SEO, short for search engine optimisation, has been around almost as long as search engines themselves. Put simply, it is the practice of ensuring that the content of your website or blog is likely to show up when users search for related or relevant information. In the ‘bad old days’ this would involve heavy handed reliance on keywords, or unceremonious links between barely related websites in an effort to boost a site’s apparent relevance in search engines’ indexes. In today’s online landscape, things are a little different. The search engines that make the web the treasure trove of information we know and love have evolved, developing ever more complex algorithms to try and provide us with answers. Naturally, search engine optimisation needs to keep up.
So what has changed?
The most notable thing to have changed is the importance of keywords. Five or ten years ago, you could guarantee a few good search engine hits just by ensuring you included relevant search terms in your content, especially in content headers and subheadings. Search engines would match keywords to your content, then order the results based on the perceived popularity of the website, which is based on how many other websites link to it. Nowadays, most search engines are trying to provide a more natural, personalised searching experience.
While for the user this has been a great step forward, with search engines being more adept at providing the best information, it can be a real pain for businesses trying to stay visible. Part of the reason for this is that tools like Google’s Keyword Planner are now far less forthcoming with useful information for the online marketer. Without useful keyword data it is much harder to accurately target an audience using keywords.
Thankfully, social media has provided a perfect solution to these changes. Regular content updates, posts on social networks such as Facebook or Twitter, and a high level of engagement through ‘shares’, ‘retweets’ or ‘likes’ has taken pride of place alongside the more traditional methods. This means that modern day SEO requires a much more holistic approach, encompassing traditional website and blog content as well as social media. The best way to stay near the top of search engines now is to provide consistent content on your subject area, and stay part of the conversation.
If you want to know more about what you can do to improve your search engine ratings, especially regarding effective use of social media, please get in touch. From our offices in Staffordshire, we here at Red Box can offer help and advice on mastering search engine optimisation and web design.