Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing the online content so that it is redirected to a website or a webpage from search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc. It targets unpaid traffic (also known as organic traffic). It may originate from different kinds of searches, including image search, video search, academic search, news search, and industry-specific vertical engines. SEO is an ongoing process.
With each new algorithm update, search engines strive to provide users with the best, most relevant content. Sites that do not keep themselves updated lose their position quickly.
Everything that one searches on the internet is via search engines, and with more than 90% of the total search engine market share, Google has the biggest market share. With the right SEO techniques, search engines help in redirecting users to a particular website or webpage.
Top positions on the Search Engine Result Pages (SERP) receive a majority of the impressions and clicks. Hence, ranking in the top positions helps increase significant amount of traffic to a website.
With the increasing usage of smartphones, there has been a significant rise in mobile searches. Google provides people with localized results, which helps boost small businesses. This also gives small businesses an opportunity to compete with larger businesses, provided that small businesses have the right SEO techniques in place.
SEO also focuses on creating informative and keyword-relevant title tags and meta descriptions, which help increase the click-through rate, ultimately increasing the web traffic.
A website should have expert views and opinions, should be authoritative, and should also be trustworthy. If it fulfils this criterion, it has high chances of ranking. This also helps in building a brand.
A good SEO strategy involves maintaining engaging social media profiles, posting informative blog articles, securing backlinks from authoritative sites and seeking online customer reviews. These help in improve authority. And as the brand is more and more visible on the internet, it generates more brand awareness.
Search engines work round-the-clock to gather information and data from the world’s websites. Engines organize that information so that it is easy to find. This is a three-step process – (i) crawling web pages (ii) indexing them (iii) ranking them with search algorithms.
There are two vital sides to SEO advertising – optimizing the website to make it more visible in organic searches supplemented with pay-per-click advertising
Together, they are the dynamic duo of marketing.
A website needs to include optimized content that not only reads well, but also sells, inspires, educates, and ultimately, gives people the necessary information to guide them through the buying process too.
To complete the positive user experience, the content should be presented in a manner that not only looks good, is easy-to-navigate, quick-to-load and mobile-friendly, but also easy for search engines to list and place it in top 5 search websites. SEO consists of rearranging the site’s architecture and links to make pages within the website easier to find and navigate.
Optimized blog posts and videos also help improve the ranking of websites.
As per research, the top 3 searches get the maximum clicks. And being on all-important first-page of the Search Engine Results pages (SERP) is very competitive.
Businesses also get extensive analysis of their competitors, the online marketplace and buyer behavior.
SEO is a cost-effective marketing tool as it targets users who are actively looking for products and services online. SEO’s inbound nature helps businesses save money as opposed to outbound strategies like cold-calling. And since SEO also targets users who are actively searching for particular products and services, the traffic resulting from SEO is more qualified than many other marketing strategies, thus increasing the savings of the business.
SEO provides trackable and quantifiable results. SEO companies have specialists who are able to track nearly every aspect of their SEO strategy – like increase in rankings or traffic or conversions. A more detailed analysis can also show demographic information and other engagement metrics for individuals who have interacted with a particular website.
Search engines keep filtering out poor content, and providing users with the best possible content and experience. To ensure optimum ranking, businesses hire an SEO specialist with proven experience, so as to keep getting a ranking despite the changing algorithms.
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