If you're new to Search Engine Optimisation you may be wondering what it is and what it involves? SEO as it is mostly called relates to a webmaster aiming to have their website details show up as highly as possible within the search engine results of Google, Yahoo or Bing.

It is commonly accepted and now understood that a majority of customers turn to search engines as their first stop for research on products and services they are looking to buy. For this reason, it is considered a vital part of marketing for any business to have an effective presence in search engine results online.

This being the case, it makes sense that all business owners should have their website ranking as high as possible in order to get as much exposure to new customers as possible.

What is a Search Engine Ranking?

A ranking within a search engine refers to where your website is positioned within search results that are returned to a user. For example, Mr A is searching for a new vet for his dog, so he goes to Google and types "Sydney Vet" into the search bar. Now if I'm a vet in Sydney I'd be aiming for my business to show up in those first page results that Google gives Mr A on his computer screen.

The first steps to understanding the secret to effective SEO is that most people don’t click past the first 2 pages of search engine results. This means that there are 20 top positions available, with the first 10 being the most highly prizes first page ranking positions. For most website owners, the challenge is understanding how to most effectively achieve a top position for their website, and then how to stay there.

Getting the Basics in Place so You Can Start Working on SEO.

1. Before you can start ranking high in google for anything, It’s really important to know what words your customers are using to try and find your product. These words are referred to as keywords. These keywords make up the basis for your seo campaign. Keyword research is one of the most vital steps in SEO as the wrong keywords will return very little result or ROI.

2. SEO Benchmarking: Once you know which keywords your business should be ranking for, in order to have an effective SEO campaign, it's vital to know where your website is ranking right now. Having a good idea of where your website sits in relation to competition for your chosen keywords in necessary to track any upward or downward movements in your search rankings position.

The next steps for SEO once keywords and benchmarking are in place is to move onto the mechanical process of developing on site and off site techniques and practices in order to help rankings increase.