Before we even start discussing SEO characteristics, we need to learn the definition of SEO. It stands for Search Engine Optimization and this marketing branch focuses on visibility in search engine results. Is it important? Extremely. In a non-technical manner of speaking, SEO is a way for the search engines to notice your website more easily. It is crystal clear you won’t have any use of an amazing website unless your potential clients cannot see it. However, SEO is not just about your online visibility, but it also ensures a better connection with the visitors of your site. People get used to specific patterns and, as soon as you structure your website properly, they will find it easier to navigate through it. So, let’s see some elementary things we should know about SEO.

Why can’t search engines decipher my website without SEO?

Search engines are getting smarter every day, however, they do have limitations. This is why we have to do SEO. Not optimizing your website for search engines can and will result in it being buried so deep in search results that no one will be able to find it. However, if you optimize it properly, you’ll be able to see great results very soon and, if you do everything right, your website will end up at the beginning of the search results page. This hasn’t been done earlier because the market wasn’t as developed and wide. However, with the surge of competition, the need for SEO emerged.

Can I do it on my own?

SEO is not something everyone can do well. There are professionals whose main occupation is SEO. However, you can do some of it on your own after learning some of the basics. It all depends on how serious you are and how big your needs are. Even the average SEO efforts can be quite effective and the results can be visible in a short period of time. In any case, it doesn’t hurt to know the basics. After seeing the results, you may want to upgrade your knowledge or even hire local seo services (if this is what you are interested in) so you can reap the benefits of SEO.

Focus on the right keywords

You need to put in proper keywords in order to achieve the best results. Make sure every page has a carefully selected keyword. Think long and hard about which keywords you want to choose. Imagine you’re a client and you want to search for a company such as your own and think about which keywords you’d be most likely to type in a search engine. Headers and title tags are the best places to put your keywords. Don’t overstock your website with keywords as you’ll be discovered by search engines and penalized for it.

Image descriptions

Another important fact you need to keep in mind is that search engines don’t recognize what is written on the images. This is why it’s important to include useful image descriptions. They don’t have to be identical to the text on the image itself, but they should reflect the gist of the text and everything else you find relevant.

SEO off-website as well

Apart from doing the business on your website, you need to make sure you do something outside of it, as well. Link building is a popular way of doing that. Your links should be relevant to the target page and article subject. Whitehat and organic links are something you should strive for, and definitely avoid Blackhat, as people are rarely going to click on sketchy links. What you should do is focus on what you do best and let the pros handle building your retail business.

Keep track of progress

Make sure not to get too carried away with optimizing so as you wouldn’t forget to monitor your progress. Make sure you keep track of the progress you’ve made since you implemented SEO and ask for customer feedback on what directed them to your website and how they got there.

Learning how SEO works is easy, so make sure you have the basics covered and try to do it yourself. You can always turn to professionals later on, but results will follow very soon in any case.