Many of us continuously use the internet as a tool in dealing with almost everything around us but still ask the question “What is SEO?”. Sure, we are familiar with the many and beneficial uses of the internet but many of us do not really know how it works.

So what is SEO? When we try to type in and search for a certain topic, we will find almost all the answers to our queries on the top results list. Since it is impractical and time-consuming to go through all matching sites, we stick to the first 10 or 20 sites we see. This is where the importance of SEO or search engine optimization comes in. What is SEO and how does it rally work? SEO is a technique that will help a website increase its rank on the search engine.

Answering the question “What is SEO?” may help you understand how this really works. SEO is indeed a powerful web marketing tool since it helps a website generate traffic from search engines, thus, getting more visitors or even customers. Though there are millions and millions of sites all over the internet it is still important that you get one of the top spots if you want to make your business a hit.

Being able to learn the answers to the question “What is SEO?” can definitely enlighten us that we need to make a change especially if our websites have become wall flowers. A website that is not visited means that it is not able to reach its target customers. The internet is a very powerful tool and if we are able to maximize its proper use, we will be able to get better results and answers to our queries as well as a better understanding of “What is SEO?”

Most of the businesses that operate out of a physical location benefit from local SEO. The internet is indeed a powerful tool and a lot of entrepreneurs are able to advertise and sell their products and services through the internet. Even before the local SEO became a trend, a lot of businesses created their own websites with the aim of finding customers globally, although this did not become practical at all especially for the ones that did not have the capability of catering outside their location. Customers who used the internet looked for the nearest business where they can easily get product or services from, which is why they conducted localized search.

Local SEO plays a big role in helping a business become known to its local customers. People who are looking for the nearest health care provider, for example, will search through the internet locally. So how does local SEO work? If for example you are selling women’s bags and accessories in a store located in Florida, and if people in Florida would want to buy bags, they will be looking for the most accessible and convenient place to go to. What local SEO would do is that it will place your business name on top of the results page.

Just remember to include the physical address, the city, state, and the zip code of your business firm on your website. You can also use map programs such as Google maps to achieve the best localized SEO. There are definitely a lot of benefits one can get from localized SEO. The entrepreneurs, especially small and local businesses, are the ones who are able to make the most out of it. It is probably the best way that web businesses are able to grab the attention of their local customers. Local SEO could be your first step in reaching the global market.

Unfortunately, search engine optimization includes a lot of “hurry up and wait” time. However, if you have diligently applied effective search engine optimization techniques (such as the ones laid out in this very site!), you shouldn’t have too horribly long to wait. The process not only depends on your efforts, but also on which submission process you have chosen. If you have decided to use a pay-for-inclusion service (see link for an explanation of Google’s services), the wait will be expedited. If you have not, then there is no guarantee when your site will show up.

If your site has already been on the Web for some time, and is already listed in all of the major directories, then you will probably begin to see improvements in your search engine rankings within 4-6 weeks. If your site is not listed in the major engines and directories, then taking the time to submit it will have a significant positive impact on your rankings.

The meta description tag is intended to provide a brief description of your site which can be used by search engines or directories. This description is vital; because this is what will show up in search engine results, and can have a major effect on whether or not the user clicks through to your site. A meta description tag is meant to be a short and sweet summary of your site’s purpose for living, and therefore you need to make it as inviting as possible.

Google is by far the most used search engine. It provides search results not only on its home page, but powers other search engines’ results as well. Google claims to have indexed over 3 billion pages, but in reality, that number is probably too small. More than 300 million searches a day filter through Google’s fingertips.