If you’ve been hanging out on the web for a while, you’ve probably heard the term “SEO” used at some point.

Unless you’re operating a business online or running a blog, SEO probably doesn’t apply to you. But, if you are running a business or blog online, understanding SEO is important to its success.

Luckily, you’re in the right place!

This article will cover the basics of SEO, including what it is, how it works, and why it matters for your business and online marketing strategy.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

What is SEO?

SEO, or search engine optimization, is a strategy that optimizes a website to improve its visibility on search engines like Google.

There are many moving parts to an effective SEO strategy, including—but not limited to—creating high-quality content, optimizing content with keywords, and building backlinks.

The whole goal is to improve a site’s rankings in organic (non-paid) search results. The higher a site ranks, the better chance it has of attracting traffic and making conversions.

How Does SEO Work?

Keywords tend to come to mind first when SEO is mentioned. Keywords and keyword phrases are critical for getting content to appear in search results. Using them effectively helps Google know what a piece of content is about and its relevancy to user searches.

For example, let’s say you’re considering building a new home.

Since you’re entirely new to the process, you’ll probably want to do some research to better understand what to expect. So, you head to Google and type “what to expect when building a home” into the search bar.

Google will then scan over a billion pages of content to find the best, most relevant results. Each result is ranked according to how relevant it is to the keywords searched, which determines where (which page) the result appears.

So, how does Google decide what qualifies as the “best” result?

While the inner workings of the Google algorithm aren’t public knowledge, we know that rankings are based on three important factors: relevancy, authority, and usefulness.

• Relevancy: How closely a result matches the searcher’s intent

• Authority: How accurate and trustworthy the content is

• Usefulness: How users interact with the content on that page (user experience)

The more optimized your content is for these elements, the better it will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs).

Why SEO Matters for Your Business

SEO plays a significant role in how Google determines what sites and content appear in search results. For most people, the goal is to appear in the coveted #1 spot—and it’s easy to see why:

Google’s #1 organic search result has an average click-through-rate (CTR) of 39% and is 10x more likely to be clicked than a result in the #10 spot. (Backlinko)

With billions of websites and pages of content, making it to the #1 spot isn’t easy. The next best thing is for your site to appear on the first page of results.

If your content ranks on the first page, it has a much higher chance of a user clicking through to your site. In fact, less than 1% of users will click on a result from the second page of Google.

Sites that appear higher in search results are seen as more credible, which is pretty important.

Many facets of consumer purchasing happen online these days. Even if they’re not completing a transaction online, consumers are still doing research, reading reviews, and checking out your business or product's credibility.

People ultimately want to buy from sources they trust. If a consumer sees your company’s website at the top of a Google search, it gives your business an automatic credibility boost.

Benefits of SEO for your business include:

• Build credibility and trust

• Increase click-through-rates and drive website traffic

• Provide a better user experience

• Improve user engagement

• Generate leads and increase conversions

• Create brand awareness

Making it a point to utilize an effective SEO strategy is one of the best things you can do for your business.

The return on investment (ROI) is truly impressive, especially when you take into account that you can easily put SEO tactics in place without spending a dime.

“SEO is also one of the only online marketing channels that, when set up correctly, can continue to pay dividends over time. If you provide a solid piece of content that deserves to rank for the right keywords, your traffic can snowball over time, whereas advertising needs continuous funding to send traffic to your site.” (Moz)

Parting Thoughts

One of the most important things to remember about SEO is that it takes time to yield results. Nothing happens overnight, but the long-term advantages can be exponential.

If you want to reap the benefits that come from a high-performing site, SEO and content marketing should be a priority. With an emphasis on content optimization and user experience, you can improve brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, and boost revenue by increasing conversions.

That said, implementing SEO strategies can be overwhelming. Working with an experienced SEO strategist and content marketer can take the pressure off.

If you’d like to prioritize SEO strategies in your business but aren’t sure where to start, feel free to get in touch.

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