When you have a website, you want to be seen.
Making your mark in the digital world is every website owner’s main goal.
Understanding search behaviour is necessary. After all, you want your target audience to be able to easily find you. Yet the vast landscape of the internet makes it nearly impossible to compete with billions of other websites.
How do you cut through the noise?
The answer is simple: search engine optimization, aka, SEO!
Search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo act as a bridge between you and your visitors. Like librarians that organize collections of books, search engines connect you with the most relevant pages based on your search query. In other words, in order to be easily seen and found, you must design your site in such a way that is easy for the search engine to find and index your site.
People search for different reasons. Some are looking for general information, some are looking to make a purchase, while others are simply looking for the nearest cafe/gas station/mall, etc. According to 2023 statistics from BrightEdge, 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine.
User Intent
Let’s start first with defining user intent. In simple terms, it is the ‘why’ behind the user’s search. When people search, they are trying to accomplish a goal. For example, if I search for ‘how to play guitar’, I’m looking to find step-by-step tutorials on how to play the instrument. I expect the search engine to show me a list of tutorials, how-tos, and step-by-step instructions.
Many users get frustrated when the keywords they use don’t find the information they want. This is why satisfying user intent is the main goal of search engines.
The importance of keywords
How do keywords play into this? Search engines have one main goal: to show the user the most relevant information that aligns with their intent. They achieve this by scanning the internet’s web pages for context and keywords.
When people search, they use keywords, which are specific words or phrases that they enter into a search engine depending on what they are looking for.
Optimizing your website for keywords allows your target audience to find you. Simply put, if they feel that your content isn’t relevant to what they are looking for at the moment, they’re not likely to stay very long.
Not all keywords are created equal. If you cast your net too wide, like catering to the keywords, ‘music lessons’, you’re competing with too many websites.
However, if you create content based on long-tail keywords, you are likely to have greater success with attracting your most driven/ready-to-purchase customers.
Long-tail keywords are longer more specific phrases that users will use when they’re closer to the transactional stage and are ready to make a purchase. An example of a long-tail keyword is ‘beginner piano lessons london ontario’.
Although long-tail keywords have low search volume, this also means less competition and a higher likelihood of being visible to the right audience.
These are screenshots of actual keywords that people have used
to discover Music in Motion Canada.
Paid Google Ads
Another way to advertise your website is through Google Ads which allow you to advertise your products when users search relevant keywords. Below is an example of a paid Google Ad.
How do paid ads work?
Advertisers bid on specific keywords related to their products or services. When users use certain keywords to search on Google, paid ads such as the example above appear on the top of the search engine results page. ‘Ad’ indicates that it is a sponsored listing. When used correctly, paid ads can greatly contribute to online visibility. Advertisers can also set parameters such as location to ensure that the ad reaches the right audience in addition to having access to analytics that show ad performance.
Start optimizing your site today!
Understanding search behaviour helps website owners unleash their potential to rank higher on the SERP. Keeping in mind user intent, optimizing your site for the right keywords, and enlisting the help of paid ads all contribute to making your site more accessible to search engines. With the right strategies and tools at your disposal, you can make search engines your friend! Friends that recommend your site to the users that need your content and resources the most. Start optimizing your site today!
