1. What is SEO, and why is it important?
Answer: SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the practice of optimizing a website to improve its visibility in search engine results. It is important because higher rankings in search engines drive organic traffic, increase brand credibility, and improve conversion rates.
2. What are the different types of SEO?
Answer: SEO is categorized into three main types:
On-Page SEO – Optimizing content, HTML tags, and internal linking.
Off-Page SEO – Building backlinks and promoting content externally.
Technical SEO – Improving website speed, mobile-friendliness, and structured data.
3. What are backlinks, and why are they important?
Answer: Backlinks are links from other websites to your site. They are crucial for SEO as they signal to search engines that your content is valuable and authoritative, helping to improve rankings.
4. What is the difference between White Hat, Black Hat, and Grey Hat SEO?
Answer:
White Hat SEO – Ethical SEO practices following search engine guidelines.
Black Hat SEO – Unethical practices like keyword stuffing and link farming.
Grey Hat SEO – Techniques that fall between ethical and unethical practices.
5. What is keyword research, and how do you conduct it?
Answer: Keyword research is the process of identifying relevant search terms that users enter into search engines. It involves:
Using tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or SEMrush.
Analyzing search volume, competition, and user intent.
Choosing long-tail and short-tail keywords for optimization.
6. What is the difference between DoFollow and NoFollow links?
Answer:
DoFollow links pass SEO authority (link juice) to the linked website.
NoFollow links do not pass authority but can still drive traffic and brand visibility.
7. What are Core Web Vitals, and why do they matter?
Answer: Core Web Vitals are a set of user experience metrics that include:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) – Measures loading performance.
First Input Delay (FID) – Measures interactivity.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – Measures visual stability. They impact SEO rankings as Google prioritizes user experience.
8. What is a canonical tag, and why is it used?
Answer: A canonical tag (rel=canonical) is used to prevent duplicate content issues by specifying the preferred version of a webpage. It helps consolidate ranking signals for similar content across URLs.
9. How do search engines determine website rankings?
Answer: Search engines use complex algorithms that consider:
Relevance of content to search queries.
Quality and quantity of backlinks.
User experience signals (page speed, mobile-friendliness, etc.).
On-page optimization (meta tags, headings, structured data).
10. What is robots.txt, and how does it impact SEO?
Answer: The robots.txt file instructs search engines on which pages to crawl or avoid. It helps prevent indexing of unnecessary pages like admin sections or duplicate content.