Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of affecting the visibility of a website or a web page in a search engine’s unpaid results – often referred to as “natural,” “organic,” or “earned” results. In general, the earlier (or higher ranked on the search results page), and more frequently a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine’s users. (thank you Wikipedia) In addition, the search process can be more specific, such as searches for images or videos. There are also search engines that are industry-specific.
SEO is often confused with Internet Marketing. The best way to conceptualize it is to remember that SEO is part of a larger group of services collectively known as Internet Marketing. All website owners want to rank higher in the search engine results and SEO is only one part of the picture. But it is a very important part.
Today the “800 pound gorilla” of internet search is Google. Bing is a distant second with 20% – 30% of the searches and there are numerous smaller or newer search engines such as DuckDuckGo. The search engines of the past, which weren’t very good by today’s standards, include Alta Vista, Infoseek, Webcrawler, Direct Hit, Snap, GoTo, Excite, Lycos, and many others.
There are many aspects of SEO and it has developed into a specialized field of study. Among the many areas under the SEO umbrella are website and page structure, keyword research, metatag construction, content development, backlink quantity and quality, analytics reports, competitor analysis, and much more. Google offers a SEO Starter Guide that you can read by clicking the previous link. Have fun!
P.S. – Did you notice that the two links on this page are directed to two of the most authoritative websites on the planet? Yep, Wikipedia and Google. This is an SEO technique know as “outbound linking” and the goal is to build a little more authority for this website, Viva2100 Internet Marketing.