Landing your first job in the SEO world can be nerve-wracking. You might have completed a course, but facing an interviewer for a SEO fresher is a different ball game. To help you crack that interview, we have curated the Top 50 SEO Interview Questions and Answers for Freshers.
Whether you are applying for an SEO Executive role in a Bangalore startup or a Digital Marketing Intern position in a Mumbai agency, these questions cover the basics, technical concepts, and logical reasoning you need to succeed.
Module 1: Basic SEO Concepts (The Fundamentals)
1. What is SEO in simple words?
Answer: SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It is the process of improving a website so that it appears higher in search engine results (like Google) for relevant keywords. The goal is to get “organic” (free) traffic rather than paying for ads.
2. How does a Search Engine work?
Answer: Search engines work in three main steps:
- Crawling: Bots (spiders) scan the internet to find content/code.
- Indexing: The found content is stored and organized in a massive database.
- Ranking: When a user searches, the algorithm shows the most relevant answer from the index.
3. What is the difference between SEO and SEM?
Answer:
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization): Focuses on getting free, organic traffic. It takes time but is sustainable.
- SEM (Search Engine Marketing): Focuses on paid traffic (PPC/Ads). You pay for every click. It gives instant results but stops when you stop paying.
4. What is a SERP?
Answer: SERP stands for Search Engine Results Page. It is the page you see after you type a query into Google. It contains organic results, ads, maps, and featured snippets.
5. What is the difference between Organic and Paid results?
Answer: Paid results have an “Ad” or “Sponsored” label and appear at the very top or bottom. Organic results appear below the ads and are ranked based on merit and relevance.
6. What are the main types of SEO?
Answer:
- On-Page SEO: Optimizing content and HTML on your website.
- Off-Page SEO: Building authority outside your website (e.g., backlinks).
- Technical SEO: Improving the backend structure (e.g., speed, mobile-friendliness).
- Local SEO: Improving Local Search engine rankings for Google Maps and locations
7. Why is SEO important for Indian businesses?
Answer: With Jio and cheap data, millions of Indians are searching online for everything from “best pizza near me” to “online courses.” SEO helps businesses capture this massive audience without spending a fortune on ads.
8. What is a “Crawler” or “Spider”?
Answer: A crawler is a software program (bot) used by search engines to browse the web, read pages, and follow links to discover new content. Example: Googlebot.
9. What is Google Sandbox?
Answer: It is a theoretical “waiting period” for new websites. Google may not rank a brand-new site for competitive keywords until it builds some trust and authority, usually taking a few months.
10. What is White Hat vs. Black Hat SEO?
Answer:
- White Hat: Ethical practices that follow Google’s rules (e.g., quality content).
- Black Hat: Unethical tricks to fool Google (e.g., buying links, hidden text). This risks a penalty.
Module 2: Keyword Research
11. What is a Keyword?
Answer: A keyword is a word or phrase that a user types into a search engine to find information. Example: “Buy shoes online.”
12. What are Long-Tail Keywords?
Answer: These are longer, more specific phrases (usually 3+ words).
- Example: “Best running shoes for flat feet in India.”
- Benefit: Lower competition and higher chance of conversion.
13. What is Keyword Density?
Answer: It is the percentage of times a keyword appears on a page compared to the total word count.
- Formula: (Keyword Count / Total Words) * 100.
- Ideal: Keep it natural, usually around 1-2%.
14. What is Keyword Stuffing?
Answer: The bad practice of repeating a keyword too many times to manipulate rankings. This annoys users and can get your site penalized.
15. What are LSI Keywords?
Answer: Latent Semantic Indexing keywords are words conceptually related to your main topic.
- Example: If your main keyword is “Apple,” LSI words might be “iPhone,” “Macbook,” or “Fruit,” helping Google understand the context.
16. Which tools do you use for Keyword Research?
Answer: As a fresher, I use free tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest (Free version), and Google Auto-Suggest.
Module 3: On-Page SEO
17. What is a Title Tag?
Answer: The Title Tag is the clickable headline that appears in search results . It is the most important on-page factor. It should contain the main keyword and be under 60 characters.
18. What is a Meta Description?
Answer: It is the short summary (approx. 155 characters) that appears below the title tag in SERPs. It doesn’t directly affect ranking but influences CTR (Click-Through Rate).
19. What are Header Tags?
Answer: HTML tags (H1 to H6) used to structure content.
- H1: The main headline (use only one per page).
- H2/H3: Subheadings.
20. What is Alt Text?
Answer: Alternative Text describes an image for search engines (who can’t “see” images) and blind users. It is crucial for ranking in Google Images.
21. What is a URL? How do you make it SEO-friendly?
Answer: Uniform Resource Locator. An SEO-friendly URL should be short, readable, and include the keyword.
- Good:
website.com/seo-tips - Bad:
website.com/p=123
22. What is Internal Linking?
Answer: Linking one page of your website to another page on the same website. It helps crawlability and keeps users on the site longer.
23. What is Anchor Text?
Answer: The clickable text in a hyperlink.
- Example: In the sentence “Click here for SEO Services,” “SEO Services” is the anchor text.
Module 4: Technical SEO
24. What is a Sitemap?
Answer: A file (usually sitemap.xml) that lists all the important URLs of your website. It helps Google find and index your pages faster.
25. What is Robots.txt?
Answer: A text file that gives instructions to search engine bots on which pages they should crawl and NOT crawl (e.g., admin pages or cart pages).
26. What is a Canonical Tag?
Answer: A tag used to tell Google which version of a page is the “original” one if you have duplicate content. It prevents “Duplicate Content” issues.
27. What is a 301 Redirect?
Answer: A permanent redirect. It tells Google, “This page has moved to a new address forever.” It passes the ranking power (link juice) to the new URL.
28. What is a 404 Error?
Answer: “Page Not Found.” It means the server cannot find the requested page. You should fix these or redirect them to avoid a bad user experience.
29. What is Page Speed? Why does it matter?
Answer: It is how fast your content loads. Google uses page speed as a ranking factor because users hate slow websites.
30. What is Mobile-First Indexing?
Answer: Google now primarily uses the mobile version of a website for indexing and ranking. If your site doesn’t work well on a phone, your rankings will drop.
31. What is HTTPS?
Answer: Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. It means the site has an SSL certificate (the padlock icon). It is a security signal and a lightweight ranking factor.
Module 5: Off-Page SEO
32. What is a Backlink?
Answer: A link from another website pointing to your website. Google sees this as a “vote of confidence.”
33. What is the difference between Do-Follow and No-Follow links?
Answer:
- Do-Follow: Passes authority (Link Juice) to your site. Helps ranking.
- No-Follow: Tells Google “Don’t count this vote.” (e.g., links from social media or comments).
34. What is Domain Authority (DA)?
Answer: A metric (developed by Moz) that predicts how well a website will rank. It is scored from 1 to 100. Higher is better.
35. What is Link Building?
Answer: The process of acquiring backlinks from other websites. Methods include Guest Blogging, Broken Link Building, and creating shareable content.
36. What is Guest Posting?
Answer: Writing an article for someone else’s blog to get a backlink and exposure to their audience.
Module 6: Tools & Analytics
37. What is Google Analytics (GA4)?
Answer: A free tool by Google that tracks website traffic. It tells you who visited your site, where they came from, and what they did.
38. What is Google Search Console (GSC)?
Answer: A tool that helps you monitor your site’s presence in Google Search results. It shows you search queries, clicks, errors, and indexing status.
39. What is Bounce Rate?
Answer: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page. A very high bounce rate might indicate poor content or slow loading.
40. What is “Dwell Time”?
Answer: The amount of time a user spends on your page before returning to the search results. Higher dwell time usually signals good content.
Module 7: Scenario-Based (Logical Reasoning)
41. If a client’s website is not ranking, what is the first thing you will check?
Answer: I will first check if the website is indexed by Google using the site:domain.com command. If it’s not indexed, no amount of keyword optimization will help.
42. How will you optimize a website for a local business in India (e.g., a Dentist in Delhi)?
Answer: I will focus on Local SEO:
- Create and verify a Google Business Profile.
- Target keywords like “Dentist in Delhi” or “near me.”
- Ensure NAP (Name, Address, Phone) consistency across directories like JustDial.
43. A website has great content but low traffic. Why?
Answer: It could be due to:
- Poor keyword research (targeting words nobody searches for).
- Technical issues (Google can’t crawl the site).
- Zero backlinks (low authority).
44. Is Social Media a ranking factor?
Answer: No, social media shares are not a direct ranking factor. However, they increase visibility, which leads to more traffic and potential backlinks.
45. What is “Content Freshness”?
Answer: Google loves up-to-date content. Regularly updating old blogs with new information (like changing “2024” to “2025” and adding new tips) is called content freshness.
46. How do you stay updated with SEO changes?
Answer: I read blogs like Search Engine Land, Google Search Central, and follow industry experts on LinkedIn.
47. What is Voice Search Optimization?
Answer: Optimizing for voice commands (like Alexa/Siri). It involves using conversational, natural language and answering direct questions.
48. What is Schema Markup?
Answer: It is code (structured data) that you put on your website to help search engines return more informative results, like star ratings or event times (Rich Snippets).
49. Can you promise a https://www.google.com/search?q=%231 ranking on Google?
Answer: No. No one can guarantee a https://www.google.com/search?q=%231 ranking because Google’s algorithm is secret and constantly changing. I can only promise to follow best practices to improve visibility.
50. Where do you see SEO going in the next 5 years?
Answer: SEO is moving towards AI and User Experience. Search engines are becoming “Answer Engines” (like SGE). We will need to focus more on authority and answering complex questions, not just keywords.
All the Best for you next SEO interview!
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