If you’ve heard a lot about search engine optimization (SEO) but don’t know how to break through the industry talk, don’t feel alone. As a SEO provider who gets clients up to speed on SEO, we get it. SEO providers (like us) are so deep in search engine optimization technology sometimes what comes out of our mouth sounds like “blah, blah, blah” to anyone not acquainted with SEO (which let’s be honest, is most of us). So how do you make sense of all of the SEO blah-talk? Start by breaking down the “blah, blah” into clear SEO terms:
What is a search engine?
Search engines are sites like Google, Bing and Yahoo that people use to find information and businesses. A May 2011 Pew Internet survey found that 92% of online adults use search engines to find information on the Web, including 59% on an average day. The most popular search engine is Google, which processes more than a trillion searches each year worldwide.
When a user puts in keywords to find information, the search engine generates a list of websites. Studies have repeatedly shown that the websites listed near the top get the most clicks, with 75% of users never scrolling past the first page of search results.
What is search engine optimization?
Search engine optimization is just what it says—creating an optimal website for search engines. There are three different ways to optimize your website:
- By creating regular and fresh user-friendly content users want to read.
- By using search engine optimization tactics on your website such as writing accurate headlines and excellent content on each page.
- By hiring a search engine optimization firm to optimize your website and use specialized SEO technology to target your local customers and get to the top of their search engine list.
What are organic search results?
The page generated with the information you are looking for is a search engine results page (SERP). At the top are sponsored listings with paid ads. Below the ads, otherwise known as sponsored listings, are the organic search results. This is the list of websites the search engine has pulled from the web. Organic search results are your goal, as “79% of search engine users say they always or frequently click on the natural search results. In contrast, 80% of search engine users say they occasionally/rarely/never click on the sponsored search results.”
Getting listed in the organic search results is not easy with hundreds of ranking factors used by search engines to generate the results. What’s even more challenging is to show up in the top organic search results in your local area, the bread and butter for most businesses.
What does SEO do?
Paid search engine optimization technology is one of the most effective online marketing tools for businesses. One of our clients, a local print company, was positioned at the top of search engines just a week after utilizing our SEO technology. Their results were localized, with their company showing up in cities and towns search results within 30 miles of their location including a major metropolitan area. Our work yielded long-term results; their printing firm has remained at the top of the major search engines—Google, Yahoo and Bing—since launch. Better search engine results have meant more digital exposure for their business, and stronger opportunity for online conversions.
ABC Flooring, one of our clients in southeastern Wisconsin, saw their website traffic double in just four months because of search engine optimization. In 30 days, their unique visits increased 122% and hit an impressive increase of 200%. Website traffic is just a number unless you can convert those visits to customer interest. ABC Flooring receives form submissions every week from potential customers, with 60% of those visits stemming from their search engine optimization package.
Any other SEO questions?
Did we answer all your questions? Or do you want to see how paid SEO technology works? Schedule a demo or contact us. Though search engine optimization produces local results, we’ve achieved results for businesses from Wisconsin to California. We can do the same for you, and in clear SEO terms you can understand—and benefit from.
