SEO is a necessary pillar of online marketing. But, which are the most important pillars of SEO? 

SEO is the backbone of any marketing strategy. Since 68% of online experiences are initiated by a simple search, marketers chomp on every bit they can get from SEO. However, while relying heavily on content, search engine optimization is a culmination of various elements.  

This includes technicalities, as well as various on and off-page factors. While content is the centerpiece of any SEO strategy, other aspects, such as visuals, the website’s framework, and other key essentials, also come into play, such as:

• Good content 
• Solid backlinking and interlinking
• Technical on and off-page SEO
• User experience elements

These are the pillars that make up a proper SEO strategy. But, what exactly are they? What does each of these elements entail? These pillars themselves are made of several key factors, and it’s imperative to understand each of them. So, let’s do that:

What Is SEO?

Search engine optimization is the practice of making content and platforming ideas for search engine ranking. It’s imperative to understand technical SEO to ensure the website and content perform well. 

As mentioned before, SEO is the epitome of various strategies related to search engines. The primary purpose of this practice is to ensure your website and content perform equally well and gain visibility when people search for specific keywords.

These factors include:

• Optimizing the website
• Optimizing the content 
• Ensuring proper practical background of the website

While the last point is more related to technical aspects of SEO, they all work together to ensure that the website stands out in SERPs (search engine results pages). However, Google considers over 200-factors before it ranks a website on the first page of SERP.

What Does Google Consider?

Are you wondering how the Google search algorithm works? Well, you’re not alone. Some experts at Backlinko even made a list all 200 factors that we mentioned above. Each one of these aspects is divided into multiple categories, such as:

• Domain influences an essential factors in understanding what is included in technical SEO
• On-site SEO and how are sitemaps important for the SEO process
• Technical SEO and user interaction factors

Here are the four major divisions comprising the majority of the said 200 factors: 

1. Domain Factors

If you’re wondering if older websites have a better chance, then Google’s John Mueller disagrees. He says it “helps nothing,” Instead, keyword insertion and domain registration are valuable essentials. On the other hand, a domain can benefit greatly in Local SEO if it has a country code next to it, such as AE, UK, US, etc. 

2. Page-Level Factors

Page-level factors include the insertion of keywords in the right places. However, you do need to understand how important page speed is for SEO. Because the quicker your website loads, the better it will satisfy Google’s target audience for particular queries. 

3. Backlink Factors

While domain age isn’t necessarily a factor, backlinks from older domains do maintain integrity. For instance, a backlink earned from Forbes.com would hold much more weight than one from an unknown or newer domain. 

4. User-Interaction Factors 

You need Google’s RankBrain to understand this factor. On the other hand, bounce rates are yet another factor. So, if a website has a hefty amount of bounce rates, it may not be preferred by Google to be in SERP. 

The Four Pillars of Search Engine Optimization 

Search engine optimization is a process of constant struggle. It may sound like a bad thing, but it isn’t. In SEO, there’s no “climbing the mountain.” Instead, SEO requires you to sit atop the mountain and maintain your integrity.

That’s why you need four pillars to help you get there. As mentioned before, Google considers many factors. Still, they all fall into the four major pillars: content, technical SEO, backlinks, and user experience.

So, to help you achieve SEO prowess, here are the four pillars and how to use them:

1. Content: Writing Good Content for High Ranks

The first and most important pillar of SEO is good content. Now, writing good content isn’t enough; you need thorough optimization. So, what is content optimization in SEO? It’s not only about inserting keywords at the right place; it’s about other key factors.

The importance of content in SEO isn’t because of the written word; rather, it’s because of how well the content is written. That’s why content must feature these three essentials to become a strong pillar of an SEO strategy:

Readability

The first step in understanding what SEO content writing is is understanding readability. Bear in mind that SEO writing isn’t about writing artistic or novella-esque content. You need to simplify the complex idea and write words that a typical searcher on the internet can understand.

Moreover, much readability depends on how well you break down your content. In other words, the subheadings, paragraph lengths, lines in each paragraph, and words used in each line need to be specific.

Plagiarism-Free Content

Plagiarism is one of the most problematic aspects of SEO writing. Your content needs to be top-notch, so make sure you use a viable plagiarism checker like this one. 

This will help you detect plagiarism and provide you with the percentage of plagiarism in your content. Therefore, you must use this tool to detect and avoid plagiarism effectively.

Keyword Insertion & Placement

In order to understand how to write a good SEO article, you need to make sure you insert and place your keywords thoroughly. Here are a few things you need to keep in mind:

• Use keywords in your title/headline
• Use them in the first paragraph of subheadings wherever you can
• Try to use secondary keywords wherever possible

Remembering these three things can help you ensure optimal placement and insertion of keywords in your SEO articles.

2. Backlinking: Creating a Solid Strategy 

If you’ve researched a little bit about SEO, then you know backlinks make an appearance everywhere. So, what is the importance of backlinks in SEO? According to Moz, a backlink is akin to a “vote of confidence” that a website garners from another domain.

But, what is a backlink in SEO? A backlink is the blue text with hyperlinks that you might find on websites. There are two main types of backlinks, such as:

• Internal/inbound links
• External/outbound links

While their titles are self-explanatory, internal links are the links within a page that lead the reader to another page within the same domain. That’s why you need these backlinks to help you attain the confidence of your readers and of Google. 

3. Technical SEO: The Key Factors

You might often read about various technical SEO aspects in SEO-related articles. While they might sound like something very complicated or over-the-top, they are basic SEO requirements that every domain needs. Here are the said key factors:

SSL

SSL or secure sockets layer is a security encryption method that many websites use today. How can you tell a website without SSL from one with SSL? 

• HTTPS – domain with SSL
• HTTP – domain without SSL

Notice the ‘S’ at the end of the domain name? That’s because Google has made it mandatory for websites since 2014 to ensure that they feature these security encryptions. 

Mobile-Friendliness

Mobile-friendliness of a website doesn’t only depend on how well it’s designed for both desktops and hand-held devices but also on its responsiveness. Mobile websites have significantly less data for mobile-phone users than they do for desktop users. 

Loading Speed

If your website is using fast-hosting domain providers, then you’re golden. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean your pages load up quickly. That’s why you need a fast DNS provider and a singular CSS stylesheet. 

XML Sitemap

XML Sitemap is a navigation path for search engine crawlers and a translator. It uses a variety of aspects to help the search engine crawler grasp the core of your website. So, make sure your website’s site map is up to standards.

4. User Experience SEO: Necessary Elements 

UX in SEO isn’t exactly difficult to understand. However, it is important to grasp how UX impacts SEO. You might be thinking of only the design elements, but UX designing is about the whole experience a website wants its user to have. Here are its three necessities: 

Design

When understanding why UX design is important for SEO, think about how many times you stopped scrolling on a website because it was difficult. Thus, a design should be intended to lead the user on a journey instead of just containing the content.

Navigation

Navigation menus, sidebars, and various other essentials of sitemap design also come into play. These features make it easier for the user to browse different categories and sections of a website. Moreover, it also makes it easier for search engine crawlers to browse a website. 

Mobile Phone Adaptability

While technicalities require us to ensure mobile phone adaptation, so does design. Therefore, design your website while keeping mobile-phone friendliness in mind, such as grids, images, backgrounds, etc.

Conclusion 

These are the four pillars of SEO today. It starts with content, goes up with technicalities, and requires you to pay thorough attention to User-Experience (UX). Therefore, tend to each element accordingly and ensure your website is up to standards.