What is SEO (Search Engine Optimization)?
Search engine optimization is, in its simplest terms, a collective contribution of activities you take on your website to make it better than another website who is trying to get found on Google for the same things or services you are. Those "things" you may want to be found for on Google are known as keywords. If you owned a MedSpa for example, and you offered the following services, there would be a set of optimizations you would want to take on your website to be the #1 search result Google serves up on its Search Results page when people search the following keywords:
The same would be true if you owned a DaySpa and wanted to be found for things like "massage", or "facial", or if you owned a Dog Grooming + Boarding company and wanted to be found for "dog grooming", or "doggy daycare", etc.
Just because you spin up a website and punch out a page called "Facials", doesn't mean you will rise through the ranks of everyone else wanting to be found in your area for the exact same thing. It takes a detail-oriented, intentional approach to do all the things Google says you should do and that is where people, time and again, get it wrong. Even when you're doing it well, SEO can be like a toddler, you can't look away else it may slip into trouble.
It can feel tedious, exhausting, like you always have to tread water to stay on top of it. And spoiler alert, you do. Promise though, it can be easier than it sounds.
Okay, I'll quit with the analogies but the point is, there is a long checklist of what can feel like mumbo jumbo to someone not trained in SEO, to get SEO right. So you have two options, well three really (the third is, don't do it). The first option is, learn this stuff, and invest the time to get it down, or, outsource it. There are a lot of wonderful SEO companies out there, and now you know one, us Make Good Times Marketing :)
If you want to learn a bit more, for your own curve, let's keep going.
Search Engine Optimization is mostly free to do, save for the actual man-hour time it takes to set up those activities you need to do, to remind Google that you're the best thing there is for the search results page.
Largely, SEO is split into two buckets, "On"-Page SEO, and "Off"-Page SEO. It's sort of like a Broadway Show; there are things that happen on stage (on-page), right in front of your eyes that you can see with the naked eye, and then there are things that happen behind the curtain (off-page), invisible to the untrained eye.
I'm going to walk you through one of many types of activities you would do, to get your SEO up to snuff for Google's liking.
Think back to the last essay paper you had to write in high school. Your English teacher likely pressed you to use Outline format, which provided a structure to your essay, drawing attention to certain areas through the use of headers, sub-headers, bullet points, and paragraphs.
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Well, on-page SEO is just about the same kind of thing as Outline format would be to an essay paper. A specific page on your website (like "Facials", from the earlier example) is the "essay paper", and your Outline format is what is known as HTML and Meta Tags, in the SEO world.
There are predominantly 5 Header-specific HTML Tags (commonly referred to as "HTags") that you can tag your content with to draw Google's attention to where the more important parts of a page are, much like the "H1" Tag of this article you're reading is called "What is SEO (Search Engine Optimization)?". You'll notice that H1 tag is the biggest, boldest thing on the page because we're telling Google, "this is important!" Then you can cascade down to an H2 Tag as needed, H3, down to H4 and 5. From there, you can use this cheat sheet to see just how many other types of HTML tags there are that tell Google what your page is all about.
These HTags help you tell Google, in order of importance from H1 - H5, what the most important parts of the page are, all while keeping things nice and tidy on the webpage. Then, to make it easy for someone to scan the document, you use italics, bold lettering, ALL CAPS, images/videos to break up the monotony, and bullet points to accentuate the main parts. When you do this correctly, especially better than your competitors, Google high fives you because Google is in the business of one thing. Google is in the business of serving up the best result to a user's search query. Since Google doesn't yet publicly read minds, and it can't actually see, you have to use these HTML and Meta Tags, to communicate with Google in a language it can understand. So when you're giving your website good SEO structure, you benefit, abundantly.
Did you know that even the way your images are labeled before you upload them into your website, can have an impact on your website's search-ability to get served up over the competition?
Get this. Did you know there is a word count range per webpage on your site that Google takes into consideration? While an exact number is not clear, they tell us SEO'ers not to hyperfocus on word count and instead focus on crafting a clean, clear message to answer the user's query. (But try to get at least 400 words on your webpage, and don't be shy about going for way more.)
There are literally thousands of things Google suggests we do in the SEO realm which can feel insurmountable as someone who just wants to run your business. They do encourage us to just stick to what we're good at, convey a solid message, and they'll take care of the rest with better technology and interpretations of our websites and pages over time. That said, I've never been one to wait around when I know there are ways to be useful. I like to meet it where it is, and go from there.
Okay, I'll stop there because, well, this is a lot. While it's pretty simple, it's still sophisticated and only one small piece of SEO. Fundamental HTML and Meta Tags is the start to a great SEO strategy and getting found on Google.
If you ever want a deep dive consultation, just message me and we can schedule one out!
Signing off,
Maigen the Marketer | Make Good Times Marketing