SEO Portland

What is Search Engine Optimization?

Search Engine Optimization, also known as SEO, is the process of developing a website’s authority and trust online. When you search for something online Google will give you results that are closely related to the “search term” you used. If you’re like most people you look at the search results, and you probably wonder why those particular sites are showing up. The short answer is, Google will show you results from sites that it determines are trustworthy and authoritative. These results are not random but are in fact determined by a very powerful algorithm that looks for trust factors and authority signals online.

Google wants to make sure that people keep using its service. This means that they only want to serve up the best information possible to the searcher. In order to show up on the first page of Google, you have to play Google’s internet game.

Free Consultation


SEO

how does it work?

There are hundreds of factors that Google looks at when it is determining where to rank a website. Lots of them are super technical, and we don’t want to bore you with them here. Instead, we will cover the most important pieces of the puzzle, what most people consider the BIG 3! These are:

 

  • Content
  • Backlinks
  • Citations

Content

Content is the first area to attend to. Google reads all of the content on your website, that’s how it determines whether or not your site is relevant to a particular search. The more well-written, relevant content you have, the more Google will trust your site. Too many make the mistake of thinking that as long as they have lots of content they will rank. Google cares about the quality of the content, not just the quantity, so it’s important to make sure that all of your content is high-quality and relevant.

While there aren’t any hard and fast rules for the amount of content on your site, we have found it best to have about 1,500-2,000 words on your home page. Some might require a little more, some a little less, but this is the sweet spot we have found for ranking a website.

Content Creation
Backlinks

How DOes it work?

Backlinks

Content alone won’t be enough to rank your website, you’re also going to need backlinks. Backlinks are links from one website to another, and they serve to show Google that your content is both valuable and relevant. (Think of backlinks as popularity votes.) The more backlinks you have, the trust Google has in your website.

A word of caution here. Most people will hire a cheap digital marketing company or SEO company to help them build their backlinks. What most owners do not understand is that Google also cares about the relevancy of your content, and if your backlinks are coming from sites that are not relevant to your business niche, Google can penalize you and de-rank your website. Make sure that the majority of your links are coming from relevant sites.

(Always avoid links from porn and gambling sites! These will hurt your website, and could possibly get your website removed from Google.)

Citations

Have you ever wondered why certain businesses show up in that little map section in Google? The answer is citations. Citations are online business listings, and they include your business’ name, address, and phone number. Generally, these will be in online directories. The more of them you have the more trust Google places in your business.

Citations work together with Backlinks and Content to help your website rank higher.

Citations

How do we get started?

Fill out the form at the top of the page, or call us today! We will audit your website and help you determine the best plan to rank your website on Google.