SEO is probably the most used buzzword of the last decade.And as everything around us becomes more focused on the internet of things, it’s likely to continue being a staple of conversations. Even as SEO takes center stage for many companies, it’s something that does not get the kind of attention it deserves. Often, organizations try to lump it together with other duties and departments, resulting in poor performance and no real idea why it failed. The possibilities and importance of good SEO can’t be overstated. And although it is seen by many as a primarily B2C tool, it’s just as invaluable in B2B sales.
Search Engine Optimization in a Nutshell
In summary, SEO is the process of using a set of techniques to have a website rank highly in searches. Additionally, SEO is often used to describe any practice whose goal is getting more people to find your content. Be it a website, social media post, or even an image. The goal is to generate organic (unpaid) traffic to your content, thereby increasing its effective potential to reach potential consumers and convert them into customers.
Any conversation about SEO will inevitably lead to talk about Google. SEO doesn’t happen in a vacuum; it needs the Search Engine to Optimize. There’s very little reason to optimize results for any search engine other than Google.Having an understanding of their algorithms and SEO tools, therefore, is key to success.
Generating Traffic Organically
There are as many tips and tricks to SEO optimization as there are SEO experts. The truth is that very few people know exactly how Google’s processes rank websites. Therefore, sticking to some general guidelines is usually better than trying to make sure every word is perfectly optimized.
Find the Balance of Quality and Quantity
Getting SEO right used to be about using the right search terms in the right order, without a lot of regard for what’s in between them. But times have changed, and the caliber of the content is just as important these days as the amount.
The amount of time that the average consumer spends looking at your content is a key factor.To get people to spend more time reading, your content needs to provide some real value. Updating content is also a key consideration. Websites with outdated content don’t capture readers nearly as much, resultingin a much lower value ranking.
Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
Generating quality traffic is more like sous-vide cooking than sautéing. It takes time to reach an audience, which makes it important to continue working on it. The time it takes for content to appear on a search engine, for viewers to find it, and for page rankings to update, can be discouraging. Persistence will win the day for those determined enough to continue their efforts.
Become Friends with RankBrain
Google’s page ranking taskmaster is a core algorithm aptly named RankBrain. The function of this algorithm is to find the right results for people who are searching.To do that, it needs to understand the true intent of a search. The interpretation modeling that happens in RankBrain is a closely guarded secret, but some things can be inferred from its results.
Gary Illyes, Google’s webmaster trends analyst, has long been advising SEO hopefuls about how to befriend RankBrain. According to Illyes, the best way to speak to the machine is to, paradoxically, sound like a human. Machine-generated content, or overly “optimized” content, confuses RankBrain.Rather than try to figure it out, it may just push it to the back of the queue.
Don’t Forget About the Details
When people start to engage in earnest with SEO, one of the first things that crops up is the idea of generating traffic through blog posts or articles. While a valid strategy, it shouldn’t overshadow all the other elements of the website.
Product descriptions are another important aspect of SEO. You want to generate a compounding effect from all the content on the site, rather than rely heavily on a single content genre. That said, try to avoid oversaturating descriptions with keywords. Remember, as long as it sounds natural, you’re in good shape.
Another important detail is the use of backlinks to other websites outside of yours. Google’s algorithms like the use of backlinks as your content may appear more trustworthy. It may seem counterintuitive to lead customers away from your content, but the strategic use of backlinks is another important tool for better rankings.
Optimize Your B2B Outreach
Research from professional services giant Accenture suggests that B2B customers are more than halfway to a sale when they reach a sales representative. The wealth of options and information is leading more B2B buyers to do their research thoroughly – and most of that research happens online. That’s why it is more important than ever to get serious about SEO and start seeing it as a valuable tool rather than a needless expense.
