SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and is the process of positioning your website on the Internet where it will be easily found by someone searching for the services or products your offer. Sounds easy enough until you consider:
The number of websites added to Internet has increased from 185.5 million at the beginning of 2009 to 231.5 million in April 2009—an increase by 46 million in just four months. This four month increase exceeds the number of websites added in the entire 2008 year when the number of websites increased by 29.9 million. Source: Netcraft
WHY SEO MATTERS
Gone are the days where a yellow page listing, newspaper ad, or brochures are enough to bring prospects to your door. In today’s technology-driven digital world, consumers turn to the Internet, the blogosphere and social media sites to search and identify the products and services they seek.
According to MarketingSherpa’s research study, today:
- Search plays a dominant role in the consumer buying process
- Search is most likely to be used during the early or mid research phase of the buying cycle
- Online research generally happens at 30-60 days prior to an actual buy decision
- Organic search draws between 70-80% of the click-throughs
- Over 60% of the click-throughs come from the top search engine result listings
The challenge for most businesses—the sheer volume of information available to your targeted prospects on the Internet. This is where SEO comes into play—helping consumers find the proverbial “needle in a haystack”—your website. By employing SEO best practices and tactics continually, you enhance your website’s ability of being ranked as “relevant” within search engine results for key search terms and thus the probability prospects will find your website.
HOW SEO WORKS
SEO is the ongoing process of identifying targeted keywords and search terms your prospects are using to find the products and services your offer; and then “optimizing” your website so it ranks high or “relevant” for these keywords and search terms according to search engines, blogs and social media sites. Optimizing your website falls into four categories:
1. Identifying and selecting appropriate keywords and search terms
2. Website factors including architecture, page titles, URLs and unique content*
3. Off Website factors like the type and number of inbound or back links**
4. Tracking, analyzing and adjusting items 1-3
*Updated, relevant content helps maintain your relevancy within search engine results
**Most important factor determining relevance of your website’s ranking within search engine results
For additional information on how you can optimize your website to improve your Search Engine placement please visit Affordable Web Design.