7 Surprising Ways that SEO is Like Wine
In many ways, search engine optimization (SEO) is similar to wine and winemaking – it’s a complex, local-oriented, ongoing process.
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It’s Complicated
Like winemaking, SEO is not just one process, but a series of related and dependent processes. In winemaking, there are processes to grow and harvest the grapes, ferment the wine, and age it. Measurements for sugar, alcohol, pH, and total acidity are used to track progress and the goal is to achieve a delicate balance.
In SEO, there are processes to review a site and its content, identify new keyword opportunities that can bring more traffic to the site, evaluate one site against a competitor’s site, and opportunities to improve rankings. The goal is to optimize measurements for how high a page appears in search rankings and how often that page link is clicked.
In the same way climate change is forcing winemakers to adapt their winemaking strategies and tactics, Google periodically changes its algorithm for displaying results which forces website publishers to adapt their SEO strategy to maintain their rankings in search results. For both wine and SEO, there’s a lot to know and what you need to know changes over time.
There are multiple types
There is more than one type of wine and there’s more than one type of SEO. On-page SEO encompasses what you can do within the content of an individual page to improve its ranking. This includes using keywords in your headings, body content, meta description, URL, and image alt text. Technical SEO covers factors that impact your website performance, such as increasing page load time, using HTTPS, and being mobile-friendly. Local SEO covers how well you optimize your website and Google Business Profile for users who are looking for products and services that are geographically close to their location.
Wineries typically create multiple types of wines to attract more customers. Similarly, organizations need to pay attention to multiple types of SEO to attract more traffic.
Results take a while
Like wine, it can take a while to see the results of your SEO efforts. It is estimated that it can take 6 to 12 months to start to see the impact of SEO changes to your site, about the same amount of time you may lees age your white wine.
Results are not always what you expect
There are many factors at play that can influence search result rankings. Like a tainted cork that spoils the winemaker’s hard work, your competitor’s SEO efforts can decrease your site rankings. It is important to stay vigilant and constantly monitor changes in your rankings.
Local is important
Local terroir can have a significant influence on the style of wine. Local SEO can influence how many potential customers see your site. Include your address, phone number, and hours prominently on your site. Make sure to have an up-to-date and optimized Google Business Profile that includes information about your hours and products.
There’s a dark side
There is a dark side of SEO known as “black hat” which involves shady tactics to achieve higher search rankings for low-quality pages. The wine equivalent of black hat SEO is the use of additives like Mega Purple. While it’s not illegal, these practices go against quality standards which is why people don’t admit to using these tactics.
It’s not a “once and done” process
A winery doesn’t make wine one time and consider the job done. In addition to the annual cycle of winemaking, better wineries are considering how to improve quality year over year. The same should be true of SEO. Often, organizations think they can include SEO optimizations as part of their site redesign project and be done. If your website is an integral part of your business strategy to drive sales, SEO work is never done.
SEO Services
Elevage Digital offers SEO Strategy, Content Optimization, and Technical SEO services to help you increase traffic to your website and boost sales. Request a quote today to start the conversation.