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In the world of digital marketing, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) refers to the entirety of the work done to help websites achieve higher rankings in search engines. SEO is divided into two main categories: Technical SEO and External SEO. In this article, we will examine what both categories are, the differences between them, and examples of these categories.
What is Technical SEO?
Technical SEO covers optimizations made to ensure that the website's infrastructure is better crawled and indexed by search engines. Technical SEO generally focuses on improving the website's performance, speed, mobile compatibility, security, and overall technical structure. Here are some important elements of technical SEO:
Site Speed
Example: An e-commerce site optimizes its images and uses CDN (Content Delivery Network) to reduce page load time. In this way, users have a faster shopping experience and search engines rank this site higher.
Mobile Compatibility
Example: By using responsive design, a blog site displays smoothly on both desktop and mobile devices. This site provides an advantage because Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites.
Sitemaps
Example: By creating an XML sitemap, a news site makes it easier for all its content to be crawled and indexed by search engines.
Robots.txt File
Example: When a company wants certain pages not to be crawled by search engines, it blocks those pages using a robots.txt file. This prevents unnecessary pages from being indexed.
HTTPS Security
Example: A banking site to ensure the security of user data and achieve better rankings in search engines HTTPS protocol uses.
What is External SEO?
External SEO involves optimizing factors outside the website and generally focuses on external links (backlinks) and social media signals to the site. External SEO aims to achieve better rankings in search engines by increasing the authority and credibility of the website. Here are some important elements of external SEO:
Backlinks
Example: When a technology blog receives a backlink from a reputable technology news site, search engines assume that the blog offers reliable and quality content and promotes it in the rankings.
Social Media Shares
Example: By frequently sharing and interacting on platforms such as Instagram and Twitter, a fashion brand attracts more traffic to its website and is ranked higher by search engines.
Guest Writing (Guest Blogging)
Example: A health professional writes as a guest writer on a popular health blog and links to their own website. This both provides backlinks and increases site traffic.
Online Comments and Reviews
Example: A restaurant, Yelp and Google My Business When it receives positive comments on platforms such as, it provides an advantage in terms of local SEO and attracts more customers.
Influencer Marketing
Example: A cosmetics company collaborates with a famous YouTuber to promote its products, and this influencer's followers visit its website, thus increasing site traffic and authority.
Differences Between Technical SEO and External SEO
Focus
Technical SEO: It focuses on the internal structure and performance of the website.
External SEO: It focuses on factors outside the website and external links to the site.
Control Level
Technical SEO: It includes elements that website owners can directly control.
External SEO: It operates on content and links created by other sites and users, so it cannot be directly controlled.
Application area
Technical SEO: It covers technical details such as site speed, mobile compatibility and security.
External SEO: It includes elements such as backlinks, social media shares, and traffic from external sources.
Technical SEO and External SEO are two important strategies that complement each other for a website's success in search engines. While Technical SEO improves the technical infrastructure of the website, enabling it to be better crawled and indexed by search engines, External SEO increases the authority and traffic of the site through factors such as external links to the site and social media interactions. Effective use of both strategies allows a website to rank higher in search engines and attract more visitors.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ) on Technical SEO and External SEO
- What is technical SEO?
- Technical SEO covers optimizations that improve the website's performance, speed, mobile compatibility, security and overall technical structure, allowing it to be better crawled and indexed by search engines.
- Why is technical SEO important?
- Technical SEO allows search engines to better understand and crawl your website. This helps you rank higher and improves user experience.
- How does site speed affect SEO?
- Slow loading pages negatively impact user experience and cause users to abandon the site. Search engines prefer sites that load quickly, so site speed is one of the ranking factors.
- Why is mobile compatibility important?
- Searches made from mobile devices are increasing day by day. Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites and moves them to the top of the rankings.
- How does using HTTPS affect SEO?
- HTTPS protects user data and provides a secure connection. Google prefers secure sites and the use of HTTPS is one of the ranking factors.
- Why are sitemaps necessary?
- XML sitemaps help search engines find and index pages on a website more easily. This is especially important for large sites.
Frequently Asked Questions About External SEO
- What is external SEO?
- External SEO involves optimizing factors outside the website and generally focuses on external links (backlinks) and social media signals to the site.
- What is a backlink and why is it important?
- A backlink is a link from one website to another website. Quality backlinks increase the authority of your site and help you rank higher in search engines.
- How does social media affect SEO?
- Social media sharing helps you drive traffic to your website and increases your brand awareness. This indirectly improves your SEO performance.
- What is guest blogging?
- Guest writing is writing an article on another website and linking to your own site. This helps you gain backlinks and reach a new audience.
- How do online comments and reviews affect SEO?
- Positive comments and reviews increase your site's credibility and improve your local SEO performance. Search engines determine rankings by taking user experience into consideration.
- What are external SEO strategies?
- External SEO strategies include methods such as backlink building, social media marketing, guest writing, influencer marketing and online review management.