SEO is often misunderstood by people outside the design or marketing industry. Many think it is just about “making a website” or “launching an app,” but that is only the starting line.
Recently, I spoke with a dentist who was unhappy with his website, which had been completed six months ago. The person with an ambiguous role, perhaps dabbling in web design, graphics, or marketing, had built the site. Out of curiosity, I checked the site’s SEO settings. Meta tags, page titles, descriptions, and even URLs were completely empty. Without these basics, search engines had nothing to understand or rank the site for, making it almost invisible online. He described the site as being like an empty soda can, hollow inside and lacking substance, and in his opinion, it did not even look good. Unfortunately, this is quite common. A site might appear polished on the surface (or sometimes not even that), while underneath, it is missing the structure that search engines rely on to connect it with potential customers.
SEO must go hand in hand with design and development to ensure your site is both visually appealing and discoverable.
What is SEO and How Does It Work?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of improving your website so it appears higher in search engine results — like Google — when users look for relevant products, services, or information.
Unlike simply building a website, SEO focuses on making your content discoverable and understandable to both users and search engines, driving organic (free) traffic and building credibility.
How SEO Works
Search engines operate in several stages:
1. Crawling: Automated robots (“crawlers”) scan websites, follow links, and read sitemaps to discover pages.
2. Rendering: The crawler processes your HTML, JavaScript, and CSS to “see” your page as a user would.
3. Indexing: Content and metadata are analyzed and stored in the search engine’s database.
4. Ranking: Algorithms evaluate relevancy and authority based on hundreds of signals: content quality, keyword matches, site structure, speed, mobile usability, and inbound links.
If your website doesn’t send the right signals during these steps, it won’t appear where your target audience is searching.
Types of SEO
1. Technical SEO
(These are the settings I always take care of when building my clients’ online stores.)
This is the foundation that allows search engines to crawl, understand, and index your site efficiently:
• Proper URL structure (clean, descriptive URLs)
• Fast loading speeds, mobile-friendliness, and HTTPS security
• Sitemap and robots.txt setup
• Structured data/schema markup for richer search results
• Fixing broken links and technical errors
• Ensuring important pages are crawlable and indexable
2. On-Page SEO
This involves optimizing individual pages so they are attractive to both people and search engines:
• Relevant keywords in titles, meta descriptions, headings, image alt text, and body content
• High-quality, helpful, and easy-to-read content
• Internal linking for logical navigation
• Clear calls to action (CTAs)
• Complete and accurate meta information. Never leaving them empty.
3. Off-Page SEO
This builds your site’s authority and reputation beyond your own domain:
• Backlinks from trustworthy sites in your industry
• Consistent brand citations (name, address, phone number) across platforms
• Sharing and promoting your content on social media and blogs
• Generating engagement, mentions, and positive reviews
The Bottom Line
Proper SEO is essential. It’s what helps Google crawl and find your website when someone types in your store name. If you have a solid brand identity or face little competition, sometimes even strong on-page SEO alone can make you discoverable.
But SEO is not a one-time task.
To maintain and improve your rankings, you must keep updating and managing it over time. It’s not always easy to set up correctly. You may have tried on your own, but aren’t sure if it’s done right, or simply don’t have the time to do it consistently.
📩 If that’s the case, feel free to contact Cullette. We’ll make sure your website has the right foundations in place technically sound, search-friendly, and aligned with your overall marketing, so you can focus on running your business while making it easier for future customers to find you.
