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2024 SEO Guide: SEO For Beginners

No matter where you are in your SEO journey, everyone can benefit from brushing up on the basics and catching up on the latest tips, tools and Google updates. The Blue Compass SEO Guide is designed to cater to beginners, seasoned marketers and everyone in between.

SEO Basics Local SEO Strategy SEO Resources

Learn How To Do SEO Better For Your Website With Our SEO Guide

There’s a lot that goes into SEO—in fact, there are over 300 ranking factors from Google. Knowing the ins and outs of how to do SEO well is a lot to ask of busy business owners and one-man marketing teams who wear a lot of hats and don’t spend their days in search engines, keyword research tools and reading up on the latest Google updates. Luckily for you, staying up to date on the latest trends in digital marketing is literally our job—and although we like to have fun at Blue Compass, we also take our jobs very seriously.

Whether you’re looking to dive deeper into a specific topic like schema markup or just need the SEO basics, you’ve found the right place. SEO is at the heart of everything we do at Blue Compass, laying the foundation for a successful website and digital marketing strategy. With hundreds of blogs penned by our digital experts and countless hours dedicated to improving the SEO value of our clients’ websites, it was only a matter of time before we developed our very own SEO guide.

Explore Blue Compass’ 2024 SEO Guide for our best kept SEO secrets, the SEO website mistakes to avoid, copywriting tips and more to conquer the digital landscape. Ready? Let’s go!

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Chapter OneSEO Basics
Chapter TwoSEO for Copywriting
Chapter ThreeInternal Linking
Chapter FourLocal SEO
Chapter FiveWeb Design & SEO
Chapter SixSchema Markup
Chapter SevenInternational SEO
Chapter EightGoogle Update

Get Started With SEO Basics

If you’re new to the world of digital marketing, we’ll start with the basics. Search engine optimization (SEO) refers to efforts and tactics utilized to ensure a website shows up when a user types in a relevant query into the search bar. At its core, SEO is simply structuring your website for search engines to understand, while remaining natural, engaging and user-friendly.

What makes a website natural, engaging and user-friendly?

Great question—we’re glad you asked. A common misconception we hear about SEO is that it’s just a way to bring free traffic to your website. That logic isn’t incorrect, but it’s also not the whole story. The free, organic traffic is a byproduct of a properly implemented SEO strategy. Proper SEO considers your desired audience, what they’re searching for and how they’re searching for it. When you shift your mindset to optimize content to be valuable for these users, only then will you get those coveted, highly engaged visitors. Now that we understand the purpose of SEO, let’s dive in a little deeper.

SEO Basics: 4 Facets Of Search Engine Optimization

For the SEO beginners tuning in, there are four overarching facets of SEO:

On-Page
Off-Page
Technical
Errors and Violations

On-page SEO focuses on the content and elements on the actual page (we know, mind-blowing). Keywords, heading tags and meta information are all factors in on-page SEO. In short, on-page SEO covers the things you can easily control and see.

Off-page SEO refers to your backlinks: who is linking to your website, are they trustworthy, are they authoritative? This plays a key role in your domain authority (which we’ll dig into in Chapter 3), so it’s important to monitor your backlinks routinely.

Technical SEO is made up of things users cannot see: the code behind your website. This includes canonical tags, SSL protocols, schema markup for SEO and more—a lot of complex elements that work together to make your website easier for search engines to crawl and understand. The easier your website is to crawl, the more likely it is to show up in relevant Google search results.

Errors and violations are exactly what they sound like. Think of SEO errors as hurdles that make it more difficult for search engines to crawl your website. Errors can be as simple as missing information or as complex as invalid schema markup. SEO errors and violations are often preventable and always correctable! Check out our technical SEO audit checklist for error correction tips.

Now that we’ve laid the foundation with the SEO basics, it’s time to build your knowledge in key areas ranging from content to your website design and much more.

SEO For Copywriting Tips To Enhance Content

“Content is king.” We hear it all the time and although there is certainly immeasurable power in content, not all content is created equal. You could publish 100 blogs tomorrow, but that doesn’t mean your website will begin dominating search results. There are millions of existing blogs on the internet that your new blog would be competing against, so having “more” does not necessarily equate to higher search rankings.

So what can make your blog stand out amongst a sea of content? The answer isn’t keyword stuffing or hiding text on a webpage, both black hat SEO tactics that can result in negative rankings. Search engine optimized content is the answer to more visibility and traffic to your site. Incorporating SEO principles and best practices into your copywriting will turn your content from average to excellent in the eyes of users and search engines alike.

To truly harness the power of SEO through copywriting, there are three key considerations: the audience, their language and the search engine.

The Audience

One of the most important things to consider when writing content is the audience you are writing for! It’s a shame to spend time crafting a content piece if in the end there’s no one to read it. When getting started with SEO for copywriting, take the time to understand what questions your audience might have or what problems of theirs you could solve in order to make your content valuable to the end user. By making the experience about the reader, you’re following user experience (UX) and SEO basics and the user will have an easier time connecting with the content.

The Audience’s Language

Incorporating the most relevant keywords is essential to SEO and ensuring your content appears in front of your target users. Knowing the type of verbiage and phrases that your audience is using will help you not only show up at the top of search results, but it will also help you better relate to your following.

To better understand your audience’s language and incorporate SEO into your copywriting, we recommend starting with thorough keyword research. While our search engine optimization experts typically recommend paid tools for the best results, there are free keyword research tools available as well. A few common keyword research tools used in the industry include:

SEMrush (paid)
SE Ranking (paid)
Moz Keyword Explorer (paid)
Google Trends (free)
Google Keyword Planner (free in Google Ads platform)

The Search Engine

Although you are writing with your target audience in mind, the purpose of SEO for copywriting is to craft content that is also favorable to search engines so you’ll rank well. While performing keyword research, we recommend examining what is already ranking high in search results. Google search is always a great tool to verify what types of resources and formats the search engine prefers and can reveal the intent behind certain search terms.

When developing your content outline, consider these copywriting for SEO basics to make your content even more favorable to search engines:

Keyword density: Include each of your keywords multiple times within headings and throughout the body copy. Remember to sound natural and avoid keyword stuffing your page!
Word count: To provide a valuable piece of content, we recommend a minimum of 600 words. However, lengthier blog posts and pillar pieces can be upwards of 2,000 words.
Heading tags: Utilize heading tags to structure your page and break up content to make it more digestible to the reader. A common mistake we see with websites is heading tags in an improper order. This is often due to the publisher preferring one heading tag style over another. Heading tags’ primary purpose is to help search engine bots quickly scan web pages to understand the content. To ensure proper heading tag structure, choose the heading tag based on hierarchy, not styling.
Meta information: Always include a unique meta title and meta description for each page on your website. These should be keyword-rich and highlight the main idea of the page.
Schema: An advanced SEO technique, schema translates the most vital pieces of information on your page into a code easily understood by search engines. Although not a requirement, schema markup makes your website easier and quicker for search engine bots to crawl, therefore improving your site’s ability to rank in search.

With these core SEO copywriting tenets in mind, you’ll be on your way to creating a killer piece of content that is valuable to both users and search engines! If you’re interested in learning more about how content interacts with search engines, explore our in-depth SEO for copywriting best practices.

What Are Internal Linking And Backlinking And Why Does It Matter?

Internal linking and external linking (also referred to as backlinking) are two distinct, but important, aspects to include in your SEO strategy. While SEO-friendly content is crucial for attracting users to your site, internal linking helps Google to better understand the structure of your website and keeps users clicking around to different pages. Each page on your website provides an opportunity to direct users toward a related blog or service, which ultimately keeps users on your site and encourages them to come back for more.

Why Are Internal Links Important For SEO?

Adding internal links into your content helps users understand how your various products and services connect. Google also uses internal links to determine how content across your website is related for increased ranking opportunities. Utilizing internal linking to develop a full brand identity is an easy way to build your site’s authority in the eyes of Google and establish goodwill for your future customers who appreciate a brand’s ability to anticipate their needs.

Just as links within your site can increase SEO value, links to a site are also used to judge a site’s authority. The more high-quality links to a website, the higher the domain authority that brand holds in search results. For example, 100 reputable reviews and news articles linking to a local business will boost that brand’s domain authority, and similarly, five links from national publications such as Forbes will produce comparable SEO value.

How Do You Identify Domain Authority?

The simplest way to identify your domain authority is through Moz—they carry the most respected metric for domain authority. A score of 1-100 determines a site’s authority (sites like Google and LinkedIn carry close to 100). With Moz’s Domain Authority Checker anyone can search for domain authority and backlink information on a limited number of sites per day.

The easier you can make your website appear to Google, the better your ranking opportunities will be. However, developing a strong internal and external linking strategy requires time and patience for your hard work to pay off. If you’re not sure where to start with your link building strategy, reach out to our digital marketing experts today!

Local SEO Strategies & How To Get Found In Search

Picture this: you’re trying to decide what to eat for dinner, so you hop onto Google and type “best restaurants near me.” The top of your search results shows a map with three options, one of which catches your eye, so you click to their website to place your takeout order. Were those three restaurants truly the best restaurants near you? Maybe, maybe not. What we can say about those three restaurants is they likely have the strongest local SEO strategies and web presence relevant to your search query and location.

Over the years, SEO tactics and strategies have evolved with a rotation of hot topics, up-and-coming tools and improved methods. However, few have dominated the conversation like local SEO and local search. So, what is local SEO exactly? Local SEO is a search engine optimization strategy that can help your business gain more visibility on Google for local search queries. For example, when a user searches for the types of services or products you offer in their geographic area—or “best restaurants near me”—local SEO helps your business outrank other local competitors on Google.

The integration of Google Maps into everyday search and the growing popularity of “near me” queries has increased the need for businesses to create and execute local SEO strategies outside of their normal SEO tactics. It’s all about immediate relevance and how to best address a customer’s wants on-demand. In its simplest form, local SEO comes down to claiming where your business is located and providing basic information about your business to the search engine, and thus, the customer. (Think name, address, phone number, hours of operation, etc.) While this is a super simplified explanation of local SEO, it is the basis of establishing an online presence in local search.

The more information you share about your business the better, and the easiest place to share that information is via Google Business Profile (GBP).

What Is A Local Business Profile In SEO?

Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business) houses your online business listing, acting as an online profile for your business entity. Staying active on your Google Business Profile listing, utilizing all available features and functionality and responding to Google reviews are key for ranking locally and garnering new business.

How critical is maintaining a Google Business Profile to a successful local SEO strategy? According to a recent study by Milestone Research, local and organic searches collectively account for 69% of overall digital traffic. A separate study by Backlinko found that 42% of local searches involve clicks on the Google Map Pack.

Although important, your Google Business Profile is ultimately just one piece of the local SEO puzzle. For your website to truly crush local search rankings, it’s crucial to consider other factors including online directories, on-page SEO and schema.

How To Enhance Your Local SEO Strategy

Online directories and business citations are a tried and true tactic dating back to the beginning of SEO. A local business citation is any place where your name, address or phone number (NAP) is mentioned—think Yelp, BBB, Foursquare and the like. These citations must remain consistent, as any inconsistency can negatively impact site ranking.

Luckily, there are many tools for auditing and updating online directories to ensure a cohesive online presence. Moz Local offers a free tool to check online listings, find inconsistencies and discover ways to better optimize for a variety of platforms. For additional insights and listing management, Moz Local also offers a more robust paid version. Yext is another excellent tool for managing multiple online listings from one dashboard. Updating these directories can do wonders for your SEO value, so we recommend spending the time to dig through your local citations and add photos, choose categories and manage your reviews.

Not only do your local listings across Google and various online directories require consistency amongst each other, but they also need to match your website. Ensure each mention of your business’ NAP information is consistent across your website down to the formatting. For example, if your business address is listed as “100 E 1st Street”, the formatting should be exactly the same across online directories, profiles and your website. Listing the address as “100 East 1st Street” or “100 E 1st St” would not be considered an exact match.

Additionally, you can marry on-page SEO best practices with your local SEO strategy throughout your website. Consider incorporating relevant local keywords, like your city or town name, throughout your page content as well as heading tags and meta information to improve local visibility. If your business has ties to the local community or organizations, backlinks will help identify your site as a reliable local business. If you’re looking to step up your local SEO game even further, we recommend enhancing your website with local business schema (learn more in Chapter 6).

For more pro tips from our digital experts, explore how to create a winning local SEO strategy.

How Does Website Design Affect SEO?

You may be wondering why we dedicated an entire chapter to design in an SEO guide, but website design plays a key role in a website’s ability to rank highly in search. The design of a site, and whether or not it's following user experience (UX) and SEO best practices, can make a profound impact on organic traffic and on-site performance metrics.

Too often we see people focus solely on the design of their website when in reality, the landing page experience should be the first consideration. Your landing page provides that ever-important first impression when a user arrives on your website, so you want to ensure that impression is favorable. Understanding the purpose of each landing page and why users are visiting will allow you to create an experience designed specifically to address their desired action. For instance, Airbnb excels by immediately presenting what visitors are there for—book a stay. Incorporating UX principles and best practices will improve the user experience, resulting in a positive impression.

What does this look like in action?

In July of 2023, we launched a new site for a client and immediately saw the benefits of better design. While seeing active users and engaged sessions increase, we were most pleased with the engagement rate metric and conversion increase. A redesign with the user in mind made the site much easier for users to move through and kept them on the site longer, ultimately leading to more conversions—we couldn’t have asked for better results.

Designing an SEO-friendly website goes beyond employing UX best practices. In 2024, mobile responsiveness is not just a feature, it's a necessity as search engines prioritize mobile-friendly websites in their rankings. Similarly, site speed is not just a number, it directly influences the user’s experience. According to Portent, a site that loads in one second has a conversion rate three times higher than a site that loads in five seconds. Faster websites lead to longer visits and higher engagement rates, signaling to search engines that your website has valuable content.

An often underestimated element of web design that plays a major role in UX and how your website appears in search is your site navigation. Having a clear and logical site structure makes it easier for users and search engines to find content, which can improve indexing and search rankings. Start by addressing the URL structure to ensure it reflects site hierarchy and includes relevant keywords to optimize for search. Additionally, we recommend examining content formatting, ensuring it is visible to search engines in HTML text format rather than embedded in images or videos.

Finally, making a website accessible to all users, including those with disabilities, aligns with SEO best practices, broadens audience reach and improves the user experience for all.

Interested in learning how UX consulting can boost your website's SEO? Contact our team of digital experts! We'd love to discuss what we can do for your business.

Upgrade Your Website’s Search Presence With Schema Markup For SEO

Schema markup, also known as structured data, is a piece of code that can be implemented on your website to provide a blueprint of a page written in a way that is easy for search engines to read and understand. Think of schema as the cliff notes for Google and other search engines to efficiently grasp the key points and content on your page. By understanding the content and context of your page more effectively, search engines are more likely to show your page for relevant queries, which leads to increased traffic.

In addition to improving your website’s ability to rank in search, schema is required to be eligible for many types of rich results. There is a growing number of rich results that can appear on a search engine results page (SERP), ranging from FAQs and People Also Ask to address common questions on the specific query to featured snippets, which quickly answer a user’s query at the top of the page. Featured snippets tend to be highly engaging and visual, taking up a large portion of screen real estate on page 1 of Google results.

Schema is applied on a page-by-page basis, with each page requiring unique schema markup, tailored to the content on that page. So, how does one know which type of schema to leverage? First, begin by examining the page itself including what type of page it is and what type of content is included on that page. Next, review the types of schema available to find the right fit (here’s a list of structured data that Google supports). There are all kinds of schema markup to fit your SEO strategy from BlogPosting and Article to Service and Product—and so many more in between.

Once you’ve built your schema, congratulations—you’ve completed the lengthiest step of the process! But, before you implement this powerful piece of code onto your website it’s crucial to validate it to ensure there are no errors. In addition to having a wealth of information about how to properly write schema, Schema.org also has a helpful validator tool to guarantee your schema markup is clean and error-free! Even a single error within your schema could take down your entire webpage, so trust us when we say you do not want to skip this step!

Now that your schema is validated, you can implement it onto your webpage. As marketers, we always recommend double (and triple) checking your work, so plan to run your updated page’s URL through the validator again once the schema has been published. If you made it this far, we’re impressed! Although you could be done here, we recommend taking it one step further. Submit the newly updated page for indexing within your website’s Google Search Console property. This will signal to Google that content on that page has been updated, so they should look for any changes. Ultimately, this will shorten the timeline of Google identifying the schema on the page and in turn, will speed up any subsequent improvements in your page’s search appearance.

Need help identifying the best schema types for your website? Technical SEO is our team’s bread and butter—we have extensive experience building robust schema markup for clients across a wide range of industries. Ask us about developing custom schema templates tailored to your specific web pages!

Understand International SEO For A Global Impact

If your brand wants to expand beyond local markets or currently operates in different countries, international SEO should be a key aspect of your digital marketing strategy. While search engine optimization is inherently international, Google and other search engines focus on relevancy—meaning a search result in the United States can be vastly different from the same query in India.

International SEO is the process of optimizing your site’s content for various languages and countries to help drive organic traffic from different geographic locations. At Blue Compass, we’re lucky enough to work with some clients that operate in global markets, giving us the opportunity to implement international SEO best practices at scale.

There are many elements to consider if you’re thinking about implementing international SEO into your digital marketing strategy, including site infrastructure and URL structures. However, one of the first localization barriers you’ll need to address is language. We choose to solve this problem with hreflang tags.

What Is Hreflang?

Hreflang tags communicate between web pages and search engines by providing direction on what language to display based on where the user is accessing the site. These tags can even distinguish the differences between similar languages, like French Canadian and French. All region codes for the tags are sourced using the ISO 3166-1 Alpha 2 format while languages follow the ISO 639-1 format.

How Do You Implement Hreflang Tags?

Hreflang tags can be implemented within your website header, on-page markup or the HTTP header. Once you’ve placed your tags, Google Search Console will provide your first warning if a tag isn’t firing correctly. After a crawl, Search Console will alert you to any errors within the international targeting section.

Once your tags are implemented, your next focus should be on localized keywords. Similar to local search, these keywords will be region-specific, just on a much broader scale. Your keyword research will focus on the nuances between similar languages (jumper vs. sweatshirt) or actual language differences (camisa vs. sweatshirt). As they say, the devil’s in the details—and it’s those minor vocabulary changes that give you the best results in your keyword research.

If your business needs help scaling your digital presence to serve international audiences, don’t hesitate to tap into our team of experts!

What To Know About The Latest Google Updates

Of all of the search engines in the game, you’ve likely noticed that we consistently reference Google throughout this guide (and many of our blog posts). Why Google? Well, Google dominates the search competition accounting for 91% of global searches, so it’s important to know how to play by and play into Google’s rules. There have been numerous evolutions of Google, its algorithm and the search experience over the years, particularly in the past decade. The latest Google updates are akin to a major playbook overhaul, so it’s crucial to stay up to date so you know how to best play the game.

These recent Google updates focus on delivering top-notch content, anticipating user needs and improving overall efficiency. Whether you’re an SEO beginner or seasoned pro, understanding what’s new for Google in 2024 will give you a serious edge.

Search Generative AI

Google Search Generative Experience (SGE) is a new AI-powered feature that personalizes search results, transforming searches into more interactive and tailored journeys. Currently in beta, SGE enhances user experience by aligning search results with user intentions and improving content relevance. It focuses on long-tail keywords and rich results, keeping users on Google's platform longer. Businesses can enhance their SEO strategy by creating high-quality, user-centric content and optimizing for mobile to maintain visibility and relevance on SERPs.

Core Web Vitals

Core Web Vitals (CWV), one of Google’s updates introduced in 2021, consists of key performance indicators that measure essential aspects of web user experience. CWV is crucial for what Google refers to as "page experience," evaluating how user-friendly a web page is.

CWV metrics include:

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures loading performance, specifically the time it takes for the largest visible content element to appear.
Interaction to Next Paint (INP): Assesses the responsiveness and interactivity of a webpage, tracking the delay between user interactions and the browser's response.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Evaluates visual stability by quantifying unexpected layout shifts during the page's lifespan.

Why care about CWV? Google's announcement of these metrics highlights their importance. Optimizing for CWV involves improving image loading, reducing third-party scripts and ensuring layout stability. A good CWV score can boost rankings and may earn a badge icon in mobile search results, enhancing SEO benefits.

Google Gemini

Google's drive to innovate led to the creation of Google Gemini, developed in response to advancements like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Gemini integrates advanced AI, natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning to understand and interpret user questions. For businesses, Gemini provides AI-driven insights to better understand user behavior, optimize content and improve SEO, leading to higher traffic and conversion rates. Seamlessly integrating with Google services like Google Assistant, Google Maps and Google Shopping, Gemini creates a cohesive experience that makes it easier and more efficient to use multiple Google services together.

We get it—there’s a lot to stay on top of when it comes to Google’s ever-evolving platform. However, those who are willing to adapt to new technology and trends will reap the rewards. By understanding and leveraging these updates, businesses can stay ahead of the competition and maintain relevance in search.

Interested in hands-on training opportunities? Explore our range of in-person and virtual trainings to arm your team with the knowledge and latest updates in digital marketing topics.

Move Beyond The SEO Basics To Craft A Winning SEO Strategy

Eight chapters later, you made it! You stepped up from being an SEO beginner to now having the foundational knowledge to improve your website’s organic rankings. If there’s one thing to remember when building your SEO strategy, it’s to remain user-focused in everything you do. Humans are your desired audience, so as much as we pander to search engines, it’s ultimately the user experience that will dictate your site’s success. Continue using clean SEO practices and stay in it for the long-haul—any “quick wins” will certainly come back to haunt you in the long run.

With SEO always changing, be sure to stay on top of the latest Google updates and website best practices. We recommend bookmarking this SEO guide as a handy reference tool since we update it with new SEO basics and knowledge regularly.

Interested in Blue Compass developing a custom SEO strategy for your business? Explore our range of SEO services or reach out to us today!

Explore Digital Services & SEO Resources

Maximize Marketing Efforts With A Digital Discovery

Unlock big-picture insights to gain a competitive advantage with a Digital Discovery. Receive tailored recommendations from our digital experts based on a series of marketing audits that provide a holistic view of your digital presence.

Accelerate Your Team’s Knowledge With Digital Trainings

If your team is leading initiatives to improve SEO performance or increase engagement on social media, our highly sought-after SEO and digital marketing speakers will tailor a digital marketing training specifically to your needs.

Your SEO Questions, Our Experts Answer

Does duplicate content matter? How many words should be on a page? You have questions, we have answers. From SERPs and domain authority to heading tags and redirects, our digital marketing experts answer the most common SEO questions.

Ready to get started?

Contact the Blue Compass team today. Together we will examine your needs and lay out a plan for taking your digital presence to the next level.

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2024 SEO Guide: SEO For Beginners

Learn How To Do SEO Better For Your Website With Our SEO Guide

Get Started With SEO Basics

SEO Basics: 4 Facets Of Search Engine Optimization

SEO For Copywriting Tips To Enhance Content

The Audience

The Audience’s Language

The Search Engine

What Are Internal Linking And Backlinking And Why Does It Matter?

Why Are Internal Links Important For SEO?

How Do You Identify Domain Authority?

Local SEO Strategies & How To Get Found In Search

What Is A Local Business Profile In SEO?

How To Enhance Your Local SEO Strategy

How Does Website Design Affect SEO?

Upgrade Your Website’s Search Presence With Schema Markup For SEO

Understand International SEO For A Global Impact

What Is Hreflang?

How Do You Implement Hreflang Tags?

What To Know About The Latest Google Updates

Search Generative AI

Core Web Vitals

Google Gemini

Move Beyond The SEO Basics To Craft A Winning SEO Strategy

Explore Digital Services & SEO Resources

Maximize Marketing Efforts With A Digital Discovery

Accelerate Your Team’s Knowledge With Digital Trainings

Your SEO Questions, Our Experts Answer

Ready to get started?

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