Facts About SEO Digital Marketing

· Traditional Marketing Just Doesn’t Work Anymore

· The consumer buying process has changed (A LOT!)

o Traditionally speaking, cold calls, direct mail, and elevator pitches ruled the day in sales. Salespeople were regarded as “keepers of knowledge” where the buyer relied almost entirely on their rep to educate them on a particular product or service.

· Traditional Media Is Interruptive in Nature.

o Most traditional marketing (TV, Radio, Print) works like this: Company A places an ad with the intention of completely interrupting what the potential customer is doing.

· It Doesn’t Work on Millennial Buyers

o Millennials are quickly becoming the largest demographic in the United States, and are thus the largest consumer base in the country as well.

· Lack of Track-ability of ROI.

o Clients that I have worked with in the past simply haven’t had the resources to be able to implement the types of tracking mechanisms that a Fortune 500 brand might with traditional media to measure engagement and return. They want every dollar tracked and want a clear understanding of what their marketing dollars are bringing back into their business. Traditional media doesn’t easily allow for this kind of tracking.

· Not All Digital Marketing is SEO

· Many consider search engine optimization (SEO) and digital marketing to be synonymous. However, they have two separate definitions and are entirely separate.

· There are many ways in which SEO and digital marketing function similarly and today they work in tandem.

· An SEO company is hired to optimize a website so that its position in search engine results is improved.

· They will use a wide variety of strategies and SEO best practices to achieve higher rankings in the SERPs.

· SEO is actually a subset of digital marketing and there are many who would define an SEO specialist as one who integrates digital marketing and SEO best practices to achieve their goals.

· We’ve used the phrase ‘SEO digital marketing’ several times so far. But you may remember how we mentioned that digital marketing and SEO are different.

· Search Engine Optimization is just that — optimizing your content for search engines. Comparatively, digital marketing is simply any form of marketing on the internet.

· It can be a video, a Facebook Ad, or even a Tweet. SEO content tends to focus on the use of keywords and link building, two topics we’ll cover in a bit.

For now, all you need to know is that if you’re using digital marketing, you’re not necessarily using SEO.

· SEO Focuses on Overall Traffic

· The entire concept of SEO digital marketing is predicated on the standard internet sales funnel. The first step in driving up your sales, as you may expect, is getting people to your site in the first place.

· While digital marketing is all about the bottom line — the sale — SEO has a smaller approach. The aim is to get users to your content in the first place and draw them in.

· By creating engaging content adhering to SEO standards, the hope is to drive users to your site, leading them to purchase what you offer.

· Yes, There are Standards

· While many regard the web as the Wild West, if you want to run a successful business you’ll need to adhere to the rules.

· With millions of hits per day, Google has begun to set the golden standard for what is and isn’t SEO appropriate. Be sure to stop by the Google Webmasters page to make sure your site stacks up.

· It may seem odd to you that it’s Google setting the standards when there are dozens of other search engines available. But let’s face it, Google is king for a reason.

· If the web is the Wild West, Google is the guns linging sheriff restoring order.

· You Don’t Have to be a Big Business to Invest in SEO Digital Marketing

· You may think of SEO as something only businesses with thousands of visitors per month need to concern themselves with. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

· SEO is pertinent to any and all businesses that want to get ahead in the digital market. Whether you’re a blogger or a small business owner, you need to put in place SEO digital marketing.

· Your aim in utilizing these SEO digital marketing strategies is to get those big hits. It doesn’t matter if your business employs 1 or 1,000, you can’t afford to miss out.

· The Faster Your Site, the Better

· So far we’ve talked a lot about what SEO digital marketing is and how it differs from digital marketing. What we haven’t discussed yet is how much your website itself matters. The slower your website is, the more traffic you’ll miss out on. And the more traffic you’re missing, the more dollars you’re losing.

· On average, expect a visitor to leave your site just 1-2 seconds after waiting. You can’t afford to miss out on any eyes. Make your website as fast as possible.

· If you’re not sure how fast your website is right now, find out. There are tons of tools online to help you see your loading speed, including one put out by Google.Compress images, and prioritize text for the best results.

· Speak With Authority

· On a similar note, you’ll want to keep your posts relevant to your business. For instance, if you run a blog about the most popular music, you wouldn’t want to write about global warming.

· Staying on topic and building your presence can help you gain what’s referred to as an authority. What makes someone an authority in the SEO digital marketing sense?

· They’re someone who can be trusted in his or her area of knowledge. The easiest way to build up authority is to include links within your posts.

· For good measure, make sure you’re including both internal and external links. When used correctly, both can give you brownie points in the eyes of Google’s algorithm.

· SEO is More Than Just Content

· We’ve only focused on the content side of SEO so far, so let’s talk about other ways you can get your site on the first page. One of the smartest moves you can make is to get yourself listed on Google My Business.

· It’s a free service that shows users info like contact information, location, and hours. This isn’t just a smart SEO move, it’s an important business move as well.

· You’ll also want to keep a strong social media presence. Think of your social media accounts as an extension of your business site. Both matter tremendously. Even implementing a simple ‘share’ button on your site can boost your ranking.

· Google Wants to Teach You

· While the SEO digital marketing world may seem a bit dog-eat-dog, Google has made learning easy.

· The truth is, they don’t want to penalize sites for failing to adhere to guidelines. That’s why they’ve offered a complete suite of tools from site speed to keyword analysis.

· Nobody comes to digital marketing as an expert on SEO digital marketing. Learning takes time and practice. So be patient, and be resourceful.

· Your UX is Important

· Even how your website looks plays a part in your search engine ranking. Google checks for ease of use in addition to loading speed.

· Everything on your website should serve a purpose. If you have extra pages that don’t have a real function, get rid of them. The simpler and more streamlined your design, the better.

· A user-friendly experience is an absolute must. Keep your design clean, your menus simple, and your content strong.

@ A Few Closing Words on SEO Digital Marketing

· There’s no debating that SEO is a fickle, fickle beast. But for better or worse, it’s here to stay. Make sure you’re focusing on high quality content with plenty of links and keywords.

· With some intellect, research, and creativity, you’ll take the digital world by storm in no time