SEO for freelancers guide: Part One
We all understand the importance of SEO for businesses, yet it feels so clinical and intimidating to most of us that we simply ignore it. And we’re doing it at the expense of our brand and leads.
While paid ads are beneficial, they are an ongoing cost. Your traffic disappears as soon as you turn off the adverts.
Content is only useful if your audience sees it. SEO ensures that it’s seen and that the amount of traffic you receive is not reliant on how much money you spend every month, week, or even day.
If done correctly, SEO is extremely effective and may offer your organization a significant boost. Plus, it’s not that difficult to do it right.
Starting with what SEO is and why it matters to your freelance business, we’ll walk you through the most crucial things you need to know about SEO as a freelancer in this series.
What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a term that refers to the process of optimizing. It’s a method for increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website by using “organic” (i.e., non-paid) search engine results.
Many people mistakenly believe that SEO is all about the search engine, but it is just as much about the people. To increase your SEO, you need to know what people are looking for, what keywords they’re using, what answers they’re looking for, and what types of material will best answer their questions.
You shouldn’t only understand the intent behind the person’s search query, but also give the response the person seeks in a way that search engine crawlers can find and understand for good SEO.
Getting visitors is becoming more difficult as search engines become more intricate with features like People Also Ask boxes, featured snippets, and image carousels. This isn’t to say you should abandon all of your efforts in favor of paid advertising. There is still plenty of room for increased traffic through well-executed SEO.
Why is SEO important as a freelancer?
Every freelance business that wants to improve its client base should invest in SEO. While social networking has become a popular tool to promote your business, most web traffic still comes from traditional search engines, and only about 2.8% of people in the US click on paid ads.
While paid ads might be an effective strategy to attract customers to a traditional firm, they rarely provide a good return on investment (ROI) for freelancers. Showing up when a client needs help with an issue you address is one of the finest methods to get new clients.
Consider this: if a client searches for a “grant writer in Pittsburgh” or a Shopify developer who works with liquid and you appear at the top of the results, they will at least have a look at your website. They’ll probably call you for further information or maybe book you right away if your website is professional and demonstrates your experience.
As a freelancer, showing up in search engines is vital for multiple reasons:
- It’s a vote of confidence from the search engine, indicating that you’re more trustworthy.
- Google, Bing, and other search engines are essentially the new Yellow Pages. You’re missing out on business if you can’t be found.
- Your website is an excellent resource for engaging and educating your target audience. You don’t have to operate a blog if you don’t want to, but informational content that ranks is effective and frequently leads to work.
Final thoughts
If you want to improve your reputation and your business, SEO is a fantastic approach to do that.
So now that you’ve accepted the fact that your website needs to be optimized, you’re probably wondering, “How can I achieve that?”
The answer is to keep reading this series and putting the steps into practice as you go. The Basics of SEO You Need to Implement as a Freelancer will be covered in Part 2.
