In today’s digital age, search engines like Google have become the go-to source of information for many people. Whether they’re looking for a local restaurant or researching a new product, people turn to search engines to find what they need.
As a result, businesses have recognized the importance of showing up at the top of the search engine results, and that’s where search engine optimization (SEO) marketing comes into play.
What is SEO marketing?
SEO marketing is a crucial component of digital marketing that helps businesses improve their website’s visibility in search engine results. This is accomplished by optimizing webpages to make them more easily understood and evaluated by search engines like Google. Doing so can increase your website’s ranking in search results, making it more likely that potential customers will find you when searching for related terms.
Why is SEO marketing important?
To run a successful website, it’s essential to ensure that potential customers can find your products or content. According to statistics, 49% of shoppers use Google search to find or discover a new item. Therefore, it’s crucial to prioritize your site’s visibility in the search engine results page (SERP).
Even if your website looks great, low search rankings can make it difficult for visitors to find you. By following a solid SEO strategy, you can improve your visibility and attract more targeted traffic, ultimately leading to increased sales and customer satisfaction.
Types of SEO marketing
SEO marketing typically comprises the following three activities:
On-page SEO
On-page SEO covers optimizing content, like text, images, and videos, to help visitors and search engines understand what it implies. Google and other search engines analyze certain on-page SEO factors to determine content quality and rank websites in SERPs.
Examples of important on-page SEO factors include meta information, webpage slug URL, images, and topic and keyword relevance.
Off-page SEO
SEO marketing involves much more than just optimizing the content on your website. Another important component you should focus on is off-page SEO, which involves building backlinks on other websites that point to your site.
By obtaining more relevant, high-quality backlinks, you can increase your website’s domain authority and show search engines that your site is reputable and trustworthy.
Technical SEO
Technical SEO involves making changes in the back end of your website to help boost its search performance. Technical SEO aims to boost site speed and optimize webpages for mobile users. Overall, it helps search engine crawlers index your site better.
Four SEO marketing tactics
Ready to climb higher in search results? With an understanding of what SEO marketing is, it’s time to explore some core tactics.
1. Keyword research
Keyword research sets the tone for SEO marketing activities. You want to find and target keywords your target audience is using. No matter how great the products in your store, customers may not come across them online if you’re not targeting the right search keywords.
You can use a keyword research tool like Ahrefs or Keywords Everywhere to generate keyword ideas that may work for your business. Ideally, you should select keywords that have enough volume to drive significant traffic, but not so much competition that you’re locked in a battle with companies like Amazon. Make a list of relevant keywords, then narrow down your list based on what makes sense for your site.
2. Competitive analysis
If you’re aiming to improve your visibility in search engines, knowing which keywords to target is only half the battle. The next crucial step is understanding your competitors’ SEO strategies and finding ways to outperform them.
To start, you can identify your competitors’ top-performing pages and examine the sources of their organic traffic. The same keyword research tools will come in handy for competitive analysis. With the insights you gain into their content tactics, you can craft a more effective SEO approach that helps your website stand out to search engine algorithms.
For instance, if a competitor is generating significant traffic via an educational blog post or TikTok, you can use this information to inform your content strategy as you build your online presence.
3. Image optimization
While you might primarily focus on your site’s written content, search engines also crawl and rank your images. To ensure you don’t miss out on the traffic generated via image searches, optimize your images by incorporating your keywords into their file names and alt attributes.
Also, ensure to use the optimum file format and size for your images. Large images can affect the visitor experience of your site, since they have long load times. To ensure your website loads fast for users and search engines, use a plug-in or app that automatically compresses site images.
4. Link building
Link building can boost your search engine rankings by leveraging the authority of other websites. To generate links for your site, start by establishing your presence on social media platforms and local business directories. These links, though basic, can build a foundation for your search engine rankings.
Once you have a strong foundation, you can start reaching out to relevant websites or news outlets your audience frequents. If you have subject-matter expertise, you can pitch a blog post that includes a link back to your website. Launching a PR campaign is another option.
Try different link building methods and double down on tactics that give you the most lift in search engine results.
Reaping the benefits of SEO marketing
SEO marketing has a lot to offer to businesses. With its ability to improve online visibility, attract more traffic, and ultimately drive more business, it is an essential tool for staying competitive in today’s digital landscape. Don’t wait any longer to start reaping the benefits of SEO marketing for your business—take the first step today and see how it can improve your overall visibility.
SEO marketing FAQ
What does SEO stand for in marketing?
SEO stands for search engine optimization. It’s a process marketers use to signal to search engines that their website pages are valuable enough to appear in organic search results.
What is SEO in digital marketing?
SEO in digital or online marketing involves optimizing your website to increase organic traffic. To achieve this, you can create new content that targets specific keywords, tweak your website’s pages to improve search engine rankings, and simplify your navigation to be more easily understood by search engine crawlers.
How do I start SEO?
- Identify keywords with good search volume
- Understand the search intent behind those keywords
- Craft content that meets the search intent
- Publish content in a blog post or webpage
- Build links to your post or page
