Search Engine Optimization (SEO) - What is it and do you need it?

Statistics show there are over 3.5 billion online searches done each day. That is 40,000 per second and 1.2 trillion each year.

To grab the attention of internet users, you need to make your business website and content stand out. Doing this requires a marketing technique called search engine optimization or SEO for short.

What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimization or SEO is the technique of making your web pages stand out to search engines, which drive the internet. For example, when someone goes online to research new vehicles, they use some words to hone that search. Rather than search out “new cars,” they may look for “car dealerships near me” or even a specific type of vehicle, “Toyota.”

The SEO of your site is directly related to the visibility of your brand online. The closer you’re able to get to the top of the search engine results page (SERP), the more likely users will click through to your website.

 

How does SEO work?

You don’t need to be a website developer to understand how search engines work or SEO’s role in boosting your site rankings. Here is a brief overview of how search engines, like Google or Bing, discover and rank websites.

Search engines use web crawlers to scour the internet looking for web pages. They are constantly doing this so they can add more sites to their index. There are various ways that web crawlers identify new sites, such as following a link from a known site to a new, unknown site.

Once a new page has been discovered, the search engine analysis the content on the page, both text and non-text elements, to determine what it is about. This is one of the key roles that SEO plays. Using the right keywords, web crawlers will quickly determine what your page is about and where it should rank in search results.

Then, when a user types a phrase or keyword into the search engine, it will quickly analyze its index and list out the relevant websites for the user. This is called the SERP. The goal of the search engine is to offer up the highest quality and most relevant web content for users. They use various factors to determine the quality and relevancy of websites, such as language, backlinks, geographical location or local SEO, and device. So, for example, a user in the UK will get different results when they search for a flower shop than a person in the US looking up flower shops.

While SEO is not strictly a digital marketing tool, it plays a unique role in online marketing. Unlike other digital marketing methods, SEO is not a paid service. Search engines don’t accept payment for higher rankings. Instead, you need to earn top rank by creating high-quality and relevant content using keywords or phrases that searchers will type into the search engine.

Benefits of SEO

When done correctly, SEO can be a powerful digital marketing tool. Here are some of the main benefits of a solid SEO strategy:

Unpaid, organic search results – unlike paid advertising methods, SEO can get you results, help you build an audience, and improve sales, all without you having to spend anything on advertising. The key is to use the most relevant search terms and create high-quality content.

Reach ready-to-buy consumers – optimizing your websites can help your pages rank higher in searchers where users are looking to purchase a solution. In this way, you’ll have a ready market for your products and services.

Build your brand – getting first-page rankings can establish trust in your brand. It shows them that you’ve made a significant effort to consider their experience and needs, which is another way of saying you put the customer first.

Measurable – using analytics tools, you’ll be able to see the ROI your SEO efforts are earning you. An added benefit is that you can pick and choose what to track depending on what matters to you. For example, you can measure how many click-throughs your website gets from search engines, or you can track order completions to determine the success of your SEO strategy. Moreover, if you’re not getting the results you want, adjust your SEO technique.

Challenges of SEO

Getting your SEO strategy correct can take some time and effort. Some of the biggest hurdles you could face include:

Staying up-to-date - One of the biggest challenges for SEO is that search engines regularly update their algorithms. Google, Bing, and other search engines are constantly looking to improve the search results they offer to users. Unless you’re periodically checking your SEO efforts, you may get left behind.

Technical aspects – SEO is more than just using keywords and phrases in the text elements of your pages. You’ll also need to understand the role these terms play in elements like metadata, alt text, URLs, sitemaps, Javascript, etc.

Business buy-in – unfortunately, SEO is not always a priority for businesses. Although most people understand the importance of SEO, some may believe these SEO myths. Many times that means your SEO efforts take a backseat to other digital marketing endeavours. This can make it difficult to access the resources and budget needed to optimize your website.

Build the right SEO strategy with SOAP Media

Our digital marketing team are skilled SEO strategists. We know how to build the best optimization strategy to suit your business. As SEO experts, we stay on top of industry changes and cultivate the best practices. Contact us today and let us help you build a winning SEO approach to enhance your digital marketing efforts.