When most webmasters and content creators first discover the complexities of SEO, it’s an overwhelming experience. There are dozens of unique dynamics and considerations at play: learning how to navigate all of them can feel impossible. And frankly, for beginners, it is!

However, websites and blogs often find themselves facing critical challenges that require some understanding of SEO and subsequent action. In many situations, the problems or opportunities facing these online brands require focus on just a handful of specific actions.

Today, we’ll talk about how to pick the right broader SEO solutions for your brand’s specific needs.

Little to No Visibility

Many new websites and blogs face the same problem: when you’re new and have no existing search engine reputation, it’s difficult to earn any. As such, knowing which aspects of SEO to approach as a new brand – or simply one with little to no visibility – is crucial. Before you start pinging search engines with content, however, consider the core component of how content is ranked: context.

As such, keyword research is generally the best single task to focus on early in terms of improving your search engine visibility. As search engines assess both the keywords and overall context of pages and posts, having a plan for how to reach audiences in select search engine results pages is crucial. Plenty of keyword research utilities and plans are available online that can help you decide where exactly to focus in this regard.

A Drop in Rankings

Arguably just as frustrating as being a new brand trying to get spotted, being somewhat successful only to find your rankings and visibility slipping can be a disaster. In some situations, you may not have the slightest idea of what has happened, or perhaps haven’t even changed anything that justifies such a trend.

There are a number of factors to consider, such as performing a technical audit on your SEO and verifying that no major navigational or security issues have developed. Sometimes, these changes may occur simply due to changes in how search engines rank content: whenever algorithms are updated, there are inevitable winners and losers. Once you’ve verified that it is or isn’t due to such a phenomenon, you can then begin performing the appropriate reviews and audits to find the problem.

High Bounce Rates and/or Little Engagement

Generally speaking, brands will encounter issues with engagement at some point or another. It might be due to a pivot in the primary topics you’re covering, or it could simply be that specific posts or pages aren’t resonating with your audience. Likewise, design issues and other aesthetic components may be causing problems with user experience – a key factor when assessing problems with bounce rates and engagement.

Ultimately, looking at SEO-related elements that impact user experience (such as navigation, mobile responsive design and site speed) can point to one or more reasons why this is occurring. Addressing these issues will often improve user experience and help achieve better rankings in search.

Ultimately, you don’t need to know everything about SEO to address specific problems. However, spending time gradually learning about all that SEO has to offer can and will improve your brand’s standing while pinging search engines with content and augment your overall reach.