In a time when there are many avenues for improving digital visibility, it can get overwhelming. While it might be tempting to focus on one outlet where you’re able to see immediate results (like paid search), I’m here to tell you that long-term strategies like search engine optimization (SEO) are worth your while.
Hi! I’m Sean, SEO Lead at Red Thinking. I work behind the scenes, much like SEO itself. But my value is loud and clear, also like SEO.
In this blog, I’m going to cover some of the most common SEO FAQs. If you work in retail, this blog is for you. If you work in food and beverage, this blog is for you. If you work in homebuilding or commercial construction, this blog is for you. No matter your industry, this blog is for you. That’s the beauty of SEO: it’s a vital, budget-friendly tool for every business or organization. Let’s get into it.
What is SEO and why is it important?
Put simply, SEO is all about making your website or content stand out by ensuring it’s easy for search engines (like Google) and users to find and understand. If you want your website to show up in top pages of search results or in AI overviews, SEO should be a priority, not an afterthought. Don’t worry, I’ll dive more into the actual “doing” behind effective SEO strategies later.
How long does it take for SEO to work?
It takes Google roughly three to six months to learn what your site is about and who it’s for so it can be shown to the right audience. That being said, many factors affect how quickly your website starts seeing consistent results and growth. Factors like how long it’s been since your website launched, how fast search engines can crawl and index the site’s content, and the site’s structure for discovery.
Which is better: SEO or paid search?
SEO and paid search each have advantages. Paid ads have immediate top-of-page visibility for highly targeted traffic, while SEO provides the opportunity to have a high ROI, as results tend to compound over time. Having a mix of both is ideal because over time, SEO results pay dividends, while paid search takes care of time-sensitive campaigns that require immediate visibility.
What is SEO keyword research? And how does it work?
Keyword research is the backbone of SEO. It centers on identifying the specific terms, phrases, and questions your target audience types into search engines to discover your content. Through your website and Google Business Profile, your goal should be to incorporate common terms and phrases that users might search for on Google or large language models (LLMs, like ChatGPT). Luckily, there are many keyword research tools that can help you use actual data (like average monthly searches) to inform the terms and phrases that you should prioritize.
Will SEO get us to page one of Google?
That’s always the goal, but it’s never a guarantee. Keep this in mind when you’re building out your website, publishing blogs or other content, and optimizing your site: E-E-A-T. This stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, a framework that Google uses to assess content quality and search rankings. In your content and website, Google wants to see:
- Experience with the subject matter you’re discussing
- Expertise (knowledge, skills, credentials) in your field/industry
- Authoritativeness, meaning a reputation as a reliable source
- Trustworthiness from a website security standpoint, as well as data accuracy
How do I improve my SEO?
First, make sure your site loads quickly and doesn’t have any broken links or outdated information. Technical factors carry a lot of weight when it comes to how Google and other search engines rank content. From there, perform keyword research (discussed above) to assess the terms and phrases you should implement in your website’s copy and metadata. You may be asking: what is metadata? Metadata is information about data that helps search engines understand, index, and rank page content. You may not realize it, but you essentially see metadata any time you’re looking at search results on Google.
Title tags are clickable headlines on results pages that signal to users and search engines what a page is about. Meta descriptions are located just below title tags, and they provide a concise summary of a page’s content. They act as storefront window dressing that lets people know what a given page is all about.
Do we need SEO if we already have a website?
Yes, yes, YES! To use an analogy, not having SEO on your website is like opening a store in an empty building without signs and hoping people will still walk in. You can’t expect someone to go into a bare, nameless storefront, just as you can’t expect Google (and users) to understand your content without structure and signals. Without SEO, your site will likely be harder to find, your competitors (who do prioritize SEO) will show up ahead of you in search results, your traffic will fall somewhere between inconsistent and nonexistent, and you’ll have to solely rely on referrals, ads, and luck.
Is SEO a one-time thing?
Absolutely not. SEO is ongoing because the environment is ever-changing. User search behavior and Google’s algorithms change constantly. Plus, the more content you publish, the more opportunities you create for SEO traction.
Is SEO still relevant with the emergence of LLMs?
For sure. Something that gets lost whenever people discuss LLMs is that they are entirely reliant on the information we give them. It works like this: when LLMS are prompted with questions, they scour search engines for answers. This is influenced by, you guessed it, SEO. So top-ranking search results on Google have the added benefit of having a higher likelihood to get cited in AI overviews. To say it another way, many of the same best SEO practices still apply in 2026, because LLMs are reliant on the information available in search results.
Something else to remember? LLMs don’t have access to keyword data. So, if you ask ChatGPT for keywords to include in a blog for your website, it’ll give you recommendations. But those recommendations aren’t backed by any real data. That’s why it’s important to look at actual search data to inform keyword implementation.
My hope is that this serves as a helpful starting point for understanding SEO–what it is and why it truly matters. At its core, SEO is about making the nature and value of your business as clear as possible to both search engines and the people searching for you.
While SEO can sometimes feel complex, it doesn’t have to be. We’re here to make it straightforward and strategic. Let’s connect to discuss the right approach for your business and how we can build a plan that drives impactful results.