PHOTO: by Kate Rafferty. Autumn in Georgia.
Thanksgiving Thoughts
Search Engine Optimization, SEO, can be boiled down to “giving and receiving” – the more you give, the more you receive. The “giving” is equated to providing valuable content. And the “receiving” is the website traffic. The concept is that if you provide content, and the more frequently you provide valuable content, the more likely you will receive better rankings, have visibility for more keywords, and … get more website visitors.
Giving = Organic in SEO. Why is SEO Organic?
Search Engine Optimization is considered NATURAL or ORGANIC Marketing. Not to be confused with Search Engine Marketing which is ADVERTISING – Sponsored ads. Paid advertising provides instant results for a limited time, whereas organic search strategies can provide long-term results. Organic search traffic (websites that show up when someone conducts a search engine “search) is often the first source for visitors to click on to get to a website.
What makes the content organic? The content is considered natural or organic, it consists of words, images, and videos – many which also may be presented in ads. But organic SEO strategies and content usually fits the natural flow of a website. Websites that sell products have product pages. Websites that provide services – describe those services. Non-profit websites share their events and support. And informational sites – do just that, share information.
Value Added Content
The tricky part is determining what is “valuable”. Usually, you want to have content that:
- People who know your business might search by. You should include all of your branding, industry terms, and even geographical terminology.
- Describe the problems as well as the solutions for those who might not be aware of your business. This could be in the form of testimonials or case studies.
- Address frequently asked questions, and include common voice search questions.
- Expand upon some basic information. Or provide a story type format for some information. This can be accomplished in a blog.