to get rank 1 and compete with your older sites, we need external linking for our site.

0- SEO strategy

Strategy means to determine what not to do! Before we design a site, produce content or even spend money to increase the credibility of our site, we must know what our main goal is to invest in SEO.

The key performance evaluation indicators (KPI) are different for every business, for example, for an online store, increasing sales and attracting new customers is the most important measure of success, but for a commercial company, the number of calls made to the consulting team per day. On the other hand, for an internet magazine or news site whose advertising is the most important source of income, the amount of daily visits and the time spent by users on the site is the most important performance evaluation indicator.

We must accept that a site cannot reach the 1st position in search results for all keywords.

Our goal in developing an SEO strategy is to define the red lines of our business so that we can focus our valuable time and capital on the terms and pages that create the most value for our business.

Black hat and white hat SEO

Using SEO techniques to satisfy customers and follow the standards introduced by Google to reach the top position in search results is called white hat SEO.

Simplicity, patience and honesty; There are three main features in white hat SEO

In contrast, trying to use the weakness of search engines and using techniques to deceive them is known as black hat SEO. In these methods, the least value and attention to user satisfaction and content quality is usually given. Of course, at least once a month, Google will identify these black hat techniques and punish the sites that have used this method.

Gray hat SEO refers to methods that are not in accordance with Google’s proposed standards, but it is not easy for Google robots to recognize them, so the possibility of site fines by Google is reduced and they can help the site grow.

A very important point is that there is a thin line between white, gray and black, and many of our activities that conform to Google’s standards are likely to become black methods!

for example; Generating useful and practical content is one of our best tools to improve the site’s SEO, but when we focus on user satisfaction and repeat keyword stuffing or unnecessarily prolonging the content, we have practically entered the gray border. If we go further and copy the content from other sites without creating new value, we have practically entered the black zone of SEO.

As a result, even content production, which is one of our most valuable activities in the field of SEO, has the potential to appear gray or black and cause us to lose our position in the search results.

For more information, we suggest you read the article 10 black hat SEO techniques introduced by Google and causing site penalties.

Who should do SEO for our site?

SEO is simple in concept and complex in execution. In fact, SEO is a series of diverse and continuous activities, the implementation of which requires both knowledge and experience. Deciding who will handle SEO for our site will depend on 3 main factors including budget, human resources and time.

Usually, internet businesses manage their website SEO in 4 different ways:

1- Learning and doing SEO by the business owner

In this way, the business owner himself learns SEO and spends an important part of his time and energy on this work. Startup businesses that still do not have enough funds and a clear organizational structure to invest in SEO usually use this method and change their strategy after achieving small successes and funding.

2- Outsourcing to a person or company

If a group understands the importance of SEO well and has enough budget to cover its costs; Outsourcing the project to a reputable person or company will be the most cost-effective way to succeed in SEO.

This work will relieve you from the worries related to recruiting and maintaining staff, providing facilities and working space, and most importantly, trial and error to achieve the desired result.

3- Formation of an internal SEO team in the company

Organizations and companies with more than 30 employees can create an internal team for digital marketing and SEO; Increase their speed of action and flexibility in making decisions and implementing marketing campaigns and progress in SEO.

This method will have much higher costs compared to outsourcing, but its strength is high efficiency and obtaining results in a shorter time.

4- Composition of internal team and professional consultant

For organizations with more than 100 employees who usually operate in competitive fields such as tourism, digital currency, etc., and SEO is considered an important channel in their marketing; Forming an internal team is not enough. Usually, these companies use professional consultants and diverse supervision to strengthen the team and make better decisions.

What is the best way to learn SEO?

If you decide to do SEO yourself or have a strong internal team; Learning SEO from a reputable authority and participating in specialized courses will be the best choice for you.

Self-taught SEO learning; it is complicated, time-consuming and expensive!

Usually, when you are looking to learn a specific point or topic, you come across an educational article in the field of SEO that provides you with detailed but limited information in the same field. By reading this article, you may be interested in SEO and look for more articles and tutorials.

Studying educational articles is valuable and useful, but it has a fundamental flaw; after a while, your mind will become confused and scattered. To prevent this from happening, we suggest that you look for comprehensive resources, educational books, and specialized courses after getting a basic understanding of SEO concepts. The best way to learn SEO is as follows:

1- Reading a basic book

There are many e-books that teach you the basic and general concepts of SEO. Reading the book will help you quickly get to know the common terms of this field and find the right way to start SEO.

2- Reading articles or watching specialized videos

After reading the book, you will get a basic familiarity with the concepts, but to use them, it is better to spend more time on each one and check specialized articles or educational videos related to that topic.

3- Participating in SEO training courses

When you have acquired relative knowledge and experience in the field of SEO, it is no longer logical to spend time on self-learning and reading articles. You can complete your knowledge in a short time by participating in specialized SEO training courses and learn many practical techniques.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to rank 1 in Google?

The answer to this question will be different for every business and site; Depending on the credibility and previous activities of your site, the words you have targeted and the status of competitors will be determined at this time. It may be possible to achieve important successes in 3 months in one area, but it may take more than a year in another area.

What is the price of SEO services?

SEO is not a product but a set of specialized services, therefore, a specific price cannot be considered for all sites. Of course, SEO services can be placed in different categories, including site optimization, content marketing, link building, etc., and a specific fee can be announced for each.

The first step is a detailed analysis of the site and a decision about the required services, based on which a correct estimate of the price can be provided.

What guarantee do you have to reach Google rank 1?

One of the most important requests of the employer is to provide a guarantee to reach the 1st rank in the target keywords, while this is completely wrong and even illegal. There is no guarantee to accurately determine your rank in a certain period of time, because there is no information about the next Google updates and the activity level of competitors. In fact, providing a guarantee to the employer increases the chance of accepting the project, but as Google itself has stated many times, this method is a type of fraud.