- SEO 101 -The Basics Every Small Business Owner Should Know
It is essential for every small business owner to have a basic knowledge of search engine optimization or SEO. Almost every customer is using information they find from their search engine results page to help them decide which products or services to actually purchase.It is essential for every small business owner to have a basic knowledge of search engine optimization or SEO. Almost every customer is using information they find from their search engine results page to help them decide which products or services to actually purchase. If you want to be one of those brands that they see and consider, you have to understand how SEO works so you can take advantage of the many opportunities it can open up for you.
You don’t have to be a tech whiz to implement SEO for your small business. Knowing the basics can help you go a long way. Here are the things you need to know about search engine optimization:
SEO
Basically, SEO or search engine optimization is the process of aligning your website to the standards and recommendations of search engines to increase your visibility from search engine results and consequently drive more traffic to your website.
Web pages, videos, and listings are shown on search results based on what the search engine considers most relevant to the users. This relevancy is determined by search engine algorithms. While the exact algorithms are not made publicly accessible, there are several online resources detailing what can help or hurt your rankings.
SERP
SERP stands for search engine results page, which is the actual listing or ranking order that an end user is provided with after they have made a search. SERP is directly connected to SEO because implementing good SEO practices results to a strong SERP score. As a small business owner, you should be focusing on SERP and one of your goals should be to rank as high as possible on various search engine results pages.
Keywords
Keywords and phrases are what users enter in their search for particular products or services. Google Adwords is a very helpful online tool that allows you to determine which keywords are popular among your target audience. While it is important to have relevant keywords in your webcontent, make sure that you also provide original, high quality content that your readers will find useful. Search engines prioritize user experience, and having all the keywords in your content will not help your ranking if you have poorly constructed content that does not add any value to your site visitors. It is also helpful to sign up for SEO training that will broaden your understanding of this concept for a more efficient internet marketing strategy.
Social Media and SEO
Having a solid social media presence helps with SEO. Search engines prioritize businesses that are always talked about positively by users. It will be helpful for your business for you to create a profile on all social media channels that are appropriate for your industry, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and regularly engage with your target audience through posts, likes, replying to comments and private messages, and sharing relevant posts from your followers.
Quality Content
As mentioned earlier, providing high quality content on your site is very important in SEO. Create pages with your target audience in mind and avoid tricks that are intended to fool search engine algorithms, such as keyword jamming. Focus on creating content that is relevant and engaging, and that will differentiate your brand from your competitors.
Understanding the basic tenets of SEO will help your business become relevant and searchable, which will consequently increase traffic to your website and your customer base.
Michelle Rubio is an experienced SEO copywriter and blogger since 2010. She has been working with various businesses, big and small, in the United States, UK, Canada, and Australia. You can see more of her works and experiences in her LinkedIn profile.
