Understanding SEO: On Page SEO vs. Off Page SEO

The worst thing you can probably hear, besides “Your site crashed,” is “We looked for you online but couldn’t find you!”  

The fact is, you’re basically sunk without SEO.  But, what kind of SEO should you incorporate into your website?  Some say “Content is King”, and believe on page SEO rules the internet, while others declare that off page SEO is more important:  “Links Reign Supreme!”  Who should you listen to? 

What is On Page SEO?
On page Search Engine Optimization includes things like optimizing keywords, tags, and web content.  Search engines love heading tags that emphasize key points, and they grab on to images that include “img alt” tags that include those same keyword phrases. 

Additional strategies for using on page SEO include labeling folders and naming files so that they are keyword rich, since search engines crawl through and index your site using folder and file names. Don’t rely on a snappy title alone, and think that your page is optimized.

What is Off Page SEO?
Off page SEO is the term that refers to any search engine optimization that takes place off your webpage.  Things like article marketing, linking and backlinking, and social media marketing are an important part of off page SEO. 

Which Type of SEO is Better?
It turns out that both camps in the search engine optimization debate have something valuable to offer.  If you want to make the most of your website, include plenty of each type of SEO and you’ll come out ahead.

How To Optimize
All this may have you feeling a bit overwhelmed – and that’s not surprising!  Optimizing a website properly takes research, time, and effort.  As a small business owner, you very likely lack both the time and desire to take all these steps yourself.  If you had a major water main break inside your building you wouldn’t try to fix it yourself – and the same is true for getting your site up to speed.