A Complete Guide To Creating An SEO Marketing Strategy

SEO takes ongoing work. What ranks today may not rank in six months, because search engines and user behaviour keep changing. If you don't adjust your SEO marketing approach as search engines and technology evolve, you can end up running an outdated strategy that brings the wrong traffic to your website, or none at all.

This guide covers the fundamentals of building and running an SEO marketing strategy, with a focus on AEO and GEO, since you've probably come across these terms if you're looking into SEO strategies right now. 

What Is SEO and What Is SEO Marketing?

SEO, or search engine optimisation, is the process of improving your website so it ranks higher on search engines like Google. Done well, it makes it easier for the right customers to find you when they search for the products, services or information you offer. An SEO marketing strategy is how you turn that SEO process into an ongoing plan, rather than a series of one-off changes.

Search engines are the starting point for most people looking for a product, service or answer online. That volume of searches, happening every second, gives businesses a direct way to reach potential customers exactly when they're looking. SEO traffic also tends to convert better than traffic from other channels, since the person searching has already shown intent.

The 3 Pillars of SEO

SEO practices vary a lot depending on who you ask, but they all come down to three pillars. If these three areas are weak, the rest of the strategy will struggle. If they are strong, your SEO has a much better base to grow from. 

1. On-Page SEO

On-page SEO focuses on content creation, including structure and search intent. Strong on-page SEO makes sure your content is not only discoverable but also valuable enough to rank and convert. Key elements of on-page SEO include:

• Intent alignment that ensures content matches what users are actually searching for, whether that's informational, commercial or transactional.
• Page structure using headings (H1–H3), logical formatting and scannable layouts.
• Metadata with optimised title tags and meta descriptions that improve relevance and click-through rates.
• Internal linking that connects related pages to build topical authority and guide both users and search engines.
• Content quality that includes depth, originality and usefulness.

2. Off-Page SEO

Off-page SEO covers the trust signals that live outside your own website, mainly backlinks and mentions from other credible sites. Google treats these as a vote of confidence in your content. Key elements include:

• Backlinks from relevant, authoritative sites that vouch for your content.
• Brand mentions across the web to build recognition over time.
• Guest contributions on industry sites that put your expertise in front of a new audience.
• Social signals from engagement and shares that support visibility.
• Digital PR through outreach to journalists, bloggers and industry publications.

3. Technical SEO

Technical SEO makes sure search engines can crawl, index, and understand your site without problems. It also improves the experience for users once they land on the page.  Key elements include:

• Crawlability that lets search engines access and read your pages without hitting blocks.
• Indexing, which determines whether your pages are even eligible to appear in search results.
• Site speed, since slow-loading pages hurt both rankings and conversions.
• Mobile-friendliness, since Google ranks the mobile version of your site first.
• Structured data (schema markup) that helps search engines understand what your content is about.
• A clean, secure setup, including HTTPS, a logical URL structure and no broken links.

If you're not familiar with the technical bits, you can always audit your website with technical SEO tools and resolve basic issues.

These three pillars need to work together if you want your SEO strategy to hold up. If you are setting things up for the first time, getting help with the technical and content foundations can save time later.

SEO, AEO and GEO: What to Add to Your Strategy Today

Once you start researching SEO, you'll come across two newer terms: AEO and GEO. With AI now part of how people search, your website can also be cited by AI models like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Gemini when someone asks a question relevant to your business.

This raises a common question: should you focus on SEO, or on AEO and GEO? 

From running SEO for businesses across different industries, the honest answer is that it isn't one or the other. AEO and GEO are a layer built on top of SEO, not a replacement for it. You can't do AEO or GEO well without the SEO fundamentals covered above.

Here's how the three compare:

What Is Local SEO

Local SEO is the part of SEO that helps your business show up for people searching in a specific area. If your business serves a city, suburb, region, or service area, local SEO is important because many searchers include location terms or use searches like “near me” and “open now”. Google also surfaces local business information in Search, Maps, and knowledge panels when the details are set up properly.

A few places to focus on for local SEO:

• Claim and keep your Google Business Profile updated with accurate hours, address and photos.
• Use location-based keywords in your page titles, headings and content.
• Build or update location-specific pages if you serve more than one area.
• Keep your business name, address and phone number consistent across your website and directory listings.
• Encourage genuine customer reviews, since they influence both rankings and trust.

How to Build Your SEO Plan

SEO can be approached in a lot of different ways, and every agency runs it slightly differently. If you're planning to run your own SEO, here's a starting structure to work from.

1. Content Planning

Content is central to SEO, but content without a plan won't get you far. Start with keyword research:

• Look for keywords relevant to your business that aren't heavily competed for.
• Check search volume and competition using tools like Semrush or Ahrefs.
• Shortlist a handful that are genuinely relevant to what you offer.
• Build content around those gaps and publish consistently.

For example: Instead of targeting 'accounting software' (high competition), a smaller accounting firm might find better traction with 'accounting software for small trades businesses.

If you need a quick start with keyword research, here's a step-by-step guide: How To Do Keyword Research: An Actionable Guide

2. Competitor Research

If you're not sure where to start with keywords, start with your competitors. Look at their website and how they've built content around relevant keywords. Find where their content falls short, whether that's missing detail, unanswered questions or outdated information, then build content that answers the search intent better than theirs does.

3. Link Building

Content alone won't get you visibility. Google and AI crawlers both weigh authority, so your site needs other credible sites vouching for it. That's where link building comes in.

One practical approach is reaching out to businesses that complement yours rather than compete with you, and asking for a link in exchange for value, such as a guest article or a mention on your own site. 

For example, if you're an EdTech company selling to schools, a student wellbeing platform or an LMS provider serving the same schools could be a natural fit for a link exchange or a joint piece of content.

4. Content Marketing

Getting your content seen isn't limited to your website. In the AI era especially, it helps to repurpose your content across LinkedIn, Reddit, Quora and Instagram, wherever your customers are already spending time. This builds visibility outside Google as well.

It's also worth submitting your website to Bing and other search engines, not just Google, and making sure your content is structured in a way that AI tools can pick up and reference.

Who Should Actually Run Your SEO?

There are three ways to approach SEO, and the right one depends on your time, budget and how quickly you need results.

1. Doing Your Own SEO

Running SEO yourself is doable if you're willing to put in consistent time. The fundamentals in this guide are enough to get started: keyword research, on-page basics, technical checks and a content plan. 

The trade-off is speed. Learning as you go takes longer, and mistakes in technical SEO can cost you rankings before you notice them.

2. AI

AI tools can speed up research, drafting and finding content gaps. They're useful for getting a first draft or narrowing down keyword ideas faster than doing it manually. 

But SEO isn't a prompt away. AI won't fix technical issues on your site, build backlinks, or know what content actually deserves to rank without solid human judgment behind it.

3. SEO Agency

An SEO agency makes sense when you don't have the time to learn and apply this yourself, or when you need SEO to stay consistent and can't guarantee that in-house. It also shortcuts a lot of the trial and error, since you're getting tools and experience you'd otherwise take months to build up on your own.

Digital Treasury provides SEO strategies for businesses. We've helped Australian businesses grow their traffic and rankings through technical SEO, content and AI optimisation. Book a meeting with us to see where your site stands and get a plan built around your goals.

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FAQs

1. What's the difference between SEO, SEM and PPC? 

SEO covers the organic, unpaid results on a search engine. SEM (search engine marketing) is the broader term that includes both SEO and paid search. PPC (pay-per-click) is the paid side specifically, where you bid on keywords and pay each time someone clicks your ad.

2. Can I use AI to do my SEO? 

AI tools can help with research, drafting and spotting content gaps faster. But SEO isn't a prompt away. It still needs a strategy, proper keyword research, technical setup and ongoing monitoring, and AI-generated content still needs to be checked for accuracy and quality before it goes live.

3. What technical SEO should I focus on first? 

Start with site speed, mobile-friendliness, and making sure search engines can crawl and index your pages properly. These affect every other part of your SEO, so they're worth getting right before anything else.