How to Use SEO for Beginners 2017

SEO in 2017 is fundamentally about helping search engines understand what your clients' websites are about, then rewarding those pages with higher rankings when users search for related terms. The mechanics haven't changed dramatically—Google still crawls pages, indexes content, and ranks based on hundreds of signals—but the emphasis has shifted noticeably toward user intent and content quality. As an agency or designer, understanding this shift is critical because it changes how you structure your client recommendations and pitches.

Why this matters for your agency business is straightforward: SEO is one of the most cost-effective ongoing services you can offer clients. Unlike paid advertising where money stops flowing the moment you stop paying, SEO creates compounding returns. A page that ranks well for a valuable keyword continues generating traffic and leads month after month with minimal maintenance. This makes SEO an excellent service to wrap into retainers, and it gives clients a concrete reason to stay with you long-term. Agencies that bundle SEO with web design or web development also increase their average client value significantly because they're controlling more of the user experience and can optimize from the ground up.

Practically, start by teaching clients that SEO involves three overlapping areas. First is technical SEO—making sure Google can actually crawl and index their site efficiently. This means clean code, fast page speed, proper redirects, and a logical site structure. For designers, this is where your technical decisions during development directly impact rankings. Second is on-page SEO, which is about matching the content and HTML structure to what people actually search for. When a client wants to rank for "emergency plumber in Denver," their pages need that exact language in the title tag, heading, and body content—not vague descriptions about their plumbing expertise. Third is off-page SEO, primarily meaning quality backlinks from authoritative websites, which takes longer but remains a significant ranking factor.

Your practical starting point with any client should be keyword research. Spend time understanding what their potential customers actually search for, what commercial intent those searches carry, and what their competitors are already ranking for. Free tools like Google Search Console and Google Analytics show you exactly what people are finding your clients for, while paid tools like SEMrush or Moz provide competitive landscape data. Then map those keywords to existing pages or plan new content around high-opportunity terms. This research conversation with your client accomplishes two things: it immediately demonstrates your value by showing them search volume and opportunity they didn't know existed, and it gives you a concrete roadmap for the next twelve months. Frame SEO as a systematic process rather than magic, and your clients will have realistic expectations and stay engaged through the months it takes to see meaningful results.