Entering the Chamber of SEO-crets

Mandy Pennington

#1 What is true for you may not be true for others.

Perspective is Everything

• Best practices are consistent across multiple search engines
• There is no formula
• Personalized search changed the user experience and how we approach SEO
• Time is always a factor
• Just because it worked for someone else doesn't mean it'll work for you

#2 Create the best experience for searchers first.

Making Better Experiences

• Content to serve user intent
• Easy/intuitive navigation
• Responsive design, mobile-first indexing, & HTTPS
• Well-structured pages
• "What would someone expect to find on this page and am I delivering it?"

#3 Accessibility and user experience helps you drive and keep traffic.

Accessibility + UX =

• Voice and mobile changed the game
• Make sure your pages are crawlable, monitor your crawl activity
• Structured data and appropriate tags are more important than ever
• Search engines consider user signals (e.g. bounce rate, dwell time, etc.)

#4 Speed matters.

Why Speed Matters

• Ranking factor for most search engines
• Convenience is key
• Mobile users expect fast
• Use Google's PageSpeed Insights as a guide, along with webmaster tools (e.g. Google Analytics, Google Search Console, etc.)

#5 Data is your friend.

Data Makes the World Go Round

• Have analytics in place from day 1
• Use analytics in setting goals and making decisions
• Tools: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools

#6 Tools are great, but they're one of many reference points on your road map.

Tools Can Be Great

• But tools aren't a replacement for a solid strategy
• Take feedback with a grain of salt
• Tools to Consider: AdWords Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest, Search Suggest, SEMRush, Google Trends, Majestic, OpenSiteExplorer, Ahrefs, Screaming Frog, Raven SEO Tools, BuiltWith

#7 Understand SEO's role in your overall marketing strategy.

SEO's Role

• Don't make business decisions for SEO reasons
• SEO works best when used in tandem with other channels
• Users experience information in a multi-channel way
• SEO can be influenced by multiple players in your organization

#8 Audience knowledge is power.

Audience Knowledge is Power

• Users experience information in a multi-channel way
• Spend time listening
• Social influence and link building activities are all about making the right connections
• Create, amplify, collect feedback
• Optimize the media they consume
• Understand their journeys

#9 Change is the only constant.

Change is Inevitable

• Search engines change their algorithms thousands of times each year
• Search technology has only improved
• Remember the definition of insanity
• Test, test, test, and test some more

#10 SEO isn't magic.

It's about being present.

Mischief Managed! Thank You!