Recommended SEO-techniques to increase organic traffic for a website : a scoping review.

Abstract

Search engine optimization (SEO), or the set of techniques involved in attaining a high ranking in search engine results, is a web writing skill that requires attention from companies because SEO helps businesses attract customers. The aim of this master’s thesis is to explore which SEO techniques are used to optimize a website to rank higher on SERP. Existing research, books and SEO professionals online blog texts about SEO techniques was used as the theoretical framework. The study is a scoping review. The analysis method used is thematic analysis with an inductive approach. The findings regarding differences between different SEO techniques suggest that quality content is key for a website to rank as high as possible on a SERP. From grammatical correctness to accessibility can affect quality of the content on a website. In many ways, the discussed practices related to keywords and writing quality content add up to creating the perceived value of a website. The benefit website content providers receive from knowing how to optimize content for a search engine involves improving the reading experience for users, customers, and other audiences, as well as drawing a wider audience to their writing. Since the optimization of websites for businesses is based on relatively commercial and quite explored area, a scoping review was the most appropriate method for a study like this. One advantage of a scoping review is that it can be used in fields where research is still ongoing, and randomized controlled trials are few.