In the world of Digital Advertising, a number of us must’ve heard about SEO; Search Engine Optimisation. If you’re not sure how it works, how to use it boost your business, or you don’t even have a clue about what it is, then this article is just for you!
You’ll find this article especially helpful if you’re running your own website, too.
Here we’ll dive right into what SEO is, how it works, and how you can use it to boost your marketing and get even more customers coming right to you.
At its essence, SEO is the art and science of optimizing a website to improve its visibility on search engine results pages ( or, as some marketers call them, SERPs).
The driving force behind SEO is the idea that when a user types a query into a search engine, they should be presented with the most relevant and valuable results. Achieving this requires three basic elements.
1. On-Page SEO:
On-page SEO is basically optimizing individual pages of a website itself.
To do this, pay attention to elements like keywords, meta tags, headings, and content quality.
Keywords that are already part of a website’s content signal to search engines that they hold relevant info on that particular word when it’s typed into the search engine.
For instance, a bakery website would probably optimize for keywords like “cakes and pastries” to attract anyone who searches for “cakes,” “pastries,” or both.
This is why whenever you search for a product or service up on Google, you’re immediately bombarded with websites and places near you that provide them.
It’s not just about keywords, though. Search engines prioritize high-quality content, too.
To even have a shot at being one of the first 5 websites Google brings up when someone searches using your keywords, you’ll need to have informative, engaging, content that’s so aligned to your audience’s intent that it would be unreasonable if they don’t check your website.
Like that bakery, for example. Just having a blog where they give out helpful instructions on how to bake several cakes, and a guide on the best bakery equipment, would be more than enough to push the search engine to place them as the most relevant website.
Well-structured meta tags and headings provide additional context, too. Just having helpful information on the relevant keyword in your heading gets you closer and closer to the top of your search engine’s most relevant results.
Oh, and for those of you who don’t know what a Meta Tag is, it’s a HTML element that gives search engines information about a Web page. An example of this would be a Meta description, which is basically a summary of the webpage.
2. Off-Page SEO:
If On-page SEO concerns things within the website, you can bet that Off-page SEO concerns everything outside the website.
Off-page SEO basically focuses on external factors that influence a site’s authority and reputation. Backlinks from reputable websites are a pretty crucial endorsement in this department.
Again, for those who aren’t aware, a backlink is a hyperlink between one website and another. If your hyperlink takes your audience to a reputable website, the search engine presumes your website as credible, too. The more credible websites your hyperlinks lead to, the more credible you are.
Social media signals (like links to X or Instagram), shares, and even mentions and hyperlinks to your website from other sites boosts your site’s reach and impact.
3. Technical SEO:
Technical SEO is a bit of both of the above. It addresses the underlying technical aspects of a website for optimal performance and accessibility.
While this is best handled by software gurus and back-end website developers, it’s important that you have a pretty good idea about how this works, too.
Factors like site speed, mobile-friendliness, and proper indexing would definitely earn you a few points with search engines. After all, Google wouldn’t want you to use a website that’s unbearable to use, no matter how relevant it’s content is.
Now that we’ve covered the basics of SEO, let’s go over a few key steps to harness the power of SEO for your website:
1. Keyword Research:
- Identify relevant keywords related to your content, products, or services. Be sure to list them all out. As a bonus, list out the synonymous words to them, too.
- Use tools like Google Keyword Planner to understand search volumes and competition. After all, you’re not the only business in the market. Have a look at what your competition is using and see how best you can get beyond them.
2. On-Page Optimization:
- Optimize meta tags, including titles and descriptions, with targeted keywords. The more relevant the keyword and other keywords related to it, the better.
- Ensure clear and concise URL structures. Have your website developer explain this in detail to you.
- Create high-quality, valuable content that aligns with your audience’s intention, adding in relevant keywords, too.
3. Content Quality and Relevance:
- Be sure to regularly publish fresh, informative, and engaging content; articles, blog posts, infographics, and videos.
- Ensure content is well-structured with headings, subheadings, and multimedia elements.
4. Mobile-Friendly Design:
- Optimize your website for mobile devices to provide a more seamless user experience. If someone sees your site on a random search, chances are they’re using a phone.
- Use responsive design to adapt your site's layout to different screen sizes; phone, laptop, and tablet.
5. Site Speed and Technical SEO:
- Improve page loading speed for a better user experience. Nothing’s more frustrating than a slow webpage.
- Implementing technical SEO elements in your website, like proper indexing, sitemaps, and Meta tags, can be a big help, too.
6. Backlink Building:
- Earn high-quality backlinks from reputable websites in your industry. It sounds simple, but one backlink to a suspicious site can knock you down a few notches on a Google search.
- Foster relationships and network with influencers and other businesses for potential collaborations and link-building.
7. User Experience (UX):
- Enhance user experience with clear navigation and a better website structure than your competitors.
- And remember to use engaging visuals and multimedia elements to keep visitors on your site. You’ll be surprised how many people don’t want to visit a boring website compared to a bright and beautiful one.
There you have it. A pretty decent definition of SEO, how it works, and how you can use it to make sure your website get the most visits.
Admittedly, there’s a deeper rabbit hole when it comes to SEO, especially on the technical side.
But for now, you’ve got a pretty decent understanding of what Search Engine Optimisation truly means.
