SEO is an acronym which you might increasingly hear in business circles. It stands for “search engine optimization.” We can define SEO as the process of increasing website traffic, both in terms of numbers and quality, through search engine results. In this article, we are going to discuss some of the basic facets of SEO for business.
Only Organic
Before we go any further, let’s make something clear. SEO does not usually concern the Google advertisements that you might see at the top and side of a search engine result page. These are paid advertising slots. SEO relates to the organic listings that Google ranks according to its algorithm; an algorithm that we are constantly trying to understand the workings of! While there are other search engines such as Bing and Yahoo!, Google accounts for the overwhelming share of search engine visits.
Understand Your Audience
So, how to go about creating an effective SEO strategy for your business? Like any other marketing activity, you need to understand your audience. What are your potential customers typing into Google when they look for the product or service that you provide? Once you know what answers they want to find, and the words that they use, you will be best placed to structure an effective SEO campaign.
Keyword Research
Next, you should compile a keyword list. During this research process, you’ll be gaining a better understanding of the language which is used on search engines to find your business. You could start by listing important topics around your product or service, and come up with keywords for each topic. These should be based around intent, meaning an understanding of what potential buyers enter into Google when they are researching your product or service and are considering making a purchase. Use keyword research technology such as Ahrefs or SEMRush to your advantage.
Content Is King
Now you have identified your keywords, you can begin to build the content that has the potential to fire you up the Google rankings for given search results. Remember, your content should be there to engage and carry your keywords naturally. The content that you create– be it blogs, guides, or news articles– does not necessarily need to be directly related to your product or service, so long as it is relevant. Whether your content is all about fun and humor, directed to a family audience, or a B2B crowd, you should only create original content, and not copy and paste from anyone else’s site. The current consensus is that Google places a value on content that addresses questions or problems, and so FAQ type pieces can work well.
Page Optimization
In many respects, SEO is about ticking off best practices. Is your website fully optimized? As a matter of course, you should seek to go through your page title and meta descriptions, ensuring that they contain the right keywords. Also, pay attention to the structure of your content, using H1, H2, and H3 headings containing keywords that can also have the right SEO effect.