Learn SEO in plain English

SEO (search engine optimisation) is improving your website so it shows higher on Google for the things your customers search, which brings more of the right visitors.

Search engine results page: the list you see after you search. ‘Page 1’ is the first SERP.

The words someone types into Google, for example ‘dentist near me’.

A longer, more specific phrase such as ‘root canal dentist in Rohini’. It has fewer searches but is easier to win and often brings buyers.

What the person really wants when they search: to learn, to compare or to buy. Your page must match it.

A 0–100 score from SEO tools that estimates how hard it is to reach page 1 for a keyword. Higher means more competition.

Visitors who find you through unpaid search results, not through ads.

A link from another website to yours. Good links act like votes of trust.

A backlink that points straight to your website.

A link that points to one of your direct links, helping it get found and adding weight. It does not point to your site itself.

A dofollow link lets search engines pass trust to the page it points to. A nofollow link asks them not to.

The clickable words of a link. Natural, varied anchor text looks healthier than the same phrase repeated.

Google’s software visiting pages by following links. If a page cannot be crawled, it cannot rank.

Google saving a page in its database so it can appear in results. A page that is not indexed cannot be found in search.

A file that lists your important pages so search engines can find them easily.

The clickable headline and the short summary shown in search results. They do not guarantee rankings but strongly affect clicks.

A short description of an image. It helps people using screen readers and helps Google understand the image.

A link from one page of your site to another. It helps visitors and Google move around and understand your topics.

Google’s measures of how fast a page loads, how stable it looks and how quickly it responds. Better scores mean a smoother visit.

The secure version of a website address (the padlock). It protects visitors’ data and is a basic trust signal.

A free Google tool that shows how your site appears in search, which keywords bring clicks and any errors Google found.

Your free listing on Google Maps and local search, with your address, hours, photos and reviews.

Scores from tools (Moz and Ahrefs) that estimate how strong a website is. They are not Google’s scores and are only a rough guide.

Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness: the qualities Google’s guidelines look for in helpful content.

A visitor doing what you want: calling, filling a form or buying. Rankings matter most when they lead to conversions.

White-hat follows search engine guidelines and lasts. Black-hat tries to trick search engines and often ends in penalties.