What is Yoast SEO Premium?

Yoast SEO Premium is a powerful, lifetime WordPress plugin designed to optimize your website for search engines. With over 5 million active installations and more than 350 million downloads, it is one of the most popular SEO plugins available. Backed by over 25,000 five-star reviews on WordPress.org, Yoast SEO has been trusted by website owners globally to improve their SEO efforts.

A Brief History of Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO was initially introduced in 2007 under the name WordPress SEO. Created by SEO consultant Joost de Valk, it quickly became a go-to tool for optimizing WordPress websites. In 2012, it was renamed to Yoast SEO, and later that same year, a premium version was launched to offer even more advanced features.

In 2015, Yoast hosted the first-ever YoastCon conference, an event for SEO enthusiasts, held at the Lindenberg Nijmegen Culture House in the Netherlands. While a flaw in version 1.7.3.3 and earlier was discovered in 2015, Yoast has since addressed security concerns to maintain its reputation for reliability.

The Growth of Yoast as a Company

Joost de Valk began his journey in 2005 with a personal website called joostdevalk.nl. After gaining experience and selling a domain named css3.info, he launched Yoast in 2009. In 2010, he introduced the first version of WordPress SEO and founded Yoast BV. Initially focusing on SEO consultancy, Yoast expanded to offer both SEO and Google Analytics plugins for WordPress. However, in 2016, Yoast BV sold its Google Analytics for WordPress plugin to focus on its core SEO product.

By September 2018, Yoast had grown into a company with nearly 100 employees, most of whom were based at the headquarters in Wijchen, Netherlands.

Why Yoast SEO is Trusted by Millions

Yoast SEO runs on more than 11 million websites and is used on 15.4% of the top 1 million websites worldwide. It has become an indispensable tool for WordPress users who want to optimize their content for search engines. Michael David, the author of WordPress Search Engine Optimization (2015), praised Yoast as “the granddaddy of all SEO plugins.” However, some critics, such as Brian Santo from EE Times, argue that SEO can negatively impact journalism and suggest that Google should consider using AI to improve its search algorithms.

Yoast’s Contribution to the Community

In September 2020, Yoast announced its sponsorship of the professional basketball team Yoast United, which competes in the BNXT League. This sponsorship further solidifies Yoast’s commitment to both digital and local communities.

Yoast SEO Premium offers a lifetime of benefits for WordPress users who want to improve their website’s visibility on search engines. Whether you’re a seasoned developer or just starting out, this plugin can help you achieve your SEO goals.