SEO Basics

What is SEO & Why Should I care?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. The short definition is, “it’s the process of getting traffic to your website through natural, organic search results.” (Here’s the nerdy definition.)

Just like any industry (such as the medical field), there are experts who specialize in SEO and Google. We’re happy to give you our recommendations if you’d like, just ask. In the meantime, visit our SEO Tips Pinterest Board for resources we’ve collected to learn more about this important topic.

Optimizing your website for SEO

When building websites, we use the Beaver Builder WordPress theme. Beaver Builder will not only let you create just about anything, it’s also constructed very well by the developer and has optimization build right in!

Even though Beaver Builder rocks, there are additional steps you can take to increase and help your SEO, such as:

• Creating custom title tags for your pages and posts (you can do this right from your page/post editor). Your title tag is what’s shown on a website’s page tabs like this:
  
• Creating a meta description for your pages and posts tells search engines what your page or post is about (you can do this right from your page/post editor). When someone searches or shares, they’ll see something like this:
  
• Adding your SITE title tag and meta description. Different from page and post, these are the main descriptions for your overall website located in the head section of your website. (Depending on your theme, you might have easy access to edit this or you might need a little more technical help.)
• Using Alt tags with your images. When adding a new image to your Media Library, add a short description about the image. This helps your SEO when search robots read your site, it gives people who share your images ready-to-use information (think Pinterest, etc.), and it’s helpful for those visiting your site who are visually impaired.
• Use blog post Categories and/or Tags.
• Update your permalinks so your page URL link looks like this – lovelywebsite.com/portfolio and not this
  lovelywebsite.com/1758032.
• Submit your website to Google and the other search engines. One way to do this is by using Yoast, the best SEO plugin on the market!
• Add internal linking where helpful and appropriate by linking to other pages within your own website.

Bonus SEO: Google LOVES fresh, updated content. The easiest way to accomplish this is by blogging. A blog will provide fresh content on the interwebs. And, by giving your visitors the ability to share or comment, you’ll get more search engine love. Learn more about the Importance of Blogging and Sharing here.

Get the most out of your website with these tips and help your website’s organic SEO!