What is SEO Marketing?

Defining SEO and How it Fits Your Digital Marketing Strategy

If you’ve been around the digital marketing space for a while, SEO is an acronym you’ve probably come across all the time. SEO stands for search engine optimization. It is the art and science of optimizing websites to make it easier for major search engines (like Google, Bing, and Yahoo!) to identify, understand, and rank your web pages in organic search results. By employing a broad range of tactics, SEO marketing ensures that when people are searching for the products, services, or content that you offer, they can easily find you.

SEO is about creating better user experiences by making your website easier to navigate and understand. As search algorithms become more intelligent and focused on delivering the most relevant content for user queries, search engine marketing becomes increasingly important if you want to create an impact online. It’s not just about helping search engines rank you higher. It’s also about having the right content to attract potential customers and keep them engaged on your site.

But why do you need to impress search engines?

For one, countless studies have proven how Google has become the de-facto standard for online search, handling over 3.5 billion daily searches. Obviously, that many searches generate a lot of opportunities for businesses to get their brands in front of users. If your target customers are already searching online for the products you offer, it’s simply a matter of optimizing your web pages so that it shows up on relevant queries.

That’s where SEO comes into play—it helps drive organic traffic to your website through higher rankings in search engine result pages (SERPs).

As compared to paid ads like Google Ads, SEO is technically FREE. Free in a sense that you don’t need to pay to rank higher on Google’s search results. The only investment you’ll be making is the time and effort your team, or your preferred service provider puts into the process.

However, SEO is no magic. Just because you’ve optimized your website doesn’t guarantee that you’ll automatically improve search engine rankings and gain more website traffic. SEO is a long-term strategy; it takes time for search engine crawlers to understand a website’s content and to index the pages.

It takes time for search engine algorithms to understand your website’s relevance, quality, and authority. You may have to wait weeks or even months before seeing tangible results from marketing efforts.

In this guide, we’ll introduce you to the basics of SEO so that you can better understand what it is, why it’s important, and how SEO Services in the Philippines, like myself, use it to make small brands competitive online.

SEO goes beyond ranking for keywords.
It’s about user-experience.

Why is SEO Important for Marketing?

As I’ve mentioned, SEO is crucial for businesses that want to be found online. Search engines are one of the many digital marketing channels that help consumers find solutions for their immediate needs. It delivers all kinds of information—from product and service recommendations to reviews and ratings, as well as blog articles and news.

In fact, 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine. It’s a one-stop shop for everything a consumer may need. Clearly, it is a powerful tool you shouldn’t ignore if you want to remain competitive in the modern digital landscape.

Here are some of the many benefits of SEO for businesses.

• Increased Brand Awareness through Search Visibility

SEO is essential for amplifying your visibility and establishing a higher ranking on search engine result pages. By making it easier for potential customers to locate you when they are searching, SEO can significantly improve the chances of turning prospects into paying clients.

Ranking higher on a search engine result page (SERP) is fundamental for boosting your website visibility and funneling more prospects to your page. To achieve this, it’s essential to maximize the efficiency of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). A successful SEO strategy guarantees improved ranking that will be beneficial since 25% of web users never scroll past the first SERP.

• And This Also Includes Local Visibility

Local SEO services is a subcategory of search engine marketing that focuses on optimizing websites for local search results. This strategy is designed to help businesses attract more customers from their vicinity by making it easy for them to find the product and service offerings of the business online.

Surprise, surprise! According to Think with Google’s research, 30% of all mobile searches are related to a user’s current location, and 28% of those who search for something nearby end up making an actual purchase. This highlights the importance of local SEO optimization in today’s digital world.

To maximize your local SEO efforts, craft content that incorporates location-based keywords. For example, if you are a Japanese restaurant based in Manila, you’d want to mention “leading Japanese restaurant in Manila” in your tags and content headings.

• Gain Web Traffic

One of the main goals of any SEO strategy is to increase website traffic. And to achieve that, you need to improve your search visibility by ranking higher for relevant keywords and search queries.
According to studies, the number 1 spot on a Google search result gets nearly 32% of clicks. And if you’re not at the #1 spot, moving just one spot in the results can increase your CTR (click-through rate) by 30.8%.

And with the introduction of Featured Snippets (often referred to as position #0), marketers face a new challenge to rank for this. Featured Snippets is a special box that shows relevant information quickly and concisely on the top of a SERP. It’s essentially Google’s way of giving users the exact answer they are looking for instantly. And if users find your snippet relevant to what they are looking for, they’ll click on your website for more information.

• Creating a Better Visitor Experience

It’s a common misconception that SEO is just about adding target keywords in the content and the meta tags. Actually, SEO goes beyond that, and to achieve optimal rankings, you have to prioritize user experience.

Search engines are getting smarter every day. They go beyond checking on-page SEO elements such as meta tags and page titles. Sitemap structure, content structure, bounce rate, social signals, and page speed—search engines look into these elements as well to evaluate the overall health of a website.

Tools like heatmaps and user tracking are also helpful in determining how users navigate and interact with your website. Analyzing these metrics can tell you which parts of the page need to be improved or removed entirely.

As a result, SEO campaigns help create an ideal visitor experience that encourages people to engage more with your brand.

• SEO Impacts the Buying Cycle

Research is fast becoming a core part of SEO, just like it is in the greater scope of marketing. If you leverage SEO approaches to communicate your product or service features and advantages effectively, then you will be setting yourself up for success. Utilizing these tactics to share great deals and industry-leading products can help propel your business into the stratosphere.

When done correctly, it will undoubtedly have a positive effect on the buying cycle. Brands must be visible where their prospects are searching; thus—SEO! When your potential customers are searching for what you offer, make sure that your website is the first one they see.

• SEO is PR

Integrating SEO with content and PR not only boosts brand reach but also generates a plethora of other impressive outcomes. With the current digital landscape, it’s no longer feasible to treat SEO as its own isolated channel.

SEO helps amplify your PR and content initiatives. By merging SEO with PR campaigns, you can reap endless rewards such as amplified trustworthiness and credibility, further developmental opportunities for thought leadership, increased brand recognition, considerable website traffic growth, and more.

• SEO is Quantifiable

Although SEO doesn’t provide the same clear-cut ROI as paid search, you can still effectively track and measure almost anything with adequate analytics.

The significant issue lies in understanding the relationship between all activities, as there is no clear-cut way to connect the dots. However, with an adequate understanding of analytics tools, you can easily quantify the effectiveness of your SEO efforts and identify which areas need to be improved.

Important KPIs that can be measured with SEO include website traffic, online visibility, and rankings. Measuring these KPIs will allow you to make data-driven decisions that can improve the performance of your campaign even further.

• Improved Domain Authority

Domain authority is a metric used to measure the authority and credibility of a website. Search engines use Domain Authority (DA) as one of their major ranking factors for any given keyword or query. The higher your DA score, the more likely you are to rank well for that particular keyword.

The best way to increase your domain authority is through backlinks. Having an effective link-building strategy in place is essential for improving your ranking, as well as increasing a website’s overall credibility in the eyes of search engines.

SEO ROI Statistics

• SEO ROI can be as high as 12.2x marketing spend. (Terakeet)
• 51% of marketers say that videos are the best type of content for ROI. (Wordstream)
• Leads from search engines have a 14.6% close rate, while outbound leads (ex. cold-calling, direct mail, etc.) have a 1.7% close rate. (Inter-growth)
• The average ROI of ecommerce SEO is around $2.75 for every $1 invested. (WebFX)

What are the Different Types of SEO Techniques?

There are several techniques that can be used to improve your website’s search engine ranking. Here are the standard SEO techniques used by digital marketers:

Keyword Research

Keyword research is the process of finding and choosing the best keywords to target for your website or web page. You need to conduct keyword research, as it helps guide the direction of your content and allows you to connect with the right audience. There are a number of different methods you can use to do keyword research, including using keyword tools like Google Ads Keyword Research Tool and Ahrefs Keyword Research Tool.

Once you’ve found a list of potential keywords, you’ll need to evaluate each one and match a landing page within your website for it. The very last thing you want is to get penalized for keyword stuffing or trying to over-optimize a page for a dozen keywords. You want to choose 1 priority keyword, and at most five (5) secondary keywords for every web page you have. This ensures that your content will be targeted and relevant while still optimizing for multiple search terms.

After you’ve selected the best keywords to target, you’ll need to incorporate them into your content in a way that is both natural and effective. This means using the keywords in a way that will not only improve your visibility in search results but also make your content more accessible and enjoyable for your readers.

How to select a good keyword for your website

There are a number of factors to consider when selecting keywords for your website or web page. The most important factor is relevance – the keyword should be relevant to your business, products, or services.

For example, if you are a clothing retailer, you would want to target keywords like “women’s clothes”, “men’s clothes”, or “children’s clothes”. Another important factor to consider is competition. The less competition there is for a keyword, the easier it will be to rank for that keyword. However, you also want to make sure that the keyword has enough search volume to be worth targeting.

Personally, I would also consider the keywords your competitors are ranking for or are targeting on paid search. I use tools like SEMRush and/or Ahrefs to find out what the competition is ranking for. This expands the pool of potential keywords to consider. I would also consider the keyword’s intent. For example, if someone is searching for “buy women’s clothes”, they are likely further along in the purchase cycle than someone who is searching for “women’s clothes”.

The former keyword would be considered a commercial intent keyword, while the latter would be considered an informational intent keyword. Generally, for businesses, you want to rank for keywords with commercial or transactional intent. These are the keywords that are most likely to result in a sale.

Important tags you should optimize:

• • Title Tags: The title tag is the most important on-page ranking factor. The title tag tells search engines what your website or web page is about. Make sure your title tags are unique, keyword-rich, and under 60 characters.
  • Meta Description: The meta description is the second most important on-page ranking factor. The meta description is a brief description of your website or web page. It should be unique, keyword-rich, and under 160 characters.
  • Header Tags: Header tags are used to structure your content. There are six header tags (H1-H6), with H1 being the most important and H6 being the least important. You should only use one H1 tag per page, and you want to make sure it is keyword-rich.
  • Alt Text: Alt text is used to describe images on your website or web page. Search engines can’t see images, so they rely on alt text to understand what an image is about. Make sure your alt text is keyword-rich and descriptive.

Technical SEO

Technical SEO is the process of making sure your website or web page is as search engine friendly as possible. This includes a number of different factors, such as the structure of your website or web page, the code on your website or web page, and the way your website or web page is hosted.

One of the most important aspects of technical SEO is making sure your website or web page loads quickly. To improve the speed of your website or web page, you can optimize your images, minify your code, and use a content delivery network (CDN).

These are just a few of the many factors that can impact the speed of your website or web page.

Here’s a quick checklist:

1. 1. Plan your website structure (new sites only): Before you start building your website, it’s important to plan out the structure. This includes deciding which pages will be on your website and how they will be linked together.
   2. Make sure your site is crawlable: When search engines crawl your website or web page, they need to be able to understand the structure of your site. This means using proper tag hierarchy and avoiding orphan pages.
   3. Make sure your site is indexable: In order for your website or web page to be indexed, search engines need to be able to access and read your site. This means using a robots.txt file and an XML sitemap.
   4. Make sure you’re using HTTPs: HTTPs is a secure protocol that encrypts data between your website and the user. This is important for both security and SEO.
   5. Make sure your website is accessible at one domain: It’s important to use a single domain for your website. This makes it easier for users and search engines to find your site.
   6. Make sure your site loads fast: As mentioned above, the speed of your website or web page is a key factor in SEO. There are a number of ways to improve the speed of your site, such as optimizing images, minifying code, and using a CDN.
   7. Make sure your site is mobile-friendly: With more and more people using mobile devices to browse the web, it’s important to make sure your site is mobile-friendly. This includes using a responsive design and avoiding pop-ups.
   8. Install an image compression plugin: Image compression plugins help you optimize your images for the web. This can reduce the file size of your images, which can help your website or web page load faster.
   9. Fix broken pages: If you have broken pages on your website or web page, it’s important to fix them. This can be done using a 301 redirect.
   10. Fix duplicate content issues: If you have duplicate content on your website or web page, it’s important to fix it. This can be done by using a rel=”canonical” tag or by setting up a 301 redirect.

Measuring, Prioritizing, & Executing SEO

When it comes to SEO, it’s important to measure your results so you can see what’s working and what’s not. This means setting up Google Analytics and using the data to make informed decisions about your SEO strategy.

There are a number of metrics you can track, such as:

• • Organic traffic: This is the number of people who visit your website or web page from the search results.
  • Bounce rate: This is the percentage of people who leave your website or web page after only viewing one page.
  • Average time on page: This is the average amount of time people spend on your website or web page.
  • Pages per session: This is the average number of pages people view during a session on your website or web page.
  • Goals Completed: This is the number of people who complete the goals you’ve set up in Google Analytics.

These are just a few of the metrics you can track. Once you have this data, you can use it to make informed decisions about your SEO strategy. For example, if you see that your organic traffic is increasing, but your bounce rate is high, you may want to focus on creating more compelling content.

You can also use this data to prioritize your SEO efforts. For example, if you see that certain keywords are driving a lot of organic traffic, you may want to focus on optimizing for those keywords. This means making changes to your website or web page to improve your ranking in the search results.

Some of the things you can do to improve your ranking include:

• • Optimizing your title tags and meta descriptions
  • Improving your website’s content
  • Building more links to your website or web page
  • Fixing broken pages and redirects
  • Make sure your website is mobile-friendly

These are just a few of the things you can do to improve your ranking. Once you’ve identified the areas that need improvement, you can start making changes to your website or web page.

Outsourcing SEO Marketing Services

Outsourcing SEO marketing services can be a great way to streamline the process of optimizing your website for search engine algorithms and increasing organic visibility. While it is important to have an understanding of SEO fundamentals, outsourcing certain tasks can help you save time and resources while ensuring that your website gets the attention it needs.

When looking for an SEO provider, it is important to make sure they offer the services that your business requires. Services can include keyword research, content creation and optimization, link building, competitor analysis, technical SEO audits, and more. Working with an experienced provider can help you to get the most value out of your SEO efforts and achieve better results in organic search.

At It’s a Writer’s World SEO Agency, we provide comprehensive SEO marketing services to help you improve your website’s visibility and increase organic traffic. Our team of experienced professionals is dedicated to helping you get the most out of your SEO campaigns. Contact us today to learn more about our services!

In a Nutshell

SEO is an ongoing process, which means you’ll need to continuously measure, prioritize, and execute your SEO tasks in order to see results. However, if you do it right, SEO can be a great way to drive organic traffic to your website or web page.

If you need help with any of this, feel free to contact me. I’m always happy to help!

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