SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the way companies or content creators send signals to search engines in order to make their pages easier to find in Google’s index.
Google’s algorithms give each website and keyword search a certain score to determine which websites should rank higher than others when it comes to matching the keywords people use to find information.
Search engine optimization can be a complicated process to master, but in terms of marketing, SEO is highly important. Without it, businesses will likely fail to reach the top of the search engine results pages due to receiving low rankings. Proper SEO strategies are crucial to improve brand visibility.
SEO in Marketing
Words matter when it comes to search engine optimization, especially as far as small businesses are concerned. This is because it’s impossible to optimize web content without being aware of what customers are typing into the search bar.
While using common sense and guessing useful keywords that pertain to one’s business is one method companies can use to predict the keywords that customers will be searching for, it is better to work with more reliable techniques.
Combining search engine metrics and analytics with the application of natural language processing can greatly aid businesses when it comes to choosing which keywords they’d like to use to improve site visibility.
For example, if a bakery in Portland wants to stand out above the competition, it would be in the owner’s best interest to examine related keyword analytics. If “portland bakery” is one of the most popular search terms available, but it’s being utilized by every other bakery in the city, the owner might want to choose keywords that are a little less popular, but also much less competitive, like “downtown portland bakery”.
How Businesses Are Benefiting from SEO Marketing
Businesses benefit from SEO marketing in several ways. For one, businesses that pay close attention to popular SEO keywords are aware of what terms their target audience is searching for, which makes them more aware of what customers want most.
In addition, being aware of what’s commonly searched allows companies to model their content after these terms. By utilizing popular SEO keywords in web page content, companies are able to receive significant organic traffic to their websites.
The more organic traffic a site receives, the more organic traffic a website will continue to receive as long as the content therein is of high quality. This is because search engines tend to give higher rankings to sites that see regular organic traffic and keep visitors on their pages for a significant length of time.
Pay Attention To SEO in Marketing
By following SEO protocols and working with online natural language processing software, it becomes easier to conform to SEO ranking requirements. Among the many steps that can be taken in order to improve SEO rankings, a few of the simplest methods are as follows:
- Be sure to use alt text. When adding images to your pages, it’s crucial to create meta descriptions of these images. Do not leave the meta description as the original file title of the image.
- Utilize search engine keywords in your content. While it isn’t ideal to pack keywords into your content, it is a good idea to use them a few times throughout the headings and body of the piece you’re publishing.
- Search result meta descriptions are key. Do not ignore meta descriptions as these short introductions to your web pages will be the first information that a potential customer sees when deciding whether to click on your link.
- Create frequent, unique content. Do not attempt to trick the algorithm by posting duplicate content to your web pages, because this tactic may result in SEO-related penalties rather than benefits.
- Use honest, organic keywords. Do not attempt to insert keywords that do not match the content you’re producing. While irrelevant keywords may initially attract an audience, it’s of no use when the visitor quickly navigates away from your pages feeling tricked.
- Create content for your audience, not for search engines. While it’s important to comply with search engine algorithms, your content should not be created as if the search engine is your audience. Make sure that the information you present sounds like it was created by a human writer for a human audience.
Because SEO is constantly changing and evolving in order to bring users the most relevant search results possible, it can be complicated to master the art of search engine optimization for business marketing. Fortunately, though it may take time and effort, properly utilizing SEO techniques can greatly improve a brand’s visibility and increase the steady flow of organic traffic that a company’s web pages receive.
If you’re struggling to implement SEO strategies into your company’s marketing strategy, we are here to help. At Automated Dreams, our team of marketing experts can answer all of your questions about SEO and help your company develop a working SEO strategy that will improve your ranking and expand your business. Book a free call with us to learn more. We can’t wait to hear from you.
