The closer a website is to the top of a search engine (like Google) the more likely that a potential client will visit it. But with all the billions of websites out there how on earth is it possible to compete with them all and get that desired number one spot?
Well, as Blue Stag Studios resident SEO expert, I'm here to explain the principles of SEO and why it's so important.
How Search Engines Work
Search engines like Google, MSN and Ask are there to provide a service. If you're looking for something, and you type what it is you're looking for into a search engine, it will then do its utmost to find the websites that are most relevant and can provide all of the information you may need.
It does this by looking at the words you have typed in (known as keywords) and then scouring the internet for all of the websites that contain the same words. Most websites contain definitions within them that a visitor cannot see but a search engine can and it is these definitions that a search engine picks up on.
Once its collected this information from all of the relevant websites (and this can be in the range of a million) it then has to decide which websites are likely to prove the most useful for you.
How do search engines decide which order websites should be displayed in?
This is a complex process, and some number crunching computer program somewhere in the depths of the search engine looks at a number of aspects of each website to see how relevant it is to the user...these aspects can include
Keywords (hidden definitions that provide a description of your website to search engines)
Site Structure (how the site was built) Content Positioning (the way in which content is displayed) Content Relevancy (does the content within the website match the keyword definitions?) Site Popularity (do other relevant sites link to your website? This, combined with other things (that sometimes even web developers don't know about), determines how high a website appears in the rankings displayed to you as a searcher.
What happens next?
Well, the results are then displayed to you and you can choose which site you want to use, usually users click on one of the top 10 sites, and as a result those websites get a lot more exposure to potential clients than the ones placed at number 87,521 or whatever it may be.
And this is why SEO is so important, if done properly it can help bring your target market to your website because they're looking for your product or service.
Of-course, having loads of visitors does not mean guaranteed sales, but it will certainly improve your chances.
About the Author
Matthew Jones is a website developer working for bluestagstudio. He likes windy walks, jammy dodgers and playing hop scotch
Website Design Cardiff
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