Helping you with digital solutions.

Everything You Need To Know About SEO

What is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It is the methodology of strategies which is used to increase the audience on your website by obtaining a high-ranking placement in the search results page of a search engine, for example: Google, Bing and Yahoo. SEO is the simple activity of making sure websites can be found in search engines for words and phrases relevant to what the site is offering.

To make your SEO a success, it is important to create great content which makes people want to link to your website. This shows the search engine that your pages are interesting and authoritative. This is a success because the search engine wants to show off those interesting pages first on their front page.

How do search engines rank pages?

Well, Google promotes authority pages to the top of the ranking. Which means it is your job to create pages with great content to become authority pages. No one knows your audience better than you do, so in order to get to the top you need to create content which is useful and interesting. This content will then be shared by your target viewers on social media platforms and before you know it…your popularity is through the roof!

Why does my website need SEO?

As previously highlighted, SEO aids you in your website being seen by more viewers and being higher on the search list. The internet is becoming increasingly competitive with the majority of businesses used it to publicise their work and fighting to be at the top. SEO boosts rankings which enables content to be placed where searches will readily find it. Without this, your website will more likely be missed by potential investors, visitors and other business owners.

Can I do SEO myself?

Most people can definitely understand the basics of SEO which is a positive for you! However, SEO is a complex matter and most people think that they can handle all aspects…which, from Hex’s point of view, is rarely achieved. Depending on how much time you have, your budget, your eagerness to learn, and the complexity of your website, it might be a better option to have an expert handle things for you. Here at Hex Creatives, we can take over the SEO aspect of your website which is one less thing for you to do! Give us a call on 01256 614 852 and see what we offer!

Positives and Negatives of using SEO for your business

Positives

SEO provides a constant flow of free and targeted traffic

• Approximately there were probably more than 2.2. Trillion searches made on Google over the year of 2013. SEO enables you to enter into this enormous source of flowing, free and targeted traffic. Considering SEO is free, it is incredibly helpful and will transform your business for the better. You do not pay for the traffic and traffic generation in the same manner as paying for advertising channels such as Google AdWords.

SEO exposes your business to your target market who are looking for an answer

• It is clear that one of the main reasons why people use search engines, such as Google, is to discover a solution to an immediate problem, issue, or concern. In the persons search for an answer, the user clicks on different links. 70% of these are from organic results they received from using search engines. After returning to the search engine results page, up to 40% of these individuals will click on the first items on the results list but 70%-80% will ignore paid listings and go for the organic results.

SEO produces traffic that are likely going to convert

• It appears that SEO can go as high as 14.6% close rate which is extremely better than what email marketing or print advertising can generate with its 1.7%. Depending on interests, online users have different behaviours on which area, in search results, that they are likely to click on which can have a big impact on conversion.
• Individuals from sectors such as finance, insurance, and broadcast media have an 81%-93% likelihood of clicking the first 3 search results which is a dramatic amount more than individuals from niches such as computer and electronics. This needs to be taken into account by evaluating who you are aiming to appeal to and see how important it is to be top!

SEO can really help with business growth

• It is incredibly important regarding business survival that you have a secure, impressive online presence with your website(s) and other social channels you may have. SEO has a very important job in securing a good online presence which helps you business to increase its visibility to up to 59% of consumers.
• Without online visibility, you will never be found! SEO protects this from happening.

SEO makes you an authority in your niche

• As previously highlighted, a strong online presence is incredibly important and beneficial for your business. Brilliant content on your website can provide you with good ranking positions based on the keywords.
• Once you have a good ranking, this will cause you to become an authority. This will create a feeling of trust between you and your target market which inevitably results in a higher chance of conversion.

Negatives

SEO results take time

• The main negative of SEO is the very slow time-frame for generating results from your efforts. The process involves getting your content indexed by search engines which takes anything from hours to weeks. If you need instant results then SEO may not be the correct avenue for you.

SEO will take a long time to get a Return of Investment (ROI)

• Linking to the first negative, if it does take a long time to get results from your efforts, this equates to it also taking a long time to achieve a good ROI. This may not be ideal for some small businesses which need substantial revenues in the short term.

SEO requires a big investment for competitive niche

• Opposing with a point made in the positives, unless you do everything in your campaign such as attracting backlinks and producing content, SEO will in fact cost you money. You will most likely result in hiring help from an expert to build organic links for your business and other SEO marketing activities if you want to generate a large sum of results. This is especially true if you are in a competitive niche as there are more people fighting for the top spot.

SEO holds no guarantee

• Your main aim should be to land on the first search engine results page. Landing on the first page really matters and will make a massive difference to your business. 75% of search users will most likely never scroll past the first page. SEO does not guarantee that you will land on the first page using keywords.

SEO gives you no full control

• You have no control of how much traffic you will gather and what type of traffic this may be. SEO is totally different from paid marketing where you will be getting results in proportion to what you paid for.

Risk of being penalized

• SEO updates constantly change the position of many websites on the search engine results page and they occur infrequently more than once a year. Many digital marketers poured a lot of effort into their SEO campaign and overnight their hard work can be destroyed. This leaves with you starting from scratch again in an effort to regain your original SEO position.

I hope this article provides you with all the information you need regarding SEO. Remember, any questions or enquiries about SEO and what we can do for you, give us a call on 01256 614 852