Just like yin and yang, SEO has a good and bad side. While both sides seem to work, what differentiates them is their longevity and quality in results. Black hat SEO practices are popular because they are cost-effective and easy to make. However, using them is more or less akin to using a band-aid on a deep cut. Well, search engines do make frequent algorithm tweaks that will catch onto your nefarious practices. If this happens, you might lose on web rankings, traffic, conversions, and sales. On the other hand, white hat practices tend to take longer to materialize but produce the best possible long-term results. In this regard, let’s take a deep dive and explore the top white hat SEO hacks for 2023.
Top-notch content
In the olden days, it was easy to fool the search engine and get away with sub-par content. However, modern AI has paved the way for the improvement of algorithms that can now automatically tell the difference between poor and well-thought-out content. This is why you should invest in top-notch SEO-optimized content. For your content to qualify as impeccable, it must meet a few basic requirements:
First and foremost, your article has to explore the topic in-depth and not just scrape the surface. Secondly, a lengthy article in the range of 1500 words will rank higher than a blog post with only 400 words. These are known as long-form content and they do attract better rankings.
Quality content ought to also boast a good keyword density. In layman’s terms, it would help to repeat the target keyword a few times within the article to ensure the search engine ranks it higher in the algorithm. Keep the keywords and links natural.
Tip: Remember, your content won’t rank well if it is filled with spammy or dead links.
Seek help from a content marketing agency or writer
Ideally, content marketing reels in customers and keeps them engaged by providing them with exciting media such as engaging podcasts, videos, and blog posts. An added benefit of these SEO hacks is the acquisition of high-quality backlinks anytime you write about targeted publishers within your content.
However, let’s face the fact that creating large quantities of good content is tedious and time-consuming. An excellent way to reduce the workload would be to outsource content marketing to experienced writers or agencies. That way, you will not compromise on quality and will get a lot of work done quickly.
If you still have some reservations, you could take comfort in the fact that you can proofread their work and ensure it is up to par before you publish it. You will churn out top-quality content faster!
Optimize for local business listings
Business listings are online entries that allow your customers to locate you and your services in real life. In fact, local businesses are slowly coming up in 2023 and have a chance at making it in this current crowded market. Most clients prefer to turn to the Internet to find products and services nearby.
Therefore, optimizing your business listing will place you in the first few pages of the search engine, making it easier for them to find you. However, your business listing could fail to appear on the search engine due to fierce competition from your rivals, who are striving for recognition from the same target audience in your area.
Invest in user experience
As we mentioned earlier, the ranking algorithm is getting brilliant at delivering results. The search engine can tell whether you have optimized your website for your visitors or not. If visitors have a terrible user experience at your website, the algorithm could reduce your ranking or cause your website to be de-indexed.
Let’s put the search engine aside for a while. If your search rankings remain high, visitors to your website might start falling. Therefore, it would be wise to prioritize UX by making your site valuable and easy to navigate for your users.
Invest in backlinks
A hack is supposed to make your life easier, so this point might not be much of a hack. However, you are better off taking the time and effort to build a strong backlink profile than hiding behind flimsy backlinks. The problem with black hat SEO practices is that you have to do lots of maintenance to make the profile look natural when it is not. The search engine could remove your links or crush your entire website when you slip up.
The first step in building high-quality backlinks the right way is to establish yourself as an authority site by publishing high-quality content. Remember that building a strong backlink profile takes time and money, but it will be well worth it once your ranking begins to skyrocket.
Tip: Avoid deleting, renaming, or removing any pages with a good backlink profile unless you have no other choice.
Leverage schema markup
Again, featuring the best positions of the search engine is no mean feat. However, if your web page doesn’t contain attractive features such as visual displays, they are more likely to click on your competitor’s page. You not only need to go a step further to wow your customers, but you also need to help the search engine understand your business.
Schema Markup is the answer to your predicament as it adds microcode to your web address, thus giving the algorithm a better understanding of what your business can offer. The net effect is a significant improvement in how the search engine represents your business to your clients and a competitive edge against your rivals.
Use internal links
The external links pointing to your website will significantly determine your credibility. High-quality links also put you in the good books with web crawlers, whose sole purpose is to ensure each website is adhering to Google’s web index.
However, the popularity of external links has caused web admins to neglect the importance of internal links, which point back to your website. Even though we could say they are low-hanging fruit, internal links are one of the top white hat SEO hacks that increase your rankings and encourage visitors to stay on your page longer.
Spy on competitor backlinks
You should also try to find out where your competitors are getting backlinks and try to outdo them. Well, if you have difficulty finding authority backlinks, use backlink checker tools to determine where your competitors get theirs. The next step would be to use the source to get good backlinks to optimize your website.
Outreach for guest blogging posts
There is no shortage of blogs requiring expertise on a subject matter. However, don’t send out your articles to every opportunity that comes your way. The best opportunity presents a win-win situation for you and the person to whom you are submitting your article. You can look for a blog that posts high-quality content and shares the same target audience as you do. Once you land that guest post position, fulfill your end of the bargain and deliver top-tier quality.
Leverage free SEO tools
While it might be true that paid SEO tools are superior and give more accurate results, you don’t always need to pay for them. Free SEO tools are an excellent option for startups that don’t have the resources to afford costly paid SEO tools. One of the best and most frequently used free SEO tools is Google Analytics, which you can use to assess your target audience.
You could use your GA Acquisition reports to determine how well your website performs and how much traffic it gets daily, weekly, and monthly. Another excellent free SEO tool you could use to your advantage is Google Webmaster Tool, which provides insight into your page speed and how your customers respond to ads.
Google has yet another powerful tool known as the Search Console that could help you assess errors on your pages and boost the traffic to your website.
Final thoughts
As we conclude, it is important to note that the white hat SEO hacks we have discussed above are a path that will lead you to success in the long run. Don’t treat them like a magic wand that will deliver top rankings immediately. It is also best to consider working with a top SEO agency like OutreachMonks, which is sure to leverage the white hat SEO tricks up your sleeve and spearhead the growth of your website rankings.
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