This article is going to lay out, once and for all, what SEO is. This is really for the amateurs, the guy with a website who isn't exactly sure why he dropped a ton of money for a quality site that doesn't get any visitors, or the girl who has seen her business's name drop from amongst the top Google pages to the lowest of the low results and has been told by a friend that he/she needs SEO.
Exactly What 'SEO' Means To You
First off, this means Search Engine Optimization. Optimizing your company's web presence so that it reaches higher when you get searched for, or for varying 'key' words related to the business you run. This is generally done in two ways: through an organic method, and by using PPC. This latter example means paying the big ad companies, usually Google to put your relevant ad on all its various platforms, from the main Google search results page, or into GMail, or onto YouTube, embedded into videos now.
These are usually acknowledged as AdWords campaigns and can range wildly in price. Google also handles a ton of banner advertisements on other sites. All of these things ought to been seen as old-fashioned advertising, only with the extra plus that you find the customers who are searching for whatever it is you (and only you) provide.
It's like that old-fashioned way of taking out big ads in the yellow pages under the relevant section, only now it's 2009 and the yellow pages are entirely online, too.
Understanding How Online Advertising and Search Work Together
All clear? A good SEO agency will do your paid search, explaining exactly how to run ad campaigns and sometimes creating your ads themselves. They'll give you complete analysis (when you see what Google can do and the things you can learn from it, your mind will be blown).
What Does Organic Search Mean?
So what about "organic search"? That's all about getting your site placed high in Google's normal search engine. It happens with useful information, optimized code, and building rich, relevant links, among many other factors. Just to state it once more, a good SEO marketing firm will get this done for you, and most importantly, will do it transparently.
There are dozens of methods to 'dupe' Google, and eventually they are all picked up by Google themselves and made impossible. And the people doing them are placed on a kind of blacklist (hence the black-hat terminology you might see). So the SEO company you choose needs to openly not engage in those kinds of behaviours.
SEO Companies are Just Like Ad Agencies, Somehow
Consider this: they're like an ad agency who swoops in, fixes up your brand to the point where it's even more marketable (optimization), and then goes out and places your ads exactly where they are seen by relevant consumers (something that wasn't really possible before the advent of Google), and ramps up the amount of online chatter and links about what you're selling, just like ad agencies of old would try and get newspaper articles written about their clients.
Is it becoming clear yet? SEO is a niche absolutely overflowing with jargon because that's the nature of the beast, but then again, ad agencies are awash in jargon too. You simply need to get a bit initiated, and you'll understand why it's not nearly as intimidating as it seems.
Why SEO Can't Be Left to an Amateur
Consider SEO like a nice, modern branding agency doing much more specific work in a market that is expanding like no other. Many of the old rules still apply, but as sea changes are happening when it comes to how people read news and find business online, SEO is a fundamental topic to be aware of if you're going to be successful online.
