Marketing can feel like a never-ending cycle that doesn’t get the results you’re hoping for. If this sounds like where you’re at, ask yourself if you’re focusing on the right marketing forms.
Did you know that 80 percent of all major purchases are started (and often completed) online? Or that more than half of all website traffic is now organic?
To boost organic traffic, companies must focus on search engine optimization. But what is that?
Learn the most essential things to know before getting started with SEO in our guide to search engine optimization 101. Continue reading below.
What Is Search Engine Optimization?
Search engine optimization, also known as SEO, is a type of marketing that focuses on bringing in organic traffic. “Organic” traffic (or brand exposure) is any that isn’t paid for. Most SEO focuses on bringing in a targeted audience via keywords, content, and specific website elements.
Creating Better SEO Results
The concept of search engine optimization is simple. By targeting specific, relevant keywords, you’ll bring in the right customers. By focusing on elements (like user experience) and ranking high in Google, you’ll bring more of those right customers in.
Creating a solid SEO plan, however, isn’t easy. It takes a lot of research, time, and effort to produce the results most companies are looking for. Most companies would agree that time and effort are well worthwhile.
A few things your company can do to get started with creating better SEO results includes:
- Research keywords for your industry or products
- Target those keywords in articles, website copy, and videos
- Find reputable blog sites to post guest blogs on
- Create as many quality, relevant backlinks as possible
- Improve the usability of your experience
- Make your website user-friendly (by especially making navigation easy)
- Target local search results if you have one or more physical locations
There are many other things you can do to create better SEO results for your company. However, the above will be a fantastic starting point to build off.
Hire a Professional or Go It Alone?
For most companies, it makes more sense to hire an SEO expert specifically for this part of the marketing campaign. Why? It’s time-consuming, and the way search engines rank websites or web pages is constantly evolving.
The real choice is whether to hire someone to work in-house or hire an agency. This is a personal decision with no right or wrong answer.
Generally, you’ll want to see if the amount of SEO you plan warrants a full-time employee. If it doesn’t, hiring an agency or freelancer becomes the better option.
More Questions About Search Engine Optimization 101?
Search engine optimization is a type of marketing that focuses on organic traffic. While the concept is simple, it takes a lot of time and effort to create solid SEO results. It’s highly recommended companies hire a professional to handle this portion of their marketing campaigns whenever possible.
Do you have more questions about search engine optimization 101?
Read our other blogs. You’ll find articles on SEO, marketing, and other similar topics to help you dive deeper into the subject.
