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Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your website to improve its visibility in search engines. SEO is a competitive discipline to help people who are looking for your content find and fully comprehend your content.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the art of making your website more visible in search engines like Google. It's a way to help people who are looking for your content find it easily and understand it.

Letter press organization and optimization for searching
Typefaces organized and optimized for easy location, from Cal Poly Shakespeare Press Museum. 

Organize Your Website Effectively

  • Consolidate subdomains: If you have multiple subdomains, consider merging them into a single website.
  • Consolidate pages: Focus on creating high-quality content and avoid creating thin pages with little content. Publish fewer, better pages. Focus on building and maintaining landing pages that receive the most user traffic and avoid thin content — pages with only a sentence or two.
  • Create clear user paths: Use navigation and page elements to guide users through your website. Use navigation and page elements to help users easily find their path. Rather than fill a folder with files, plan out the user’s journey through your site as if it were a narrative. Most people will navigate your website using google search, consider each page a landing page.  

Create Evergreen Content

  • Build durable pages: Create content that will remain valuable over time and won't need frequent updates.
  • Use clear and simple URLs: Avoid using dates, opinions, adjectives, author names, or information about the post itself in your URLs.
  • Focus on your audience's search terms: Use keywords that your target audience is likely to search for. A page should have it's topical keyword in areas of emphasis, such as page title and in page headings where appropriate.

Optimize Your Page Structure

  • Write for humans: Use clear and concise language that's easy to understand.
  • Use headings and subheadings: Break up your content into smaller sections to make it easier to read.
  • Use images with captions: Add visual elements to your content and explain what they show.
  • Use descriptive titles and URLs: Choose titles and URLs that accurately reflect the content of your page.
  • Use spaces or dashes: Use spaces or dashes in your titles and URLs, and avoid omitting spaces.

Publish Regularly and Update Often

  • Keep your content fresh: Regularly publish new articles or posts, and publish new content. Explore and develop potential relevant content desired by your audience.
  • Update existing content: Make sure your pages are up-to-date and current. Keep imagery fresh and rich. Regularly consider test new anchor text in links, explore opportunities for additional headings or subheadings, and more readable text in page copy,

Cal Poly Students slicing and dicing data

Continuously Improve Your Content

  • Maintain and develop your content: Regularly review and update your content to ensure it's relevant and engaging. Look for opportunities to enrich your pages with multimedia, such as with additional imagery or video. 

By following these tips, you can improve your website's SEO and attract more visitors.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SEO

Google and Moz have put together resources to help people learn more about SEO.