SEO Generalizations

It goes without saying, the life blood of any business is sales. To most digital marketers, SEO (search engine optimization) is one key driver to how quickly a business can be found, a question answered and a sale made.

But the term ‘SEO’ is a largely misunderstood one, often it’s referred to as a broad generalization of steps and tools that lead to a common request, ‘how does my business get to page one for X keyword(s)?’

This oversimplification of what ‘SEO’ actually is, leads many businesses and inexperienced marketers down a rabbit hole of unrealistic expectations, wasted resources and most importantly, time.

The Long Haul and PPC

Organically reaching page one for a given keyword (or phrase) on Google is a lofty goal – so is it worth the effort and resources? Additionally, do you have the will (and budget) to rank for multiple keywords over the long haul?

If you’re looking for faster results, then I recommend PPC (pay-per-click) which we will cover in a future discussion.

While we’re on the topic, I will add that organic search results consistently have a higher CTR in comparison to paid advertising. However, I believe it is worth the investment to support your long-term SEO efforts with PPC ‘training wheels’  while you implement a long-term strategy.

Tools vs. Strategy

So what does said strategy look like? There are enumerable resources online that will guide you, most are tied to helpful software and turn-key services -for a price. Furthermore, any competent office manager can review dashboards and recommend day to day adjustments, but you’ll need more then just data and course corrections.

In my follow up, I’ll sight a recent case study that touches on core items to address, and how my team was able to overcome multiple hurdles to deliver a SEO optimized website.