A short tour through the magical world of search engine optimization
The term search engine optimization, or SEO for short, has become quite a hot topic in online marketing – and rightly so! In this post, we will take a closer look at what is behind this controversial term and the good arguments that speak for implementing search engine optimization.
A Short Introduction to SEO
Search engine optimization is, in the most basic sense, a way to increase the visibility of your website for search engines on the internet. SEO and search engine advertising (SEA for short) together form the foundation of search engine marketing. In the US and Europe, Google is the front-runner and main focus. However, SEO does work for other search engines such as Bing, Yahoo!, and others, and can be implemented at a national or international level.
Ideally, you would like your website to be shown at the top of search engine result pages (SERPs). This would maximize the number of visitors to your site, which is where you are best able to acquire new customers. Search engine optimization offers you a range of exciting possibilities for your website itself as well as other areas, which will help you optimize your website for the long run. For this, the most important aspect is using keywords specific to what you have to offer, since this is what users will be searching for organically later on.
So what are some actual techniques you can use?
On-Page Optimization vs. Off-Page Optimization
Being listed at the top of organic search results does not happen by magic – it requires a certain amount of expertise, dedication, and most of all patience. In this instance, any hard work that you put in will pay off.
Search engine optimization is differentiated into two parts: on-page, which occurs on the site itself, and off-page, which consists of all optimizations that take place elsewhere. We will now take a detailed look at these two types.
The goal of on-page optimization is to create a pleasant and smooth user experience while simultaneously catapulting the website way up in the search engine rankings by the use of appropriate keywords. Optimization thus happens at the content, structural, and technical levels. You should ask yourself the following questions regarding the structural design: how are images and texts divided up on the site? How is the site formatted? Are the headings exact enough? How does the general presentation of the site feel?
Remember, you eat (or should we say read) with your eyes, too. The goal of the technical aspects is to make sure that the site runs seamlessly in the background. The site’s backend, or technical system, consists of other elements such as meta tags, source code, and a sitemap, all of which should be developed by a professional and thoroughly thought-through. A technically-flawless, fast-loading site with high-quality unique content makes visitors happy and satisfied, guaranteeing a broad reach.
The next step in search engine optimization is off-page optimization. This occurs off of your website and can be described quite simply with one word: backlinks! These are small, helpful backward references that lead from one website to another. These are particularly valuable if they come from websites in a related field and are not transactional in nature. So what if another website saw value or relevant content on your site and linked to you? Excellent! This is exactly the kind of backlink that you need to signal search engines that your site is worthwhile and has valuable content. Social media platforms, blog articles, and forums are options to help with this.
A+ Reasons for implementing SEO
Now you have a general idea of how search engine optimization works and have seen a few of its advantages. Here is a final summary of all the great reasons to use SEO.
Reach a large audience
First things first – by implementing search engine optimization well, mainly by using relevant keywords, your site can achieve a very good ranking, which in turn means reaching a large audience. Appearing in the first three positions will absolutely guarantee more clicks.
Fairness – everyone gets a chance
By applying search engine optimization, everyone can earn an opportunity to reach a large audience and get more customers. This is possible no matter how big a company is, how long it’s been around, if it offers specialty products, or if it is geared toward the masses. Everyone can participate! The one and only thing that matters for increasing your search engine rankings is the quality of the website and specifically addressing the users’ needs. This also applies to companies with small budgets as well. Even with a small budget, optimizing your site is still possible, and this will have long-term effects and can give you success by providing more traffic. Paid ads, however, lie at the other end of the spectrum, since as soon as an ad campaign budget ends, so does your visibility.
You already know what a user wants
Since users have already searched for a particular service or product, it is not necessary to try to convince them that they need the said product anymore. So no further effort needs to be put into acquiring customers. You just need to be ready with a good website that optimally presents the searched-for product or service.
SEO is the future
With globalization and digitalization growing steadily, the trend of looking for the right products and services is clearly heading toward online searching, as it has been for a long time. Even those who value in-person store visits still look on the internet beforehand to see where the store is and how long it is open. Generally speaking, more and more companies are investing in well-made online presences, even the mom-and-pop stores out in the boonies. SEO is a sustainable part of online marketing. Those who take advantage of the art of search engine optimization can say without a shadow of a doubt that they are investing in their future.
Successful search engine optimization needs to be learned. It requires expert skills in the area of online marketing and adequate familiarization with the subject. It’s best to engage an SEO manager to get the most out of your website and have good rankings; they are the masters of their craft and have the weaponry to go head-on into the intricate behind-the-scenes work, as well as the necessary time for this as well. Furthermore, it will be well worth it, since a good ranking means long-term success.
To be continued…
