25 Common SEO Questions and Their Answers

If you are just starting an e-commerce store or a company website and are looking for ways to make it popular, one thing that you’d come across quite frequently is SEO. The search engines and SEO professionals have already published thousands of articles on SEO and how one can improve the ranking of their websites on search engines like Google and Bing.

But with search engines changing their ranking algorithms regularly and SEO professionals disagreeing with each other’s ranking strategies, it can be quite difficult for someone new to grasp what SEO is. To eliminate this confusion once and for all, we are answering 25 of the most commonly asked SEO questions. Go through all of them and by the end of the post, you’d probably have answers to your queries too.

Top Common SEO Questions and Their Answers

Q. 1. What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimization, popularly known as SEO, is the process of helping websites rank better on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. When a user enters a query on these search engines, the algorithms of these search engines provide them with the most relevant results based on their query. So, SEO is the process of bringing your website to these relevant results to get more organic traffic to your website

Q. 2. What is Organic Traffic? How is it Different from Paid Traffic?

Organic traffic is the traffic that your website receives naturally through search engines. Paid traffic, on the other hand, is the traffic received by your website through paid ads. In other words, the search engines or websites where you have placed your ads refer your website to the people. Whereas, there is no referral involved with organic traffic

Q. 3. How Much Does SEO Cost?

The cost of SEO services depends on a lot of factors like the current situation of your website, your approach, your end goal, and even the company you select for doing SEO. Most SEO companies that offer cheap services are well-known to use “black-hat” techniques that can severely damage your organic ranking credibility and might also result in a penalty. Thus, it is highly recommended that you should only hire a professional SEO services company to get the best results

Q. 4. How Long does SEO Take to Work?

This too depends on your approach and what you are trying to achieve with SEO. But with that being said, know that there is no overnight way to rank better on search engines. If by results you mean a considerable increase in website traffic and sales, this would most probably need at least 6 months, So consistent efforts and patience is most important for success in SEO

Q. 5. What is Crawling and Indexing?

When you’ll start searching for SEO, you’ll often come across these terms. Crawling is when a search engine is going through the content of your website. When the search engine is crawling, the content which will appear in the searches is indexed. But remember that the search engine would not index all the content of your website. They’ll only select the content they find relevant

Q. 6. What is PPC?

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) is a marketing strategy where you’d pay a fee every time someone clicks on your ads. In simple words, it is one of the most popular ways to bring paid traffic to your website rather than only relying on organic traffic. Depending on your requirements and goals, your SEO service provider may or may not recommend PPC for your website

Q. 7. Is The Ranking Guaranteed?

Most ethical SEO companies do not provide any kind of guarantee as they can’t control the outcome. This is because search engines regularly update their algorithms and are constantly evolving. You should stay away from such companies that offer some kind of guarantee or claim that they have some special relationship with Google

Q. 8. What is the Difference Between On-Site and Off-Site SEO?

On-site SEO is the process of optimizing pages of the website, like the meta description, title, header tags, URL optimization, alt tags, SCHEMA implementation, etc. On the other hand, off-site SEO deals with other important aspects like link building, authority development, influencer outreach, review marketing, improving social media presence, etc.

Q. 9. What is better, On-Site SEO or Off-Site SEO?

Both are equally important for a website to get a higher ranking on search engines. However, SEO service providers first improve the on-page elements of your website and then start working on off-site SEO.

Q. 10. I’ve Heard that Good Content Itself is Adequate for Good Rankings. Is This True?

While good content is very important, it is not the only thing that can help you rank higher and retain that spot. There is a possibility that your competitors might also have as good or even better content on their websites. So, apart from good content, factors like backlinks, social credibility, etc. are also very important

Q. 11. What are Backlinks?

Backlinks or inbound links are created by a website to link to another website. The link created in the process is known as a backlink. Backlinks are one of the most important factors that search engines consider to rank a website

Q. 12. How to Know if a Backlink is Good or Bad?

Analyzing the reputation of the website and linking to your website can help you determine whether a backlink is good or bad. If a popular website links to your website, then the backlink is generally considered very beneficial for your SEO. However, the popular website must be related to your website or industry in some way

Q. 13 Is There a Penalty for Backlinks Coming from Bad Websites?

Yes, your website can be penalized if your backlinks are coming from bad websites or websites that are not related to you and even websites that have already been penalized. Fortunately, as the business or website owner, you don’t have to worry about this as every aspect of SEO would be taken care of by your SEO service provider.

Q. 14. Is SEO Important for e-Commerce Websites Too?

With the increasing competition online, the importance of SEO for eCommerce is greater than ever. From helping customers find your online store, simplifying research on handheld devices, to being a cost-efficient way to improve your bottom line, several reasons make SEO very important for e-commerce websites

Q. 15. What is the Importance of Domain Authority?

The DA indicates the strength of your website based on many different metrics, like social profiles linking to your website, overall SEO efforts, and backlinks. Higher DA is known to bring in a higher ranking for the selected keywords. With every business wanting to get the highest possible ranking, DA is one of the most important metrics to watch out for.

Q. 16. What are Local Rankings or Local SEO?

Local ranking is the process of ranking your business higher on local searches. Google uses a different algorithm for local search queries. Apart from the factors considered for a national search query, additional factors like local citations in 3rd party directories, quantity, quality of online reviews, etc., play a crucial role in optimizing and ranking a business locally.

Q. 17. Why is it Important to Hire Someone to do the SEO for my Website?

If you’ve just started a website, you might be able to handle the basics of SEO on your own by spending about 15-20 hours a week. But if you are serious about your rankings, you’ll surely have to spend a lot more time on the process. On top of it, you’d also be required to keep yourself updated with the latest changes in search engine algorithms and top strategies to get the desired results. This makes hiring professionals for the job a far better option

Q. 18. How are SEO Efforts Tracked?

There are now several different tools to track your SEO efforts. Google Analytics and webmaster are generally used by most people as it is one of the most advanced online tools and is available for free. You should keep monitoring changes in the organic ranking of your business keywords and organic traffic stats on your website

Q. 19. So, How will I Know if The SEO Company is Helping Me or Not?

Well, most reputed SEO service providers do offer detailed reports of what they are working on and how their efforts are helping your website. This is another reason why you should only rely on reputed companies for your websites or e-commerce stores’ SEO. Before hiring a company, make sure that you do talk about how they’ll keep you updated regarding SEO work results

Q. 20. I only Have an e-Commerce App. Do I Still Need to Invest in SEO?

Around 50% of the internet traffic now comes from mobile devices. So, unless you want to miss such a large number of potential customers, you should invest in SEO even if you only have an e-commerce app. Apart from ASO (App Store Optimization), SEO is also important for an app to increase the number of app user

Q. 21. Is it Important to Make my Website Mobile-Friendly to get a Better Ranking?

Due to the same reason mentioned in the above answer, it is now very important for every website to be mobile-friendly. Google does consider the mobile-friendliness of a website when ranking it. However, this factor only affects the searches done on mobile phones and does not affect the rankings from laptops and desktop computers. You should look for a reliable ecommerce website design agency to make your webshop fully mobile responsive to provide your end users with the best user experience on mobile devices

Q. 22. Should I Stop SEO After Achieving Good Rankings?

No, achieving a good ranking is only half of the battle. The other half is to retain those rankings. If your rankings have improved, it suggests that your SEO efforts are working. However, search engines update their algorithms regularly and on top of it, your competitors too are trying to take your spot. This makes SEO a continuous process. If you stop SEO after reaching a particular rank, you’d probably lose the rank pretty quickly.

Q. 23. Is SEO Dead?

There is no shortage of posts on people claiming that SEO is dead. However, this is not true! Unless the way we use search engines changes dramatically, SEO is here to stay. While there are now other methods like paid social and paid search, SEO is still the most cost-efficient and long-lasting way to improve your rankings and get more traffic/sales on your website.

Q. 24. Is SEO Worth it?

If you and your SEO service provider put in the required efforts, you are sure to reap some great benefits with SEO. While the process is time-consuming, the more time and effort you put into creating and implementing an SEO strategy, the better would be the outcome. In other words, if you are patient and are working with a professional SEO company, you are sure to benefit from SEO.

Q. 25. How to Select The Right SEO Company?

There are important factors that you should consider when selecting an SEO service provider. Some of the most important ones are the reputation of the company, its experience, past clients, its ranking on search engines, customer service, and cost of services. Understand your requirements and fix a budget before working on these factors to select the right Magento SEO Company for your needs.

Q. 26. Is SEO still relevant in 2024?

Yes, SEO remains highly relevant in 2024. As search engines continually evolve, optimizing your online presence for search is crucial for visibility and traffic. Effective SEO practices, including quality content, user experience, and technical optimization, continue to be fundamental for achieving higher search rankings and maintaining a competitive edge in the digital landscape.

Q. 27. How AI is affecting SEO?

AI is revolutionizing SEO by enabling more precise data analysis, personalized user experiences, and predictive content strategies. Machine learning algorithms help search engines better understand user intent, leading to more accurate search results. AI-driven tools streamline keyword research, automate content creation, and enhance natural language processing, optimizing websites for voice search. As search algorithms evolve, staying abreast of AI advancements becomes crucial for effective SEO strategies in the digital landscape.

Q. 28. How can I use AI to improve SEO results?

To leverage AI for enhanced SEO results, start by implementing machine learning algorithms for data analysis to gain valuable insights into user behavior and preferences. Use AI-powered tools to automate keyword research, content creation, and optimization processes, ensuring that your content aligns with user intent and search engine algorithms. Implement natural language processing (NLP) to understand and cater to conversational queries, particularly with the rising prominence of voice search. Utilize AI-driven chatbots to enhance user engagement and provide instant responses, improving overall user experience. Employ predictive analytics to forecast trends and stay ahead of algorithm changes, allowing you to proactively adjust your SEO strategy. By integrating AI technologies into your SEO efforts, you can streamline processes, enhance precision, and stay competitive.

Conclusion:

Now that you know what SEO is, how long SEO takes to work, and loads of other important details about SEO, it is time that you put this knowledge to work. In case you have any other queries related to SEO, mention them through the comments section below and we’ll try to answer them as soon as possible. Best of luck!