In today’s world, SEO is one of the most important aspects of online business. Without proper SEO, you may not even get noticed by potential customers. However, if you want to know what SEO is, then read on!
How do Search Engines Work?
A search engine is a tool used to retrieve information from millions of websites and databases around the globe. When someone types in a keyword into a search box, a list of links appears. These links represent websites that match the keywords typed in. For instance, if someone was searching for ‘best shoes’, they would be presented with a list of links that contain those words. Clicking on any link takes them to another website.
Each time someone clicks on a link, their computer sends out a request to the server hosting that website asking whether there is anything new. Once the server has received the request, it checks the database and returns either a response containing text or a picture.
This process repeats itself over and over again until all the requests have been processed. At this point, the search engine displays the results.
What Is an Organic Search?
Organic search is the natural way for people to discover things on the internet. There are two main components to organic search: keywords and backlinks.
Keywords
When someone enters a search term into a search bar, the search engine looks for the presence of certain keywords. Keywords are usually found in titles, headings, subheadings, meta descriptions, alt tags, and body copy. They should reflect the topic of the page being indexed.
Backlinks
Backlinks are links pointing back to your website from other websites. Backlinks are essential for SEO because they indicate that others think highly enough of your website to place it in front of visitors.
Core Elements of SEO
On-Page SEO
On-page means something written directly into the HTML code of your website. On-page SEO includes such things as title tags, meta description tags, image alt tags, internal linking, and page speed.
Title Tags
The title tag is one of the most powerful pieces of on-page SEO. A good title tag tells the search engine exactly what the page is about. The title tag should be between 60 and 80 characters long and should describe the contents of the page.
Meta Description Tags
The meta description tag is another piece of on-page SEO that helps define the purpose of the page. Meta description tags are only visible to the visitor, but they play an important role in determining whether a person clicks on the link or not.
Image Alt Tags
An image alt tag is a short description of the image displayed when someone hovers over it. An alt tag can be very helpful in providing context to the image, making it easier for screen readers to navigate the page.
Internal Links
Links inside your website are considered internal links. Internal links allow you to connect related topics together. Internal links are extremely valuable because they provide additional context for the reader.
Off-Page SEO
Off-Page SEO refers to activities that take place off of your website. These activities may involve things like social media sharing, press releases, guest blogging, reviews, and citations.
When someone performs an action on your behalf – whether it’s signing up for a newsletter, clicking a link, or commenting on one of your posts – it’s referred to as an ‘actionable signal’. When another person shares something about your business on their own blog or social media account, it’s considered an ‘unactionable signal’, since they aren’t doing anything on your behalf.
For example, if I share a post about you on my Facebook profile, it’s not really going to benefit you unless you actually follow me on Facebook. However, if I write a review about your product on Amazon, then it becomes more valuable to you.
You want to do everything you can to get unactionable signals. For example, if you run a restaurant, you might consider writing a guest post on a food blog. Not only does this provide value to them, but it also gives you the chance to mention your brand name.
Another way to generate unactionable signals is to create a free giveaway. People love free stuff! They’ll sign up for your mailing list just to get a free t-shirt.
By generating these types of signals, you’re increasing the likelihood that someone will notice your business.
How Does SEO Work?
There are two main ways that search engines determine which websites should appear near the top of a SERP.
First, there’s the algorithm. Algorithms are rules that search engines use to decide which websites should show up near the top of a search results page. There are many different algorithms used by each search engine, including Google, Bing, Yahoo!, Baidu, Yandex, and DuckDuckGo.
Second, there’s human intervention. Humans manually review the websites that appear near the top of the search results page. Once again, there are many different humans who review websites. Some of these reviewers are employed full time while others work freelance.
It’s important to note that neither of these methods is 100% accurate. Neither the algorithm nor the humans are perfect. Sometimes, they miss websites that should rank highly. Other times, they mistakenly rate low-quality websites as high-quality.
As a result, SEO is a constant game of cat and mouse between search engines and marketers. We need to constantly monitor our competitors’ efforts and try to outsmart them. This is the backbone of seo for drug rehabs.
Why is SEO Important?
If you’ve ever been frustrated by trying to find a specific piece of content on the internet, you know why SEO matters.
Every day, millions of people perform billions of searches using various keywords related to your industry. Your job is to ensure that those people land on your website instead of your competitor’s website. It is for this reason that your business should be using SEO.
This is especially true if you sell physical goods. Think about it: if someone was looking for a new pair of shoes, would you rather they visit your competitor’s shoe store or yours?
Of course, you wouldn’t want to lose sales due to poor SEO practices either. That’s why it’s critical to invest in a solid SEO strategy.
The Benefits of SEO
Here are some of the benefits of SEO:
- Increased Brand Awareness
- Higher Conversion Rates
- Improved Customer Experience
Get Started With SEO Today
If you’re ready to start getting noticed by Google and other search engines, check out our guide on how to optimize your website for search engines.
