Search engine optimization—SEO, for short—is a key component in helping potential customers find any business with a website online. SEO is technical in nature, but it is necessary to understand the basics.
For those unfamiliar with the concept, SEO is the practice of leveraging one’s website to get to the top of Google or other search engine rankings through what’s called organic search. While some companies pay Google to rank their websites higher than others (i.e., paid search), SEO aims to get one’s website ranked highly without having to pay advertising dollars to the top search engines, making it an appealing strategy.
But like any technology-based marketing tool, it’s more complicated than that. Algorithms change, consumer behavior changes, and the technology behind websites is constantly being updated, whether you realize it or not. Further complicating things, search engines have also recently started to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) tools into their search results. You may have noticed an “AI Overview” at the top of your latest Google search, providing a summary of the results, or “Meta AI” generated search queries underneath some Facebook posts.
So, in the spirit of staying relevant, we’ve rounded up some SEO tips from experts both within and outside of the industry.
1. Know What Your Customers are Looking For
Keywords—aka “search queries,” the words and phrases searchers enter into search engines to find content—are crucial in strengthening your website’s SEO.
A common mistake for adventure operators is to want to be the top search for “aerial parks” or the like. However, if your customers are coming from within a three-hour radius, you don’t need to be top ranked for all aerial park searches. You do want to be visible, though, when people search “aerial parks in [X location],” for example.
Gather data. Jean-François Couture, marketing director for The Trekking Group and a 22-year veteran of SEO, advises using keyword search tools to gather data on the words that general Google users are searching for most frequently. Keyword Planner, a free tool built into Google’s ad platform, is a favorite. He also likes Moz for SEO analysis, and expert Neil Patel provides some good online resources, too.
Once you have an idea of what keywords are most searched, you can start to integrate some of those words into your website copy to improve your search ranking. So, for example, if you want to be the top result for a search of “aerial parks in [X location],” you would include your location and nearby major population centers in your list of keywords when you write your website content.
Ron Pierce, owner of Alabama’s Butter and Egg Adventures and an operator with more than 20 years of successful SEO experience, suggests using additional plugins such as Rank Math, a free, Word Press-compatible SEO analyzer, to gain insight into what is—and isn’t—working to bring people to your website. These tools can tell you about the keywords for which a page on your website is ranking in a Google search, for example.
Google Analytics is another data-rich tool that shows how people found your website, where they are clicking, and how long they are spending on various pages. This information can help you decide which pages to optimize for SEO.
2. Content is (Still) King
If keyword data is meant to tell us (operators and website owners) what users are searching for, then search engines aim to pair those users with the content most relevant to their query. That makes content king. This was true when SEO was first developed in the mid-1990s, and it’s even more true today. The difference is that search engines have gotten much better at differentiating relevant content from weak content.
As humans have discovered ways to “game” the system by over-stuffing webpages with keywords or irrelevant links, the algorithms have learned to catch these trends. This technological advancement is actually a good thing for the user experience.
“Ironically, the tables have turned: we’re now focusing on enhancing the human experience to make the bots happy,” says Mike Lannen, founder of Burlington-based Eternity Marketing in Vermont. “Search engines are getting better at emulating human preferences, so by prioritizing user experience and satisfaction, you’re also optimizing for the algorithms and AI.”
So, how do you create effective content?
Customer-driven content. Couture suggests adopting the perspective of potential customers when writing website copy. For example, he says, when parents wake up in the morning, they aren’t necessarily going to search, “What is the best aerial park in XX destination?” Instead, they are going to look for “Things to do with kids…” in said location.
Think about how to answer realistic consumer questions to better set up your website writing for SEO. This might mean positioning your park as a “thing to do with kids” or including that phrase in your tour description. Or you could create a separate page with “things to do in the area.” These are examples of consumer-driven rather than product-driven content (and the former could help position you as a tourism expert for your specific destination).
In other words, if you write like a human, for other humans, the search engines are more likely to like it, and you create a better experience for the users visiting your website.
3. The Rest of User Experience
While written content is important, the rest of the user experience (aka UX)can make just as much of a difference in your SEO success. Mobile-optimized websites, for example, are prioritized by Google and other search engines. Most current web developers and DIY platforms in 2024 already have this option built in, but older sites that haven’t been updated recently might not.
Site security. Likewise, site security and the use of SSL certificates—standard encryption tools—are “vital,” according to Lannen. Websites that implement SSL security are far more likely to be prioritized and ranked higher than those that do not. If you are not sure if your website meets security standards, check the full URL: if it starts with “https”, there is some security encryption built in. If it starts with “http” (no “s”), talk with your webmaster about implementing proper security and encryption.
4. Backlinks
Off-page SEO can also help search algorithms find your website easier. Essentially, this means having other websites provide links back to your website. These links, known in the SEO world as “backlinks,” provide additional credibility as they demonstrate that other websites trust yours as a source of information.
DIY. This may feel like something you can’t control as an operator, but there are plenty of ways to create viable backlinks to your own site. Social media pages are a great start, and plenty of adventure operators have written guest posts on other news sources, blogs, or websites that link back to their own.
Reciprocal links with other complementary recreational operators—be it rafting outfitters, food trucks, or bike shops—can also be a great way to build up your off-page SEO. Further, Pierce is a supporter of providing backlinks to other adventure businesses in the area—even competitors. “I don’t see this as a big deal,” he says. “The more links, the better for your website scores.”
5. Bonus: Optimize for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)
You may have noticed in your most recent Google search that its AI tool doesn’t simply provide a list of links, it writes a fully formed response to a question it derived from your search. This suggests that Google (and other search engines, by extension) is not only looking for relevant content, but for well-crafted answers to complex questions that will better feed its algorithm for these responses. The process for optimizing your website for this is a relatively new term: generative engine optimization (GEO).
The goal of optimizing for GEO is to increase your visibility and curry favor with search engines as they begin to move toward an AI-based search model. Consensus among online marketing professionals is that AI-based search results will only continue to grow, so anything that you can do now to get ahead of the game will work in your favor to stay at the top of rankings.
Lannen offers the following tips for operators who are looking to increase their GEO:
• Build Trust with Accurate Information: Use references, reliable statistics, and quotes from authoritative sources to increase the trustworthiness of your content, making it more likely to be featured in generative engine responses.
• Make Content Easy to Read: Enhance the fluency, readability, and overall quality of your content to make it more appealing to GEs.
• Cover Various Angles: Create content that addresses different aspects of a topic, such as its history, cultural context, and practical information. This comprehensive approach can improve your content’s visibility across a variety of queries.
• Encourage Interaction: As generative engines become more conversational, structure your content to invite follow-up questions and extend engagement.
• Meet Different User Needs: Develop content that thoroughly addresses different user intents—whether they seek information, want to make a purchase, or have other needs.
These GEO tips are largely complementary to existing SEO best practices and website useability in general, so don’t panic. Ensuring your content is readable, accurate, and meets user needs is valuable for optimizations in general.
Finally: Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help
“Although [SEO] looks like it’s free, it’s one of the best investments you can make in your business,” says Couture. Investing in SEO could mean taking the time to learn the tools yourself, hiring an internal marketing person, or getting the existing team up to speed.
Or it could mean outsourcing this work to a third-party SEO firm, which can help in different ways. For example, The Trekking Group has hired SEO experts every time it has updated its websites to ensure the SEO work that had previously been done doesn’t get lost. Couture and his team also have attended conferences to boost their knowledge of the subject.
At the end of the day, though, your best asset for your website’s SEO isn’t your understanding of plugins or search engine algorithms, but your knowledge of the business itself. According to Lannen, “The core principles of SEO—providing value, focusing on user experience, and staying ethical in your practices—will remain constant,” regardless of technology trends. Remember, your knowledge lends credibility, and credibility is ultimately what the search engines want.
