I’m Search Engine Optimization, but you can call me SEO

Yep, long name, I know. That’s why I go by SEO. Much easier to spell. I was named after my destiny of optimizing the positioning of web pages in organic search results. You know how some kids want to be an astronaut or a doctor? Yea, so did I, but I was informed very early on that I was here to fulfill one role and one role only. It’s not as stellar as space exploration but it’s my fate.

Luckily, I’m not one to argue with my lot in life, so I rolled up my sleeves and dove headfirst into it. And “it” is a lot. But I’ve been at it for long enough now that I can break it down pretty nicely. So, have a seat, can I refill your drink? Ok, let’s get down to it. This is who I am…

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization.

At my core, I am fueled by organic search results. An organic search result is simply how relevant I think a web page is based on your query. It’s completely up to me–oh, the power! But I don’t let it go to my head. In fact, I guard this power with my life. I simply cannot be bought. Not to say I won’t take bribes…in the form of ads.

Ads are search results that appear at the top of a results page because someone PAID me to put them there. But I make sure to state clearly that it is an ad. That means I didn’t choose it based on relevance. There might be better answers to your inquiry, but hey, money talks so here’s a page to check out.

However, if you look below the ads you will see the top organic results. These are the pages that I believe will have what you are looking for. They didn’t pay me to be there, they just happened to contain all of the answers (or keywords) that can help you find what you need.

Make sense?

Great, ok now let’s get into how I decide what is most relevant and therefore most deserving of a place at the top of the search results. Well, technically I outsource this job. I hire things called crawlers or spiders or bots and I send them out across the internet to gather information. They start on a web page and then travel through both internal and external links to other pages and so on and so forth until they’re able to combine all of that information to understand what those pages are about and how they are connected. They relay this information to me so that I can store it away for the next time a search is conducted for that topic. I simply see what the inquiry is and then I filter through my massive database to find the pages that I believe contain the very best information for that specific query.

Now, of course, this is just a quick overview of who I am and what I do. The full story would bore you to pieces, but just know that there are many factors that go into my process and it is always evolving to keep pace with changes in user behavior and technological advances. Ok, I’ve dominated this conversation for far too long. Please, tell me about YOU.­­