What is SEO?
Search Engine Optimization
In a word, Search Engine Optimization is "EXPOSURE", the
exposure of your website to the main entity that controls whether people see
your site or not,
The Search Engines.
Most people incorrectly believe SEO is the answer to the
question "how do I get more customers to my site?". While this is not true,
without SEO, a website has no exposure to the Search Engines, and will not be
getting more customers to a website.
SEO is part of marketing a website. There are actually 3
equally important parts.
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First, you need a website, or at least a hosted
domain. Without a hosted domain, there is no business.
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Then you need to figure out a message that will
cause people to log onto your website.
-
Then you need SEO to optimize that hosted website
with its message so the Search Engines will pay attention to it.
It's kind of like this:
If you own a "Brick and Mortar" store, you have the option
of putting signs on and around your business or not. If you choose not to put
signs up, how many people will come into your store? How many people will even
see your store?
If you do put signs up, especially active signs, people
will see your store, but will they come in?
That's the thing about SEO.
SEO is the act of putting up
the signs. If you don't, very few will see your store, but, even if you do put
up signs, they still may not come in.
That's where the message comes in… while the message is
not SEO it's the quality of the message, that gets more customers to a
website.
As a business owner, you have 4 options when it comes to
exposing your business to the general public:
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Place signs outside your building, if you have a building
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Run ads in media sources, radio, TV, Magazines, Newspapers,
etc
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Place a billboard ad off a highway
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And of course, SEO your website
Here's the difference:
-
Signs outside your building, can only be seen by the people
walking by
-
Ads run in media sources can only be seen by the people
that look at the media source
-
Billboards can only be seen by people driving down that
particular highway.
* * *
-
What if a person interested in your business is walking one
block over?
-
What if a person interested in your business doesn't look
at the particular media source you advertise in?
-
What if a person interested in your business drives a
different route?
In all these cases, the interested person never gets
exposed to your business, and what are the odds that this can happen? Pretty
Darn Good…
That's where Good SEO comes in… unlike everyone who
walks, looks, or drives, everyone that uses the internet to find businesses,
can find your business.
One more thing you need to realize is:
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Not everyone that walks by your store, sees your signs, and
is interested in your business is going to come inside
-
And
-
Not everyone that sees your media ads, and is interested in
your business is going to give you a call
-
And
-
Not everyone that sees your billboard, and is interested in
your business is going to drop in
The same thing is true with the SEO of your site; Not
everyone that is internet searching for your products, in your neighborhood,
that has your website come up in the number one position, is going to log-onto
your site
SEO is purely exposure, and it's pure exposure.
Search Engine Optimizers optimize websites for Search Engines to see them, not
for the public to see them.
Just like with the other methods of exposure,
-
Hanging the
sign, simply enables people to see the sign,
-
Running an ad simply enables people
see the ad,
-
Placing a billboard simply enables people to see the billboard,
Doing Good SEO simply enables people to see a
Search Engine Result 2-liner with a link to
your site.
It's the message on the signs, in the ads, and on the
billboards, and the 2-liners in the search results, that cause people to act.
But
Without the hanging of the sign, running of the ads,
placing of the billboard, and insertion of the Search Results 2-liner, the
messages will never be seen
So, now you know… SEO will NOT get more customers to a
website, but without it, the website won't even be seen.
With that, herein lies the next question?
If SEO can't guarantee more customers to my website, how
much is good SEO worth?
How much should I pay for SEO?
The answer lies in the comparison:
-
How much do building signs cost and how often will they
need to be replaced?
-
How much do media ads cost and how often do I have to pay
for them?
-
How much does a billboard cost and how often do I have to
pay for it?
Compared to:
And let's not forget how much more powerful, and
outreaching a website is compared to a stationary building or billboard, or ads
in particular media…
Good Reputable SEO is not cheap, but it's a great and
mandatory investment, if you expect anything worthwhile to come from your
website
SEO is purely exposure, but it's pure exposure.
So, What is "Good SEO"?