When it comes to search engine optimization (SEO), there’s no shortage of questions to ask because it’s such a prominent part of website development, but its rules change so frequently that it’s hard to understand if you’re new to it. We’re sure you may already be familiar with the different shades of SEO (black, white, and grey—there are even mentions of red SEO online, which we’ll get into another time). There are other terms you may have heard in passing but don’t know about that are related—in today’s case, off page SEO.
What is off page SEO, though? And why does it matter that we talk about it? These are the questions we’re going to answer in today’s article.
So, what is off page SEO?
Off page SEO is often defined as various techniques used beyond the usual web design to improve a site’s position in the search engine page results (SERPs). Off page SEO is usually confused for link building itself, but it involves much more than that.
Not only does off page SEO rely on link building, but also it involves social media marketing and, to a lesser degree now, social bookmarking. The latter is not as widely practiced now as it used to be, but there are websites where social bookmarking is acceptable as well as good practice for off page SEO, such as Reddit. (You can learn our thoughts on Reddit here, if you’re interested).
What is on page SEO?
On page SEO are the settings that are usually applied to a new website, ensuring it is properly optimized for search engines. All of our white hat SEO tasks apply as on page SEO, such as user-friendly menus and navigation, fast loading times, optimized title and description tags, image optimization, and top quality fresh content (the most important factor for SEO!).
What are some examples of off page SEO when done right?
Knowing what this form of SEO is exactly is one thing, but it’s another to see it put into practice. Some examples of white hat off page SEO involves the following:
- Creating quality links. Never, ever buy links in bulk for the sake of link building! This is what we refer to as black hat SEO (you can read more about the damage black hat SEO can do to a website here).
- Writing high quality content and then posting it into a blog. That is the only way you’ll be able to build high quality links in the first place.
- Once you’re done writing that great content, promote it on social media. Sharing it with other like-minded business owners can go a long way online.
- Applying local SEO to your website as well counts as off page SEO. It’s a great way to help your nearest customers find your company. You can check out our tips on local SEO here, and here.
There are several other examples we can think of, but usually they actually lead more into the grey or black hat SEO field, which we do not support ourselves or recommend to anyone that they practice them. Off page SEO, overall, is a long-term growth strategy. To apply it properly means it will take time; it is not a one-day-only, quick fix, nor is it a magic formula. Anyone who tells you that SEO is exactly that is trying to scam you.
Which should I have for my website? On or off page?
Honestly, it’s good to use both on and off page SEO for your website—but only the white hat kinds, as we’ve mentioned before. White hat is the only type of service we provide to our clients because we want them to succeed online in the long term, and in order to do that you need to adhere to the basic values of a great website: authority, authenticity, and trustworthiness. Without any of these values presented to your customers in the first place, then the cost of rebuilding your company’s website and reputation to achieve those values will most definitely be quadrupled. It really does cost you more money if you rely on black hat SEO tactics in the first place (both the on and off page kind), only to realize your error and repair your website rather than rebuild it outright.
That’s why white hat SEO is the way to go. If you need a new website that only relies on this colour hat, and your current one is too far gone to fix, then give us a call at V3 Media. Building sites from scratch is one of our specialties!