Many business owners, at one point or another, need to face the fact that they will need to approach the digital marketing arena. This can be especially daunting if they have no experience in it.
They'll hear terms such as biddable media, content marketing, affiliate marketing, and terms like SEO. Some may seem familiar, or they can assume from the name of the marketing hype, but then there are others, such as SEO, that come across as completely foreign to them.

What exactly is SEO?

Within the world of digital marketing, SEO is one of the most important pieces to focus on because, eventually, it will operate in a way where users will be able to find you organically and free of cost.
However, before we get to the point of how it happens, let's look at what it is. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. While this sounds very technical, and parts of it are, it's really a tool to help your website be found by the common search engines out there. Each search engine has its own optimization rules, but the primary search engine many focus on is also the most popular, which is Google Search.
SEO is unique as it's a mix between strategic thinking and implementation combined with a consistent maintenance mentality. That means it's an ongoing project to help not only initially start ranking on google searches but also to maintain those rankings and keep your market advantage.
The ranking here is related to where you rank when certain keywords or phrases are used to search in the search console on Google Search or other search engines. There are only so many options that can appear on the first page, and that's what the focus is when it comes to SEO.
You want to optimize your site so much that every time someone searches for something that is related to you and/or your business, they will find your site first. Because of this, people will tend to click on your site more, which can help grow your site traffic and increase conversions.

How can I improve my SEO?

There are multiple ways to help improve SEO, and the one thing to note is that SEO marketing is all about consistency. Unfortunately, it also takes some time to see the results of the efforts put into SEO, so it requires a sense of patience as well. Common time frames to see improvements in your search rankings take anywhere between three to six months.

Content is your friend

The first way to be able to improve your SEO rankings is to publish content regularly. It's not just any kind of content but needs to be quality content that's set up in specific ways. The quality of the article and the authority come from the use of keywords or keyword phrases. These are the words that you will constantly be using throughout your content that the search engine looks for when it tries to determine ranking.
Don't use too many keywords, and really make sure to focus on your industry or niche. For example, if you’re making pizza dough, make sure to use keywords such as pizza, dough, how to make pizza dough, and other relevant keywords that you would be able to write about consistently with the same core words.
You want to repeat these keywords or phrases throughout the content multiple times. Also, you want to pay attention to headers such as H1 or H2 headings as that helps to break up your content, but it also is important when improving your ranking.

Update your content regularly

Not only do you need to produce a consistent flow of content, but you also need to track the age of the content as well. That's right; these systems will be able to notice if the content starts to become stale and if your authority on the topic is still strong. The refresh rate for this content is also every three to six months. You either want to replace it with a completely new piece of content or take the existing content and simply refresh it with updated, relevant keywords.
Keep in mind that it's better to remove several years old content, as they may start to negatively affect your ranking, as your whole site ends up being under review, and those parts that aren't updated may no longer be relevant.

Metadata

This is where many seem to get a bit lost, as it can be a bit technical. Metadata or meta tagging is all about putting the same relevant keywords you're putting into your content, hardcoded directly into your website. This happens on the website code level and is meant to be on every page of the site. Those visiting your site will never see Metadata normally, but the web crawlers reviewing your site and assigning ranking will look for these.
There are different types of metadata, from title metadata to description metadata which is like a short bio of your whole site. Either way, this falls into the same scheme of consistency, meaning that they need to be reviewed, edited, and updated regularly to maintain relevance.

How it affects your business

While there are more components to SEO, and even the content above has its own nuances, it’s important to get back to why you, as a small business owner, will need this. Having a proper SEO strategy ends up saving money in the long run and helps to alleviate oversized marketing budgets. While you’re building your digital presence, SEO marketing helps to bring traffic to your site for free. This is known as organic traffic.
Organic traffic itself is high-quality traffic because these users are actively looking in your realm, and you may have a product or service that may end up covering their needs. With active leads, it takes a lot fewer resources and efforts to eventually help to convert them over. This means reduced marketing costs in other areas as well, and more focus can be given to pushing for organic traffic that’s of a much higher quality anyway.

Work with experts

Regardless of what your thoughts on SEO are, and even if your website is only primarily informational, you're going to find yourself facing it when you start building out your digital presence. Therefore, it's always a good idea to not only work with a professional who can handle the required content and updates but to ensure that there's a long enough relationship built there so your business will be able to see those results.
In addition, working with a professional on your SEO strategy, such as ourselves, will mean you'll also cover other aspects of SEO strategies and tips. These include ensuring description links, working towards getting backlinks, and ensuring alt tagging on photos or videos, which is often forgotten.
Get yourself working with us now, so you can focus on your business and growing it while we focus on building out your digital presence strength with our expertise. You'll thank yourself later when you start getting more of those types of clients who have been looking for your products or services all along.