SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving a website or web page so it ranks higher in search engine results (like Google) when people search for specific keywords or topics.
🔍 What SEO Does:
SEO helps your website become more visible to people who are actively searching for what you offer—whether that’s products, services, or information.
🧱 Key Components of SEO:
- On-Page SEO
Changes made on your website to improve rankings:- Using relevant keywords
- Writing quality content
- Optimizing title tags, meta descriptions, headers
- Improving site speed and mobile-friendliness
- Off-Page SEO
Actions taken outside your site to build authority:- Getting backlinks (links from other websites)
- Social sharing and brand mentions
- Technical SEO
Making your site easier for search engines to crawl and index:- Fixing broken links
- Creating sitemaps
- Using schema markup
- Securing your site with HTTPS
- Local SEO
Helping local businesses appear in “near me” searches:- Optimizing your Google Business Profile
- Adding local keywords (e.g., “plumber in Austin”)
🚀 Why SEO Matters:
- Free, consistent traffic from search engines
- Builds trust and credibility (top-ranked sites are seen as more legit)
- Drives conversions by reaching users at the right time
- Cost-effective in the long run compared to paid ads
🧠Example:
If you run a bakery in Chicago and someone searches for:
“best cupcakes in Chicago”
Good SEO helps your website show up on page 1 of Google, so they click on your site and become a customer.