5 DuckDuckGo SEO Tips to Help Drive Extra Traffic To Your Site in 2023

It’s time to stop ignoring DuckDuckGo SEO and claim the traffic you deserve from this alternative search engine.

In this straightforward guide, we’ll cover:

• Reasons to optimize for the private search engine
• Things that make DuckDuckGo different
• Tips to implement DuckDuckGo search engine optimization

Let’s jump straight in.

What Makes DuckDuckGo Different?

The main difference between DuckDuckGo and other search engines is online privacy.

That means DuckDuckGo doesn’t collect personal information or track search history, protecting the privacy of its users.

Unlike Google, which tracks user data and search history to show targeted search results and ads, DuckDuckGo does things differently.

Instead, the private search engine produces its results from 400+ online sources, including Bing, Yahoo, Wikipedia, and the DuckDuckBot.

DuckDuckGo SEO vs Google SEO

Other differences relate to the way search results are displayed.

Here are some of the differences between DuckDuckGo and Google and how they impact results.

1. Ads: Google ads are targeted to the user and may impact the way users interact with organic results. DuckDuckGo, on the other hand, offers limited ads and is solely based on the keywords entered, making them less relevant to the user.
2. Algorithms: Google’s algorithm heavily relies on user behavior and engagement. This can have a significant impact on the way search results appear. DuckDuckGo’s results are based more on the intent of the current search, as no past or stored data influences the results.
3. Local results: Google knows the exact location of where searches are coming from, thus, providing more accurate results. DuckDuckGo provides local results through Apple Maps but doesn’t collect or share your IP address or personal data with anyone.

3 Reasons to Perform DuckDuckGo SEO

You might be wondering… Should I even bother with DuckDuckGo?

The answer is a resounding yes.

Here are a few valid reasons to consider improving SEO for DuckDuckGo.

Daily Searches are on the Rise

With the increasing importance of data privacy, DuckDuckGo usage continues to grow, making it an ideal platform for content marketing.

Even though its market share pales in comparison to Google (0.63%), its rise in daily searches is growing astronomically.

DuckDuckGo’s monthly searches currently sit at 3 billion, which is around 100 million per day.

Comparing this to its stats 10 years ago at 3.4 million daily searches, this staggering increase is evidence enough.

It’s the Second Most Used Search Engine in The US

Even though the global market share of DuckDuckGo is below 1%, it’s higher in the US alone.

Claiming 2.45% US market share puts the search engine in 4th place as the most used search engine in the country.

Market share is also increasing, growing more than 4 times since 2017 from 0.52%.

Diversifies Organic Traffic Sources

Clearly, Google dominates the market share as the most used search engine.

But improving DuckDuckGo SEO will reduce your dependency on Google search results alone.

Moreover, optimizing for other search engines will gain traction, and traffic will mount up quickly.

So, diversifying organic traffic sources offers more opportunities to improve the performance of your site.

How to Improve DuckDuckGo SEO: 5 Tips to Increase Rankings

Here are 5 actionable search engine optimization tips for DuckDuckGo that will boost your rankings.

1. Keywords Still Matter

Everybody knows how important keywords are for traditional search engines.

And this is still the case for DuckDuckGo. In fact, it could be argued that keywords are more important.

Why?

Because the better your content is optimized with relevant keywords, the easier it is for search engines to understand.

And as DuckDuckGo won’t provide results based on the searcher, it’ll rank content based on the search query alone.

Now, this doesn’t mean stuffing your content with keywords. That’ll only make things worse, for all search engines.

But it does mean that keyword strategies are still an important factor for DuckDuckGo.

Want some actionable steps?

Here are some guidelines to follow to optimize your blog content strategy:

1. Match the search intent: When creating the content for your target keyword, make sure it matches the search intent. You can check this by looking at the results in DuckDuckGo and Google to see what the results say.
2. Optimize for related keywords: Gone are the days when targeting one primary keyword gets optimal results. The more semantically related keywords you optimize your pages and posts for, the better. Tools like Surfer SEO or Market Muse can help with this.
3. Use keywords in subheadings: We know that adding keywords in headings can give your site a boost in Google results. Therefore, it makes sense to continue this practice for DuckDuckGo SEO.

2. Attract Backlinks

As cliche as it sounds, backlinks are the way to go for a significant impact on DuckDuckGo SEO.

They even mention it on their Help Pages:

By crafting high-quality content, you’ll attract quality links to boost your website’s authority and improve your rankings on DuckDuckGo.

But how do you get high-quality backlinks?

Here are some of the most common methods you can apply to your SEO strategy for getting different types of backlinks:

1. Create content that attracts backlinks: These are articles that get backlinks naturally. They include original content, statistics, ultimate guides, and case studies.
2. Guest posts: This is where you email authoritative blogs in your niche and offer to write them an article. You’ll then get a link back to your site, which will gradually grow your domain authority.
3. HARO link building: HARO stands for Help A Reporter Out. You sign up for their emails and provide journalists with your expert opinion. If they add your quote to their content, you get a link back to your site.

3. Add Your Site to Apple Maps

When searching a query like “restaurants near me” on DuckDuckGo, it guesses the searcher’s location based on anonymous GeoIP.

An Apple Map is shown in the result, which can be expanded to see the available venues.

If you run a local business and want it to show in these results, you’ll need to submit your site to Apple.

Doing so will increase your local SEO visibility and traffic to your site.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Create an Apple ID, if you don’t already have one
2. Log in to your account and visit Apple Maps Connect
3. Search for your business, as it might already show up
4. Select your business or add a new one if it doesn’t show
5. Enter your business details as accurately as possible
6. Verify your business either through a phone call or a document review
7. You can then enhance your creator card by adding an image or logo of your business
8. There are a lot of other details you can add, such as more images and operating times

That’s it. Now your business will show up as one of the listings in DuckDuckGo local search results.

4. Submit Your Site to Bing

Like Google, DuckDuckGo has its own crawler, aptly named DuckDuckBot.

This bot will crawl your website and add pages to its index, all anonymously, of course. However, it also gathers data from more than 400 sources, including Bing.

That means if your site is being indexed on Bing, then it will be indexed on DuckDuckGo.

In fact, adding your site to Bing Webmaster Tools can actually improve your site’s indexability on DDG.

Therefore, it’s highly recommended. Here are the steps you’ll need to follow:

1. Create a Bing Webmaster Tools account if you haven’t already got one
2. Add your site and enter the URL
3. Bing will then crawl and scrape the page of your site. This can take up to 48 hours
4. Add your sitemap. This will help Bing find new content when it’s added
5. Verify your site, either with an XML file or Meta Tag

Following these steps will ensure your site shows up more often in the DuckDuckGo search engine.

Final note: As DuckDuckGo uses Bing as one of its sources, optimizing your site for Bing SEO can kill two birds. Pun intended 😉

5. User Experience

It has to be said. Great user experience is what it’s all about.

You can have the best content on your site and offer a world-class service. But, if your website’s user experience is bad, your rankings will suffer, including on DuckDuckGo.

Sure, there’s no bold print in the DuckDuckGo Help Pages about user experience, but they recommend getting backlinks.

And to get backlinks, your site needs to perform well.

So, what are the best ways to make a lasting impression? Here are a few tips for an improved user experience:

1. Use a clean and professional design, try to avoid clutter, and build a strong brand
2. Optimize your site for speed. A slow-loading website kills the user experience
3. Provide easy navigation in your main menu, footer links, and internal links throughout the site
4. Use engaging h1s, h2s, and CTAs to keep visitors on the site for longer
5. Use high-quality images. You can find these on sites offering free images

Making the user experience a priority will greatly impact rankings on all platforms, improve your conversions, and bump up revenue.

FAQs

Here are some common questions people ask about DuckDuckGo SEO and its benefits.

Does SEO Work on DuckDuckGo?

Yes, search engine optimization works on DuckDuckGo. However, it requires different tactics than Google SEO, due to the platform’s focus on privacy.

Following the tips outlined in this post will help you improve your DuckDuckGo rankings.

How Do You Get Indexed on DuckDuckGo?

To get indexed on DuckDuckGo, you can submit your site to Bing Webmaster Tools.

DuckDuckGo utilizes Bing for search results, so focus on improving Bing SEO, and you’ll start seeing results.

Why Do People Use DuckDuckGo Instead of Google?

Many people are becoming more concerned about data privacy and, as a result, are opting for alternative solutions.

This makes DuckDuckGo an appealing alternative to search engines like Google, which track and store user data.

DuckDuckGo SEO In Closing

In summary, DuckDuckGo SEO is worth considering for digital marketers that want to diversify their traffic sources.

By submitting your site to Bing and Apple Maps, and following traditional types of SEO methods, your site can climb the search results on DuckDuckGo.

Lastly, you can follow the tips in our post titled, increase organic traffic for even more search rankings.