SEO - Search Engine Optimisation

Understanding the Basics, Clearing Misconceptions, and Utilising Tools Like Yoast & Social Media

What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of optimising a website to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPs).

By improving visibility, your website can attract more organic (non-paid) traffic from visitors searching for relevant information. SEO is varied & can involves on-page strategies like optimising content, meta descriptions, and images, as well as off-page techniques, such as building backlinks and improving social media presence. A basic understanding can be a big help for any website owner wanting to improve their online presence.

Common Misconceptions

Despite its importance, SEO is very misunderstood. Many people getting their first website believe that as soon as it goes live, it will be on page one in the searches. Unfortunately this is far from the truth and there is never a way of guaranteeing that a site will rank in the top 10. Of course, having a website that is built to be search friendly and aligns with common ‘best practices’ will give it the best chance or success.

Another of the biggest misconceptions is that SEO is a one-time task and once everything is in place, it can be left to it’s own devices. In reality, SEO is an ongoing process and evolves as the search engines adapt their algorithms and users change their behaviour.

Even if a site is performing well, regular changes and improvements to the site and content are essential to maintain it’s ranking.

Another misconception is that keywords alone will guarantee success, however, this theory is about 15 years out of date! While keyword optimisation is vital, it is far from the only factor. User experience, mobile-friendliness, and site speed also play significant roles in how well a site performs.

Many also mistakenly believe that paying for ads will boost organic SEO. Paid ads can generate traffic, but they do not impact organic search rankings. Genuine SEO success comes from optimising your content to meet both visitors and search engine criteria.

How we Can Help Improve Your Website’s SEO

All our sites come with the Yoast SEO plug in. This is a massively popular WordPress plugin that simplifies the SEO process for beginners and experts alike. It provides easy-to-follow guidelines for optimising content, meta descriptions and titles, ensuring that your pages are aligned with SEO best practices.

Yoast’s real-time analysis feature gives feedback on keyword usage, readability, and content structure, which is vital for improving your search engine rankings.

Additionally, it allows you to manage technical aspects, such as canonical URLs, sitemaps, and breadcrumb navigation, without needing advanced coding skills.

One of Yoast’s standout features is its readability analysis. This ensures that your content is accessible and easy to understand for readers, which is becoming increasingly important as search engines prioritise user experience. Overall, Yoast makes it easier to optimise your site holistically, which helps improve search visibility and rank.

How Social Media Can Boost SEO

While social media is not a direct ranking factor in Google’s algorithm, it can certainly affect it indirectly and help boost your SEO efforts.

Social platforms like Facebook and Instagram can drive traffic to your website by sharing valuable content.

This increased traffic can signal to search engines that your website is credible and relevant, which can help improve rankings over time. Additionally, content shared on social media has the potential to attract backlinks from other websites, which is another factor in SEO success.

Additionally, social media also helps build brand awareness and ‘authority’ making your website a more trusted resource in the eyes of both users and search engines. Having engaging content (see our article on this for ideas) with your audience on these platforms can increase loyalty and drive repeat visits and further enhances your SEO efforts.

In Summary

SEO is a long term, multi-faceted and ever changing process that requires ongoing effort. Common misconceptions can derail SEO strategies, so understanding the basics is crucial.

There are many tools that can help you with your own site but we install Yoast with all our customers sites to make it easier to implement effective SEO practices. We also recommend customers establish themselves on social media platforms as, while these are not a direct ranking factor, they can complement your SEO efforts by driving traffic and increasing brand visibility.

By combining these approaches, you can boost your website’s search engine ranking and grow your online presence effectively.