What is SEO

by Gideon van der Merwe

May 18, 2018

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the ranking (visibility) of a website in search engines. The higher (or more frequently) a website is displayed in a search engine list (like Google), the more visitors it is expected to receive.

Ok, so you have a great product to sell, now what ?

What is SEO ?

W3Schools has a great definition of SEO that we will use in our article. “Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the ranking (visibility) of a website in search engines. The higher (or more frequently) a website is displayed in a search engine list (like Google), the more visitors it is expected to receive.

SEO considers how search engines work, what people search for, and which search terms (words) are typed.” W3Schools, Web SEO.

Why is SEO important ?

Well, I think we can all agree that it is important for potential customers to know about your business. Yes ! And the more people who knows about your business, the higher your chances are of making a sale. That’s why it is important to be found on search engines. Many people will not even look further than the first page on google when looking for a service. It is important to be one of the first results that your customer sees when doing a search online, no matter what platform or device they are searching from. Even more important is having an actual online presence, but that’s a conversation for a different day.

Ok, but how will this benefit my business ?

Let’s answer that question with a few more questions. How do potential customers know about the services you offer ? How do potential customers know where to find you or how to contact you ?

Can you believe that many businesses today generate new leads and sales only from word of mouth. This means that someone will only do business with you if they heard about you from someone else. What about the millions of online users that are just waiting to do business with you ?

We usually ask our customers the following question, “What happens when I google your business or service, right now ?”. Many users will search online for something like, “lawnmower repair pretoria” to search for a specific service, in our example this service is lawnmower repairs. According to our research, 60% - 70% of the time, this is done from a mobile device using Google. If you do not have a website, optimised for SEO, or even a Google Business listing, how will these customers find you ? Just by having that potential customer reach or visibility, you can increase your potential sales and customer reach to potentially millions of people. Are you perhaps missing out on thousands of potential sales ? You need to start thinking the way your customers think or behave.

Ok, so where do I start ?

SEO is something that evolves every few years. It also has many different levels. We usually advise to start with the most obvious stuff first.

Focus on improving the parts that will have the biggest impact first. Because SEO is usually a time consuming task, and something that constantly evolves, we would advise to consult a professional who is well trained or has a lot of experience in the subject.

As a company who design websites, we have experience with many different types of businesses and websites and know what type of SEO works well and what does not. Feel free to ask us any SEO questions you might have.