SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. To put it simply, SEO is a process for getting more traffic to your website. When you’ve done a search for something online, did you ever wonder why certain websites are at the top of the list, and others aren’t? That has to do with Search Engine Optimization. Those websites at the top of the first page of results have used SEO to improve their search ranking, while the websites on the second page and beyond could use some help.
What Does SEO Look Like?
You encounter SEO tactics every day while you’re online.
If you search for a business, and in the top 5 search results you see…
1) their website’s home page
2) their website’s about page
3) their Facebook page
4) a Wikipedia page about them
5) a YellowPages.com listing for them
…then you’re witnessing SEO in action.
The links that are included in the Wikipedia page and YellowPages.com listing are backlinks, and are telling Google that your website is legit and worth finding.
Backlinks – A link to your website that’s located on someone else’s site. This could be a blogger linking to your site as they talk about your services, or a listing on Yelp.com. Having your links on other reputable websites will improve your SEO and search ranking.
The key to great SEO is making sure that your website is talking to the search engines. We don’t mean that your website calls up Google (or any other search engine) for a chat, but instead that you’re putting your website out into the world wide web as much as possible so Google see it a lot. The more a search engine sees your website, the better your ranking in search results will be.
Having a great Search Engine Optimization plan will improve your reputation, and get you found more often by potential clients and customers.
Author: Joseph Poirier
Joe built his first website in 2003. Way back then, he moved his Real Estate company into email marketing and then social media marketing on MySpace – yes, you read that right – MySpace. Since then, he’s stayed immersed with all digital marketing channels and is a guru at ‘all things Google.’ Analytics, SEO and simplifying/optimizing complex sales funnels are his passions in the digital world, while his daughter, fishing, and various non-profits rule his free time.