What is SEO?

by | Nov 30, 2012 | Unassigned

SEO is the acronym for Search Engine Optimisation,

and it is a set of strategies which are designed to make the target website appear higher in the SERP (search engine results page) for a given keyword or certain keyword phrases

The vast majority of web surfers will use one of the major search engines: Google, Yahoo or Bing to locate the goods and services they require on the internet. Google dominates the search engine world with around 80% market share. Therefore the main SEO goal is geared towards geting achieving the highest “Page Ranks” on Google, however, there may be some who wish to rank well on Bing and Yahoo.

The term “Page Rank” is used to quantify a websites authority on the Internet. “Page Rank” is a number between 0 and 10, with 10 being the highest possible score available. The more authority that a website is said to have, the higher the “Page Rank” is said to be, and the higher the page will appear in the search query results. However, a high “Page Rank’ doesn’t always ensure a top spot in the SERP. Likewise, a low rank doesn’t always mean that a website will appear low in the SERP. Of course, high SERP results and a high “Page Rank’ are related, but there is not a direct correlation between the two.

Typically, the average surfer will not look further than the second, or maybe third page of search results when searching for a business or service. Most people will simply assume that if a business is within the first page or two of results, then that business is favorable over a business listed below- therefore these businesses immediately have the advantage over those below.

SEO is a strategic investment more than anything. The exact algorithm that Google uses to determine Page Rank is only known to them, and is a closely guarded secret. However, enough is known about the criteria which is seen as important to determine Page Rank as well as SERP ratings to ensure that a solid SEO strategy can be adopted and followed.

Universal Web Design is an Internet Marketing Agency which can develop and implement an SEO strategy which will help your business to be on the top pages of Google, meaning that your business is immediately seen as more favorable to customers. Universal Web Design will analyse your website, and make a decision own which keywords to focus so that your website’s page rank increases as quickly as possible. SEO can take  around 1 to 6 months of SEO and marketing efforts before really significant results will be realised. It is always important to remember that SEO is a long-term solution and should be considered as an investment, rather than something which will immediately bring in results.

To find out how Universal Web Design can help increase your website’s visibility on the internet and increase the number of guests who visit your site, contact us now.