The SEO buzzword is definitely not lacking in the marketing world these days, which may leave you wondering what it actually means and why is SEO important? Before we discuss why SEO is important, we must first understand what SEO means.

SEO stands for search engine optimization. Search engine optimization means exactly what it says. When your website is fully optimized for search engines, you have followed best practices to ensure your site can be easily scanned (by the search engine) when your target audience makes a search query.

A web search query is the snippet of information (keyword or phrase) that a user inputs into a search engine to locate what they are looking for. In this example, our search engine query is “luxury architect MN.”

When your potential client inputs a search query, it’s your goal to show up at the top of the results page. That’s where the importance of SEO for your business comes into play.

Following SEO best practices means that when your target audience makes a search query based on keywords and key-phrases, you will have a greater chance of ranking over those who may not have taken the time to optimize their site for search engines.

Here are a several SEO best practices we follow at Prime Advertising and Design:

• Keyword & key-phrase research
• Page titles
• Inbound Links
• Site reputation and brand recognition

Why is SEO Important? Keywords & Key-phrases.

When a search query is made, search engines scan web page content looking for the best results based on the keywords the user inputs.  For example; when we searched for “luxury architect MN”, Google found Smuckler Architecture to be the best fit based on our search query (see image below). *Notice the keywords sprinkled throughout the title & below description (also known as meta description).

A great tool for keyword generation is Google AdWords. AdWords is not only an advertising platform created by Google but it’s also equipped with one of my favorite tools: Google Keyword Planner. The best part about the tool – it’s free. The Keyword Planner allows you to type in keyword ideas and gives you the analytics of each word or phrase.

Why is SEO Important? Page Titles

You can also optimize your website for search engines by creating clear, concise, and short page titles that engage the user but also utilize keywords or key-phrases that can be easily scanned by search engines quickly telling them what the page is about.

Why is SEO Important? Inbound Links

Consider another page on the web pointing to your site as a vote of trust. These links will not only reference your page but can bring traffic to your site. It’s important that inbound links are from credible sources. Google and other search engines are smart and are able to decipher the difference. Being active with blogs and social media naturally (known as “organically” in the marketing world) create inbound links and promote your brand and site to large groups interested in your products or services.

Why is SEO Important? Reputation

Sites that have high traffic, clean links, relevant content, clean URLs, and inbound and outbound links are utilizing SEO best practices. Optimized sites that have a great user experience and low bounce rate (people leaving their site quickly) are seen as reputable sites by search engines. Naturally reputable and optimized sites are given higher search engine placement.

It’s important to understand that SEO is not a one-time, quick project. Optimizing your website takes time and strategy. Search engines are also always changing; being knowledgeable with search engine algorithm updates and making adjustments to your website is important to your ranking.

These concepts merely skim the surface of all skills and tools necessary for understanding why SEO is important. As a business owner, often times SEO does not make it to the top of the ‘to do’ list, but if web rankings are important to you, it certainly should be a high priority to help grow your business.