While good search engine optimisation is based on a whole array of elements, including keyword optimisation, site speeds and structure of data, to name just a few, the three most important elements (or ‘pillars’) of SEO are Content, Social Media and Links. Here are the The 3 Top Elements of good SEO.
Content
Most Internet users are aware of the concept that ‘Content is King’. Sadly, not all are aware that in order to ‘rule’, this ‘King’ has to be good! The latest changes in the search algorithms used by Google emphasise the need for good content by penalising sites producing irrelevant, low quality content. So what does this mean to online marketers?
In essence, it means that content, whether it is text, audio, video or all three, on Websites (and off-site) has got to be of the highest quality possible. Determined to deliver only the most informative, entertaining and, to put it in a nutshell, valuable content to users, search engines simply will not rank anything that is not relevant and valuable to consumers.
Social Media
While profiles/ regular interaction with other users on most Social Media networks is undoubtedly helpful, Google+ users have a distinct advantage over those not yet having their profile on this network. The reason for this is simple: owned by Google, these pages are used by the company’s search engine to discover and index fresh content. Google obviously also indexes some of the content found on Twitter and Facebook, for instance, but (although Google would never admit it), Google+ content (especially if endorsed with plenty of ‘+1s’) definitely gets preference when it comes to page rankings. Adding Google+ to your line-up of Social Media pages is subsequently highly recommended for good SEO.
Links
As far as search engines, and in particular Google, are concerned, links should not be paid for, but earned. In other words, those links that were paid for in some way or another and even links using keyword-based anchor text are not only likely to be ignored by search engines, they may even be penalised. The idea is to earn ‘natural’ links by providing content, products and/ or services people will recommend and link to without being prompted or paid to do so.
