As long as there have been websites and search engines, people have done whatever it takes to rank well. Why? When people want information about anything from businesses and products to weird questions they can’t answer, they go to a search engine.

The engines use algorithms to choose websites for the search terms. Early SEO was all about keyword stuffing, but it wasn’t long before Google put a stop to that. Google quickly became the search engine leader and wanted to give their customers the best results possible.

Just because the website has keywords on it didn’t mean it was the best. They continued to re-engineer the algorithm, making it more complex and taking in more information. Today’s algorithms are nothing like their earliest counterparts, and Google keeps a tight leash on what people know about it.

SEO is constantly changing as Google tweaks and changes the algorithm several times a month. Major updates happen every so often, and the company doesn’t usually tell people ahead of time. If they do, then you know it’s a massive change you need to prepare for.

Today, cell phones are the primary way people search for things online, so Google has made mobile a priority. They use your mobile website for indexing and a good mobile-friendly website is a must-have not only for SEO but also for user experience.

When it comes to SEO for today’s websites, it’s all about earning the trust of Google and your customers.

You know SEO is important, but how can you optimize your site for Google rankings. While Google doesn’t make it simple to analyze their algorithm, they are forthcoming about the need to be an authoritative and trustworthy website.

They want websites to follow EAT, which stands for expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. The goal of Google is to provide people with the right websites the first time. They don’t want people to have to travel back and forth again, so they choose websites that have lots of good information that match the search engine queries.

How do you optimize your site? The best way is to first create a keyword list that has a high search volume and a mid-range search competition. Once you have a good list, use those keywords in authoritative and original content on your site.

Don’t just copy and paste item descriptions from the manufacturer, but create your own. Write rich and informative category pages and put considerable energy into your blog.

Your blog is a great place to answer questions, provide informative articles, and show Google that you’re the best website out there in your niche. Once again, make sure to use original content and not duplicate content of other websites.

For businesses and websites that serve a specific area, there is local SEO. How is this different? Google has lists and maps that provide information about businesses when people look for niche keywords.

For example, if a person looks up furnace repair in Fresno, then Google provides a map of the Fresno area along with businesses that deal in furnace repairs.

If you want to optimize for local search, then make sure you have an accurate Google Map listing and a widget on your site. You also need to claim and fill out your Google My Business profile.

As far as onsite optimization, Google does a great job at ranking you for your home address, but not for outside areas. If you service an area outside of your home address, then you need to create content on your site that has those cities in them.

You can use localized keyword lists that incorporate standard keywords along with geographical keywords, such as "furnace repair in Fresno."

Local search is important because people seek out information about restaurants and businesses online before making the call. They want to read reviews and have a list of businesses they can call or visit.

While the bulk of SEO is about ranking in the search results, the search engine created snippets that expand on your listings and provide further information for searchers.

You have likely seen the expanded search results that include pictures or headings as well as question and answer boxes above the search results. If you want to be included in those snippets and have an expended search listing, you should install schema on your site.

Schema is a programming language that helps Google understand the context of information on your site. Without it, Google bots to their best to guess what the information on your site is about, but schema tells them “this is the address” and “this is a blog.”

If you can make it in a snippet or have an expanded listing, then you’ll have a better chance of being clicked even if your site's not number one in the search listing.

You should also consider Google image search in your SEO. All your images should have an alt tag that describes the picture. Google uses these when ranking pictures in an image search.