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MBA Module: Digital Marketing

Week 3

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Earning the highest-quality, lowest-cost traffic on the internet.

Today's Agenda

  • How Search Engines Work
  • Understanding Search Intent
  • Keyword Research Strategy
  • On-Page SEO Fundamentals
  • Technical SEO Essentials
  • Off-Page SEO & Link Building
  • Content Strategy & Topic Clusters
  • Lab: SEO Audit of Your Digital Sandbox

Part 1: How Search Engines Work

Crawl → Index → Rank. Understanding the engine before optimising for it.

The Three Stages of Search

1. Crawl

Googlebot follows links across the web, discovering URLs and reading page content

2. Index

Google processes and stores the information in its massive database (the "index")

3. Rank

When a query is made, Google ranks indexed pages by relevance and authority using 200+ signals

What Google Actually Wants

Google's Mission: "To organise the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."

Google ranks pages that best satisfy user intent — not pages most optimised for machines. This is the central insight that separates modern SEO from its old, manipulative form.

Part 2: Search Intent

The most important concept in modern SEO.

The Four Types of Search Intent

Intent Query Example Best Content
Informational "What is digital marketing?" Blog posts, guides, explainers
Navigational "Arjan KC Nepal blog" Homepage, About page, Brand pages
Commercial "Best digital marketing agency Nepal" Comparison pages, reviews, case studies
Transactional "Hire digital marketing consultant Nepal" Service/product pages, landing pages

Why Intent Mismatch Kills Rankings

Creating a sales page for an informational query = high bounce rate → Google demotes your page.

Framework: Before writing any content, search your target keyword in Google. Look at the top 5 results. That IS the intent. Match it.

Part 3: Keyword Research

Finding the exact words your customers use to find what you offer.

The Keyword Research Process

  1. Seed Keywords: Start with 5–10 broad topics your business addresses
  2. Expand: Use tools (Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, Semrush, Ubersuggest) to find related terms
  3. Evaluate: Score each keyword on Volume, Difficulty, and Business Value
  4. Cluster: Group keywords by shared intent to avoid "cannibilisation"
  5. Prioritise: Start with low-difficulty, high-value keywords — "quick wins"

Long-Tail vs. Short-Tail Keywords

Short-Tail

"digital marketing" — 2M+ searches/month

  • Extremely competitive
  • Low conversion intent
  • Hard to rank for as a new site

Long-Tail

"hire digital marketing consultant in Kathmandu" — 150 searches/month

  • Low competition
  • High conversion intent
  • Faster to rank; closer to purchase

Part 4: On-Page SEO

Optimising the elements you control directly.

The On-Page SEO Checklist

Critical (Always Do)

  • Title Tag: Keyword near the beginning, 50–60 chars
  • Meta Description: Compelling, 150–160 chars, includes keyword
  • H1 Tag: One per page, contains primary keyword
  • URL Slug: Short, keyword-rich, no underscores

Important (Usually Do)

  • Keyword in first 100 words of content
  • Related keywords in H2/H3 subheadings
  • Internal links to related pages
  • Image alt text with descriptive terms
  • Schema markup (structured data)

Part 5: Technical SEO Essentials

The foundation that must be solid for everything else to work.

Technical SEO: The Manager's View

You don't need to write the code. You need to know what to ask your developers.

Issue Why It Matters Tool to Check
HTTPS Google ranking signal; trust signal Browser address bar
XML Sitemap Tells Google all your pages exist yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml
Robots.txt Controls which pages Google crawls yourdomain.com/robots.txt
Canonical Tags Prevents duplicate content penalties Google Search Console
Core Web Vitals Page experience ranking factor PageSpeed Insights

Part 6: Content Strategy & Topic Clusters

The modern content architecture that defeats thin-content penalties.

The Topic Cluster Model

Structure: A single comprehensive Pillar Page covering a broad topic, supported by multiple Cluster Pages targeting specific long-tail sub-topics — all interlinked.

Pillar Page Example

"Complete Guide to Digital Marketing in Nepal"

Cluster Pages

  • "SEO for Nepali Businesses"
  • "Google Ads Setup Nepal"
  • "Facebook Marketing Nepal"

E-E-A-T: Google's Quality Framework

Google evaluates content using the E-E-A-T framework (from its Quality Rater Guidelines).

Experience

Has the author actually done this?

Expertise

Does the author know the subject deeply?

Authority

Do other credible sites link to them?

Trustworthiness — The umbrella: is the site safe, transparent, and accurate?

Lab: SEO Audit Your Sandbox

Using Google Search Console + PageSpeed Insights

  1. Verify your site in Google Search Console
  2. Submit your sitemap
  3. Run a PageSpeed Insights report on your landing page
  4. Identify: Title tag, meta description, H1 tag — are they optimised?
  5. Find 3 long-tail keyword opportunities for your niche

Deliverable for Week 3

Keyword Research Report

  • 10 target keywords clustered by intent
  • On-page SEO updates applied to your landing page
  • One paragraph explaining your content cluster strategy

Due before the start of Week 4.