Thrive Marketing Upskilling with SEO – Key takeaways from our recent training
At Thrive Marketing, staying ahead in the fast-paced digital landscape is part of our DNA. We’re always learning, growing, and evolving to ensure our clients receive the most up-to-date and effective marketing strategies. Recently, our team attended a highly informative SEO course run by LEO (Local Enterprise Office) in partnership with ContentPlan, which reinforced just how crucial search engine optimisation (SEO) is in today’s digital age.
As part of our commitment to excellence, we continuously upskill to stay in line with the latest trends and algorithm changes, so we can offer our clients the very best in SEO and digital marketing. Here are a few valuable takeaways from the course that you should consider implementing in your own strategy—or better yet, let us help you!
SEO, or Search Engine Optimisation, is the process of improving a website's visibility on search engines like Google and Bing. The aim is to drive more organic (unpaid) traffic by increasing the website's ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs).
SEO covers several key areas, including:
Keywords: Choosing the right words and phrases that potential customers search for.
Content: Creating valuable, relevant content that answers users' queries.
On-Page SEO: Optimising website elements like titles, headers, and images for better visibility.
Off-Page SEO: Building backlinks to demonstrate the site’s credibility.
Technical SEO: Ensuring the site is secure, mobile-friendly, and fast-loading.
User Experience: Enhancing website usability across devices to keep visitors engaged.
Mastering each of these aspects gives your site the best chance of being found by the right audience. While we could dive deep into each area, let’s focus on some of the key insights we gained from our recent SEO course.
1. Quality Over Quantity – Focus on Content
One major lesson from the course was the importance of high-quality content. Google’s algorithms now place far more value on quality rather than quantity, and low-res images or poorly written content can negatively affect your SEO ranking. Rather than bombarding your audience with constant updates, it’s more effective to publish fewer, high-quality posts that resonate. Ensuring your website’s content is clear, engaging, and optimised for relevant keywords is essential.
2. Mobile SEO – Don’t Get Penalised
With mobile searches overtaking desktop, it’s vital that your website is mobile-friendly. Google penalises websites that aren’t optimised for mobile, and hard bounce rates are significantly higher on mobile sites that offer poor user experiences. The course encouraged testing websites regularly on different devices to ensure they display correctly and perform well. If you’re not sure how your site is performing, there are some free and easy to use tools, like Bing’s Mobile-Friendly Test , and Uptrends Mobile Website Speed Test.
3. Google Business – Your Secret Weapon
For local businesses, Google Business listings can have a huge impact on your search engine visibility. This platform allows you to manage how your business appears in local search results and maps, making it easier for potential customers to find you. Reviews are also critical in Ireland, as word-of-mouth is still incredibly powerful—so make sure you’re encouraging customers to leave positive feedback.
4. Long-Tail Keywords – The Game-Changer
Did you know that 70% of search traffic comes from long-tail keywords*? While core keywords are important, the course stressed the value of optimising for longer, more specific search queries that match the user’s intent. Understanding the various stages of the buying process and tailoring your content to target these long-tail queries can give you a significant edge over competitors.
Bulk keywords can in theory provide more traffic, or to be more specific the possibility of more traffic, but a lower chance of conversion, for example “Marketing Agency” will return a high volume of results and will be searched very widely, but as you can imagine there will be stiff competition for this term, you can greatly increase your chances of conversion by optimising for a more specific long tailed search term such as “Marketing Agency North Dublin” of “Marketing Agency for Professional Services”.
*Source: Informational Keywords and How to Use Them to Drive Traffic - Moz
At Thrive Marketing, we’re passionate about helping our clients navigate the ever-changing world of SEO. Whether you’re looking to revamp your SEO strategy, optimise for mobile, or ensure your Google Business profile is working for you, we’re here to help. As this course reminded us, SEO isn’t a one-time effort—it's a constant, evolving process that requires dedicated attention.
Get in touch with us to learn more about how we can boost your business’s visibility. Let’s Thrive together! 🚀
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