What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
Search Engine Optimization is the practice of optimizing a website by adding precise wording and coding to increase the visibility of the site to a search engine. A website has a much better chance of showing up as a search if it is properly optimized. As with any marketing it is very important that a site be properly optimized to be competitive. Web development firms can vary widely on how much emphasis they place on optimizing a site for the web, some briefly touch optimization, some develop optimization in a general broad based approach and still others perform specialized SEO activities such as link building. As a business owner you need to be aware of the basics of SEO to make an informed decision on purchasing SEO services. If your site cannot be found by search engines or your content cannot be put into their databases, you miss out on the incredible opportunities available to websites provided via search engines. Whether your site provides content, services, products, or information, search engines are the primary method of navigation for almost all Internet users to connect with a website.
Lets begin with the basics of how search engines like Yahoo! work. Internet search engines, such as Yahoo, Google, and Bing, catalog each and every web page on the net. They accomplish this by sending out automated "robots" to search the page for certain tags, keywords, and links. It is estimated that there are approximately twenty billion pages and that only eight to ten billion are ever crawled by a "bot" or "spider". That means less than 50% of websites are crawled by a search engine spider. Most of the sites not crawled by a spider have not been developed using proper SEO in relation to submission of a site to a search engine. As you can imagine proper submission is a must to even get you in the game. Brainstorm Media can assist you in submission of your site or simply provide you with the tools to accomplish it yourself.
These indexing robots search the site reviewing Meta Tags, proper coding and content for relevant material in order to properly store your website in an indexed file. The search engines then have a huge database of managed words from which to match queries. When a person types a request in a search box millions of calculations are made and the relevant material is delivered to the consumer. SEO can drastically increase your chances of having a search engine appropriately index your website to perform a proper match to the customer. The search is the process of getting your customer to see your website.
Finally, it is important to recognize that the indexing is done by developed algorithms used by each separate search engine. While you may show up very quickly in a Google search it may take longer to show up in a Bing search. These search engines often work independently of one another. The algorithms are changed periodically so SEO tends to be a continual process. Proper Search Engine Optimization should be a part of your website design development. After all why spend all the money and attention to developing a great site if not to drive customers to your business? If you designed your website in house or had someone build it for you, Brainstorm Media can review your site for proper SEO implementation. Next article we will get into the nuts and bolts of how SOE is accomplished.
Continue with Implementing Search Engine Optimization
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