If you are new to SEO then you are likely feeling overwhelmed enough as it is without having to discover the fact that there are four different types! But don’t panic or allow it to put you off. While there are four different types of SEO, they are all connected, and in this article we’re going to sum them up as simply and as thoroughly as possible. Let’s get straight to it!
What are the four main types of SEO?
There are four primary SEO types and they are:
- Technical SEO
- On-page SEO
- Off-site SEO
- Local SEO
Before we get into which is the most important, let’s explore each in greater depth…
Technical SEO
Technical SEO quite simply refers to the process of optimizing the back end of your website and servers for optimal performance. It’s all about ensuring that the search engines can effectively index and crawl your website more effectively, while also providing a healthy onsite experience for your users (e.g., improving page load speed, and so on).
On-page SEO
On-page SEO is similar to technical SEO in that it is conducted on your website, however, rather than focus on the back-end, it’s all about optimizing your pages accordingly. So, for example, on-page SEO for your website’s Home Page would involve your keyword research, applying them to your Titles, Subheadings, and Metas, and carefully crafting SEO-optimized sales copy.
It also includes tasks like editing image alt-texts and linking internally, to name a few.
Off-site SEO
Off-site SEO, as the name suggests, refers to all of the off-site efforts that contribute to your overall SEO strategy. So, for example, link-building, content marketing, guest blogging, video marketing, and so much more.
Every piece of content that you create and associate with your website on other platforms, all contributes to your larger brand awareness – and indeed sending Google the right signals to help improve your long-term rankings.
Local SEO
Local SEO is similar to regular SEO in theory and principle, only it is focused on improving the visibility of a website, web page, and /or GMB profile for a very specific geo-targeted location. So, for example, an SEO expert in Dallas that wants to gain more visibility in front of local businesses would have to work on their local SEO, claim and populate their GMB profile (Google My Business), and create geo-targeted content that speaks to local Dallas businesses and their unique needs.
Which form of SEO is most important?
This is a difficult question to answer as they are each critical to a business’s overall online presence. Not only that, but technical SEO without off-site SEO would largely be a waste of time. Just as focusing on local SEO without optimizing your website with quality on-page SEO would hurt your conversions.
If you are a small business owner and you can benefit a lot from more awareness in your community, local SEO should be a priority focus given its immense potential. However, you still need to incorporate technical SEO, on-page SEO, and off-site SEO into your broader efforts in order to get the very best results.
Conclusion: Cover all your bases
In conclusion, you should cover all your bases and focus on each aspect of SEO with equal effort. It’s all about finding the right balance and ensuring that you are not only climbing the rankings and increasing your visibility in the SERPs, but that when you are getting more organic traffic to your website, that those individual users have as much chance at converting into loyal paying customers as possible.
