Does SEO still matter Or are we SEO over it!

You’ve heard it a thousand times – the word SEO. Perhaps you even throw it around yourself to make it sound like you know what all the hype is about. Your clients or boss keep asking you what actions are being put into place to improve your website’s SEO. So, just what is this SEO?

 

SEO is Search Engine Optimisation and, in short, it is the activations you put into place to improve your website ranking. So, really it is what you do to make sure your website comes up ON THE FIRST PAGE when some-one searches for the products or services you offer. The reason this has become even more important is due to the increase in online purchasing and decision-making.

 

Just when you thought you had figured out all the answers to the bun fight to get to the top of Google searches the questions have changed. It is no longer a case of repetitive keywords that will get you to number one. In fact if you do that, then you may actually not feature at all as that is now considered against the rules.

 

In August 2013 Google started using Hummingbird. Hummingbird is still about keywords but also about context. It pays more attention to each word in a query, ensuring that the whole query (the whole sentence or conversation or meaning) is taken into account.

 

When planning an online strategy we HAVE to think about why people are looking for something rather than what they are looking for.

 

Here are some tips on how to strengthen your website ranking:

 

1)  Metatags Matter – Metatags are the words inserted into the website for searching. These still hold some importance so make sure the words are relevant to your products or services, make sure there are NO spelling mistakes and that each word is separated by a comma.

 

2)  Keep it interesting and updated – Onsite SEO is key. Title tags, page descriptions and on-page content must be keyword-rich and have new content loaded at least twice a month.

 

3)  Links are your lifeblood – Offsite SEO can make or break you. The more links you have that pull through to your website the greater the activity that lends to a higher ranking. It’s important to get quality & QUANTITY.

 

4)  Advertising pays – Sponsored or paid for links (Pay per Click (PPC)) is all about return on investment. A high quality score with strong Adwords and keywords increase your hits to your website which in turn increase your ranking.

 

5)  Keep it social – Content is key. Great content leads to increased participation and engagement. Keep it authentic and listen to your audience. The days of pushing products and services down their throats are long gone. They want to feel important and part of the process; they want to engage with you and for you to engage with them in return.

 

With over 3 BILLION Google searches happening daily SEO remains of utmost importance. As many as 75 percent of people click links on the first page. Do your business a massive favour and develop a strong online strategy that considers the elements listed above to drive activity to your webpage.

 

The more activity you have on your website the better the ranking. The better the content on your website the more activity you will have – it’s that simple. Content is King.

 

 

Article written by: Colleen Vilela

 

Colleen holds a Diploma in Public Relations from Technikon Witwatersrand. Her PR journey began in 1995 at Adele Lucas Promotions in Rosebank. After which, Colleen spent six years at The Sun City Resort in the North West Province. Part of the Sun International group, Colleen spent four years as the Promotions manager for the Casino followed by two years as the Public Relations manager for the resort in its entirety.

 

After a four year stint in the United Kingdom, she returned to South Africa and was appointed Marketing Manager for Pirelli South Africa. Moving into consultancy work was a natural next step for Colleen, and in the two years that CMN Marketing has been in operation, she has built up an impressive stable of clients across a wide spectrum of business sectors such as Daytona Group (Aston Martin, McLaren, Rolls Royce), SMAC (distributors of Parrot products), HP, Olympus, SanDisk, Leica, Belkin, Bidvest Integrated Outsourcing, Ignition TV, Nikon, Axiz, Tarsus and Itec.