The acronym “SEO” stands for Search Engine Optimization. If you research what it is, you’ll find a lot of definitions. In fact, if you ask 10 different SEO professionals, you’ll likely get at least 10 different answers. Here’s mine:
“SEO is the marketing practice of altering website content for discovery, improved visibility, and use by search engines.”
Okay… and what do I mean by that?
Discovery – Is your stuff being found by the search engines in the first place? Is it being discovered by Google? Bing? what about platforms like Facebook and Instagram? What about virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, Cortana, and Google Now? Simply posting content on the web doesn’t mean that it will magically be found by the various search engines your potential customers are using. Search engines add things that they have discovered to their own databases, and if you’re not being discovered, you won’t be in those databases, and you won’t be shown to search engine users.
Altering content using SEO techniques can help ensure your content is being dicovered by the search engines.
Visibility – Is your stuff being shown to searchers? Being found by search engines is just the first step. With over a billion websites on the web today, search engines have a lot of options when they need to answer user queries. You need to make sure that your content is being made visible to your potential customers when and where they’re seeking information.
Altering content using SEO techniques can help search engines match your content to user queries, making it visible to them.
Use – How and where is your stuff being shown? When your content is displayed to searchers, how does it look aesthetically? If you have product images, logos, ratings, reviews, steps, teaser content, videos, audio clips, etc. are those things displayed in a way that draws customers to visit your website? To buy from you? How are search engines using your content in their various search results?
Altering content using SEO techniques can help search engines display your content in the very best light, using specific signals from you about how, when, and where you want that content to be used.
If you have questions about SEO or would like to learn more about how it could help you, check out our free guide, “5 Most Common SEO Mistakes Businesses Make.”
If you want to discuss your specific situation, feel free to schedule a free 15 minute consultation.
