You’ve likely heard the term SEO thrown around here and there, but what is SEO exactly and how can you use it to dramatically boost your website’s discoverability online?

SEO is an essential tool in a content designer’s toolkit and comes in very handy when designing content that meets user needs.

I’ll explain SEO in 5 easy steps so you can start improving your bottom line sooner and get on with what you love doing most.

Before we get started…

What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a process used to boost organic traffic to your website by optimising its visibility on search engines.

It’s sprinkling breadcrumbs throughout your website content that search engines like Google collect. Think of the story Hansel and Gretal, Hansel leaves breadcrumbs for him and his sister to find their way home.

When a search engine comes along to crawl your website it’s looking for hints and clues that tell it what your website is all about and what your content can offer. Search engines want to find content that best answers their users needs. They like creditable, authoritative content that’s unique, organised and clean.

Why is SEO important?

SEO is important to implement into your website content because it will help your site be found, it’s pretty much as simple as that.

The higher ranked your page is the more likely you will have traffic visit your site.

5 steps to explain SEO

1. Use keywords in your content

Sprinkle your chosen keywords throughout your content so when search engines are indexing your page it’s easier for them to match your page to search results. To get you started try using a tool like Google Trends to find keywords that work.

2. Choose simple, meaningful page titles

Creating titles that entice and interest your user will aid in increasing traffic to your content. Try putting yourself in your audience’s shoes, what would they want to read about? Be selective about what keywords you choose to use, a max of 3 keywords in your page title is a good start. 

3. Create backlinking and link building

Linking your content out to credible, authoritative sources where and when it’s called for can improve your SEO immensely. Try and get those credible, authoritative sources to then link back to your content. Search engines love links and the trail it leaves behind. 

4. Keep your website tidy and organised

A well-organised information architecture and structured content on your site allow search engines to crawl easily through your content. It also allows for easy and intuitive user navigation and an overall better user experience. In addition, keep your URLs clean and simple. 

5. Write descriptive metadata 

Metadata is the descriptive title and text that search engines pull from your content to display like an index on the search engine results page. It’s a good idea to use keywords in this description and make it meaningful to your user.

SEO takes diligence and patience

Something to keep in the back of your mind, if you’d like to build your ranking organically you are going to have to be diligent and patient. If you commit to your SEO practice you will reap the benefits, eventually.

Still feel a bit unsure how to implement SEO, take a look at Google’s Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide.

Need a reminder on how to write content? Take a read of Write good web content using these basic steps to help you great web content.