Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

You can create a website with all the information anyone looking for your products or services needs, but without search engine optimization (SEO), search engines such as Google, Duck Duck Go and Bing won’t find and list your site. Additionally, if you don’t use SEO properly, the search engines will list your site so far down that most people won’t find it. You want your website on the first three pages – ultimately on the first page.

SEO, SEM and PPC

Search engine marketing (SEM) and pay-per-click (PPC) are two additional methods of digital marketing. SEM is an umbrella term that encompasses SEO and PPC. Thus, SEO is one part of SEM, and PPC is the other part of SEM. SEO drives organic traffic to your site, while PPC drives paid traffic to your site – you pay for a listing spot on search engines in the hopes that searchers will click your site.

When you use PPC, the search engines charge you every time someone clicks on your link. You bid on keywords and key phrases, so there is no one price for PPC – it depends on the keywords and phrases you want. If you don’t pick the correct keywords and phrases, your ad will be lower on the search engine results page (SERP).

The Importance of SEO

According to Search Engine Land, organic searches – non-pay-per-click results – deliver 53 percent of website traffic. People consider these “real” business results as opposed to someone who might not be interested in your product or service clicking on a link just because it’s at the top of the page. Your goal is to improve visibility – rank higher in the search engine result pages than your competition.

Types of SEO

SEO is not just for digital marketing. A website builder optimizes the technical aspects of your site, while a content writer or content marketer optimizes the content you want on your website. You must also take into consideration off-site SEO – your brand. Increasing brand awareness also helps increase your bottom line.

Your off-site SEO should match your on-site SEO. If someone uses your business because of a referral, a drive-by and try, or otherwise find it without searching for it, he or she may want more information. When your online brand package looks identical to your offline brand package, the searcher knows he found you.