Search engine optimisation (SEO) is the process of optimizing your website, or web pages, for visibility on search engines. Search engines, such as Google, display results based on their algorithm; how well your content matches up with a query is determined by keywords, authority, relevancy to that query, and loading speed. While search engine technology is constantly evolving, there are some foundational elements that remain the same.

DemandGen’s 2022 B2B Buyer Research Report found that 67% of buyers start their buying journey with a web search. So, it’s safe to say that if you don’t show up in their search results, your business is missing out on a massive opportunity for growth.

The key to search engine optimization is understanding how search engines work. That way, you can align your content strategy with what search engines want to see – and what their users actually need.

When a search engine user enters a query, they are looking for answers or information to solve a problem or accomplish a task. To find that, search engines look for the best match and display those pages at the top of their results page (SERP).

Identifying the keywords your ideal customers are using to describe their problems or search for solutions is one of the first steps in the SEO process. This step is essential because search engines only return relevant results and will ignore unrelated content.

Once you have your list of target keywords, you can begin building your content strategy. On-page SEO involves making sure that your webpages contain the correct words in the right context, and have detailed, useful content to match those search phrases. This is done by targeting specific keywords in your title tags, meta descriptions, and URL structure. It is also important to add relevant LSI (latent semantic indexing) terms and synonyms to improve your relevance and increase the likelihood of searchers clicking through to your site.

A slow-loading website isn’t just frustrating for your visitors; it can have a negative impact on your search engine optimization. In 2018, Google announced a ranking factor called “Speed Update,” that penalizes websites and pages for loading slowly.

Off-page SEO refers to activities outside of your website that can help improve your rankings, such as link building and social media marketing. While these activities can take time to produce tangible results, they are still an important part of any SEO strategy.