Picture launching a brand-new store right in the heart of a bustling city, filled with incredible products, top-notch customer service, and a stunning storefront. However, the problem is that you built the store in a tucked-away alley that doesn’t appear on any map. No matter how great your business is, nobody knows where to find it. In the digital world, your website is your storefront, and SEO or Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing is how you get it on the map, ideally, right on Google’s front page.
If you’re new to digital marketing, “SEO” might sound like intimidating tech jargon meant for coders and data experts. But it’s not as at its heart, SEO is simply about understanding what people are looking for and helping search engines connect them to your content. This guide by Adivorous breaks down the complexities and provides a solid foundation to kickstart your SEO journey. So, stop feeling overwhelmed and start getting found. Here is everything you need to know to understand Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing and start driving free traffic to your website.
What Actually is Search Engine Optimization in Digital Marketing?
SEO or Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing is the practice of improving your website to increase its visibility for relevant searches on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. In digital marketing, there are two primary ways to show up on a search results page, often referred to as a SERP:
- Paid Search (SEM/PPC): You pay to show up at the top of the page in the “Sponsored” section, and once you stop paying, you vanish.
- Organic Search (SEO): You land just below the ads because Google sees your content as the best answer to the user’s question. This kind of traffic is essentially “free.”
Do not make the mistake that one way of marketing is better than the other. Each have their own set of strengths and weaknesses. Where SEM gives you instant visibility, SEO provides you with long-term visibility, albeit with a slow start. Now the question arises, does SEO even matter? Of course! Most online experiences start with a search engine, and if you’re not on the first page of Google, you’re almost invisible. Strong SEO drives steady, high-quality traffic to your site without the need to pay for every click.
How Search Engines Work in the First Place?
The search engine works in 3 stages: crawling, indexing and serving. After all, you can’t optimise for Google if you don’t understand what it’s up to. Imagine Google as the world’s most meticulous and efficient librarian. To deliver the best answers, search engines use “bots” (or “spiders”) to carry out three main tasks. As an SEO Specialist, how can you make your site simple to crawl, effortless to categorise, and deserving of that top ranking spot? To pull that off, you need to understand the 3-step process a search engine works.
Crawling (Finding the Information)
Bots constantly roam the internet, hopping from one link to another in search of fresh or updated content. If your site isn’t easy to crawl (with no links leading to it), Google won’t be able to discover it.
Indexing (Filing the Information)
When a bot discovers a page, it reviews the content, whether text, images, or video, and saves it in a huge database known as the “index.” It’s like a librarian figuring out what a new book is about and placing it in the right section of the library.
Ranking (Serving the Best Answer)
When you type something into Google, it’s not searching the live internet at that moment, but it’s searching its index. Its algorithm, a complex system with hundreds of factors, quickly scans millions of pages to figure out which ones best answer your question. The most relevant and reliable results show up at the top.
Keyword Research is a Critical Part of Search Engine Optimization in Digital Marketing
Before writing a blog post or creating a product page, it’s important to understand who your potential customers are. Especially, what they are really typing into the search bar. Keyword research is all about finding the words and phrases people use when searching for solutions in your niche.
The Golden Rule: Intent > Volume
Beginners often go after high-volume keywords like “shoes,” but these are extremely competitive and usually too broad. Content on such keyword are often saturated with websites with high-domain authority capturing most of the high rank placements in the SERPs. Instead, focus on long-tail keywords, which are longer and more specific phrases, usually consisting of three or more words.
For example, a Short Tail keyword contains one or two non-specific words like “Shoes”. Which usually have high competition and low intent. Whereas a Long Tail keyword is more intentional with itself. For instance, “Best women’s running shoes for flat feet”. Such a keyword may have lower competition, but can cultivate a very high purchasing intent.
How to Find Keywords (For Free)
| Google Autocomplete | Start typing your main topic into Google and see what it suggests. Those suggestions are actual searches people make. |
| Google Keyword Planner | A free tool inside Google Ads that shows search volume estimates. |
| People Also Ask | Look at the PAA box in the search results. These are literal questions your audience has. |
On-Page Search Engine Optimization in Digital Marketing
On-page Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing refers to everything you do directly on your website to help search engines understand your content. Ranging from product description pages to homepage or landing page content, and of course, blogs and articles. Once you’ve picked a target keyword for a page (like “eggless chocolate cake recipe”), you need to create the very best content that your competition does not offer. After all, Google wants to rank the best result.
Thus, make sure your content is thorough, accurate, and easy to understand. Avoid keyword stuffing or unnaturally repeating phrases. Instead, write for people, using keywords naturally within the flow. Your content must be unique, valuable and address the user’s enquiry. Next, use the title tag, which is the blue clickable headline that appears in search results. It is arguably the most critical on-page SEO element. Try to keep it under 60 characters, place your main keyword up front, and make it irresistible to click.
After dealing with the title tag or meta title, shift your focus to the meta description. This is the brief snippet that appears under the title tag in search results. While it doesn’t directly impact rankings, it plays a big role in whether people click on your link. Think of it as the ad copy for your webpage.
It does not matter which type of content you are writing; you need to break into a recognisable hierarchy for both the crawler and user to follow through easily. Use headings to organise your content like an outline. Make the page’s main title a Heading 1, major sections Heading 2s, and sub-sections as Heading 3s. This makes it easier for bots to understand the hierarchy of information.
Last but not least, Google bots can’t actually “see” images, so alt text serves as a brief description embedded in the code. It helps visually impaired users who rely on screen readers and lets Google know what the image represents.
Off-Page SEO Helps You Build Authority and Trust
On-Page SEO is how you present yourself, while Off-Page SEO is how others perceive and talk about you. In simple words, off-page Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing is letting others tell the users what your brand is all about. Google sees the internet as a kind of democracy, where each link from another website to yours acts like a “vote of confidence.” These links are known as backlinks.
In general, the more high-quality backlinks you have, the more authority Google attributes to your site, which can lead to higher rankings. However, a bunch of spammy websites sending backlinks results in poorer performance than having fewer backlinks from quality websites. For example, a single link from a reputable source like The New York Times or an industry leader is more valuable than 10,000 links from spammy, unrelated websites.
Beginner Link Building Strategies:
| Create Incredible Content | The best way to get links is to write something so useful, data-driven, or entertaining that people naturally want to link to it as a resource. |
| Guest Posting | Write high-quality articles for other relevant blogs in your niche in exchange for a link back to your site. |
| Local SEO (If applicable) | Get listed in trustworthy directories like Google Business Profile, Yelp, and local chambers of commerce. |
Technical SEO is the Backbone of Your SEO Marketing
Technical SEO makes sure your website meets the technical standards of today’s search engines. Think of it like keeping the engine of your car running smoothly. Although this can get complicated, beginners just need to focus on three things:
- Mobile-Friendliness: Google uses “mobile-first indexing,” meaning they primarily evaluate the mobile version of your site to determine its ranking. If your site looks bad on a phone, your ranking will take a hit.
- Page Speed: People are impatient, and if your site takes longer than three seconds to load, visitors will likely head back to Google. Google is aware of this and penalises slow-loading sites. Use Google’s free PageSpeed Insights tool to see how your site measures up.
- Security (HTTPS): If your website URL doesn’t start with “https://” and show a small padlock icon, it’s not secure. Google favours secure sites, and browsers often warn visitors about those that aren’t.
Is Your Search Engine Optimization in Digital Marketing Succeeding?
How can you tell if all your hard work is paying off? It’s important to track your performance, and for that, you’ll want two essential, free tools from Google: Google Search Console (GSC) and Google Analytics (GA4).
In the GSC, you can use the dashboard to check your website’s health in Google search. It tells you which keywords your site is ranking for, how many people are clicking on your results and if Google is having trouble crawling your site.
On the other hand, once people arrive on your site, GA4 tells you what they do there. It tells you how much of your traffic comes from “Organic Search.” As well as which pages they visit most, and if they are converting into leads or customers.
Conclusion
If there’s one thing to remember from this guide, it’s that SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. Which basically means, Search Engine Optimization in digital marketing isn’t a one-and-done task. It usually takes three to six months to see meaningful results from your work. Algorithms shift, new competitors pop up, and fresh content is constantly being published.
Don’t let that hold you back. By regularly creating valuable content that addresses your audience’s needs. As well as keeping your site technically solid, you’ll steadily rise in the ranking. With a high ranking, you’ll be attracting that priceless, free traffic that fuels business growth. Adivorous has been doing this and helping our clients stand out in a fairly crowded space.
FAQs
- How long does it take to see results?
- SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. While you might see small movements quickly, it typically takes 3 to 6 months of consistent effort to see significant changes in your rankings and organic traffic.
- Is SEO actually “free”?
- While you don’t pay Google for organic clicks (unlike ads), SEO isn’t exactly free. It requires a significant investment of time, high-quality content creation, and potentially paid tools to do it effectively at scale.
- Do I need to be a coder to do SEO?
- Not necessarily. Most modern website builders (like WordPress, Wix, or Shopify) handle the heavy technical lifting. As a beginner, you can have a massive impact just by focusing on great content and clear organisation.
- How many keywords should I target per page?
- Focus on one primary keyword per page. However, you should also naturally include 3-5 “related” or “long-tail” keywords that support the main topic to help search engines understand the full context of your content.
