If you’re a business with any internet presence at all, you should be thinking about SEO. A good digital marketing agency can help you harness the power of SEO through your website, leading to the steady growth of your business. Sounds awesome, right?

But what is SEO exactly, and do you really need to pay a digital agency to do it for you?

What is SEO?

In the simplest terms, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) means adapting your website so it appears higher up on Google. Who doesn’t want to appear on the first page of Google’s search results?

Search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo use algorithms to rank websites and webpages. These take into account practical aspects like page speed, alongside how users actually behave on pages. SEO encompasses a range of techniques to improve your site in the eyes of a search engine.

SEO could mean anything from targeting the keywords your customers search for, to changing the structure of your site itself. There are also ‘bad’ SEO practices, which can hurt your rankings.

What are the benefits of SEO?

Easy – increased traffic to your website and increased revenue for your business.

SEO helps your site be seen as the go-to resource, ensuring you appear above competitors on search engine results pages (SERPs). Many customers won’t bother with the 2nd page of results.

Search engines aren’t stupid. They can spot a badly designed, spammy, unengaging website and will rank it as such! SEO has the positive holistic effect of creating a more appealing, user-friendly site.

How can a digital agency help my business?

Many businesses understand the basics of SEO, but simply don’t have time to focus on it. Add to this the hundreds of conflicting optimisation techniques and you can find yourself confused. An internet marketing company like Digital Marketing Sheffield can plan and implement an effective SEO strategy.

Our agency gives you access to professionals with the resources, skills and expertise to optimise your website correctly. We do all the technical stuff, while you focus on running your business.

What does an SEO specialist actually do?

Every website campaign is different – but here are some of the common techniques used by an SEO.

  • Keyword Research: Finding the best keywords for your website to target. These can include finding generic terms, or longer niche phrases that your customers are searching for. Using these keywords within your website will help claw you upwards through the rankings.
  • Outreach & Link Acquisition: This used to mean paying dodgy websites to link to you, but has thankfully been replaced by more ethical techniques. From fixing dead links to reaching out to relevant companies and influencers, reputable links to your website improve SEO.
  • Website Health: Thought SEO was just about keyword stuffing and backlinks? The overall user experience of your website plays an important part in SEO. Make sure your customers can easily find what they’re looking for (and actually want to spend time on webpages).
  • Creating Content: SEOs are more creative than you might think! They can produce lead-generating blogs and articles on topics that people will actually search for. With an effective strategy and engaging content, your website can take advantage of trends.

Why choose Digital Marketing Sheffield?

We are a leading, award-winning online marketing company with a focus on SEO, PPC and website design. Our experts have a reputation for delivering tangible results and increasing online visibility.

As an approved partner of Google, we’re always up to date with the latest SEO techniques. We won’t use any unethical, ‘black-hat’ practices which could lead to your rankings actually taking a tumble. With over 10 years in the field and a portfolio of satisfied clients, we’re proud of our results.

Give us a call today on 0800 292 2410 or pop into our Sheffield office for an informal chat.