If you have a business in 2019, you need an online presence.
For your online presence to have an impact, you need SEO.
But what is SEO, how does it work and is it worth investing in? At 123Ranking we’ve been in business for 18 years and know how to get your site ranking for those coveted first page positions.
We’ve put together this Beginner’s Guide to SEO to help you get started in understanding the basics. Once you’re ready to learn more, we’ve created an infographic below to help you take that next step and dive into the A to Z of SEO.
What Is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation. It is the process of making sure that your site is easy to understand for search bots, so that they can find the relevant information and show your site to searchers who want to engage with it.
Search Engine Optimisation also optimises your site based on the ranking factors that Google uses to order websites in search. This includes factors like loading speed, security and high quality content.
What is SEO Marketing?
Searching online is one of the primary ways that people find services and products that they want. Optimising your site to rank better in Google searches makes it easier for searchers to find your site and discover your services. This is one of the best ways of marketing your business and we would recommend all businesses invest in SEO as part of their marketing strategy.
How does SEO Work?
So how do you actually do SEO and how can you improve the SEO on your site?
SEO works by considering all of the factors that Google uses to rank. It is usually split into onpage and off page SEO.
What is On-page SEO?
On-page SEO deals with working on the back end of your site, so that search bots can easily navigate your site and understand it’s it. It also focuses on providing fresh, high quality content, and clear information.
What is Off-page SEO?
Off-page SEO looks at work that can be done outside of your website, that will improve your ranking positions in search. Sites which have a high number of backlinks, also known as incoming links, from good quality, relevant websites, are seen as more authoritative to a search engine. For this reason, high quality link research and acquisition is crucial to off-page SEO, and can take many forms.
How does SEO Help Your Business?
SEO makes your site more visible in search, for relevant terms. This connects searchers with your site, and drives more relevant traffic to your business. SEO can therefore be a great way to increase customers, business and revenue.
Do I Need an SEO Company?
SEO is a science, not an art, and there are plenty of resources online to help you get started. Making small changes such as increasing your content, making your site easier to navigate and improving the security is likely to see improvements in ranking.
However the world of search is competitive and ever-changing. Research shows that most searchers don’t look past the first five results, and that the first page of results accounts for 95% of search traffic. SEO is also an investment of your time, which means taking you away from the day to day runnings of your business. It is often more worthwhile to invest in an SEO team who can provide proven results, rather than wasting your valuable time testing out different SEO techniques.
Now you know the basics you’re ready to learn more. Don’t let the jargon slow you down, check out our infographic below and you’ll see that understanding SEO is as easy as ABC!
