The Zalm Partners Guide to SEO
A practical guide to getting your website found more often: from technical optimisation and content to AI visibility and sustainable link building.
In today's digital world, visibility in search engines is no longer a luxury. It is essential for any business that wants to grow online. Whether you are just starting out or already have an established website, without visibility in the world's most popular search engine and other relevant channels you miss out on valuable visitors and conversions. At Zalm Partners, a full-service digital agency in Rotterdam, we help businesses every day to attract more relevant visitors and improve their return.
Want to know straight away where the biggest opportunities for your site lie? Request an SEO scan via our contact page and get concrete points for improvement.
Why Search Engine Visibility Is Crucial for Your Business
Well over 90% of online customer journeys start with a search engine, and around 75% of users rarely look beyond the first page of results. These figures make one thing very clear: a high position in the results means not just more traffic, but more relevant visitors who are actively looking for your services or products.
The search landscape is changing fast, though. Alongside traditional results, we increasingly see AI-generated answers and summaries on the results page. As a result, every search is shaped not only by ranking signals, but also by how clear and directly useful your content is to both users and AI systems.
- Less visibility means fewer leads and higher acquisition costs.
- Are your competitors ranking higher? Then they are taking most of the clicks and the market share.
- Insufficient visibility means potential customers drift off to other channels
A practical example: a local roofing company noticed that dropping a single position in Google led to a significant fall in monthly shop visits and online enquiries. Improvements to technical SEO and content produced a visible rise in organic traffic within a few weeks.
Want to know how your website performs in search engines and where your opportunities are? Use our SEO scan to request a clear report with concrete improvements for the technical side, content and visibility in modern search results.
The 4 Pillars of Our SEO Approach at Zalm Partners
Our method rests on four practical pillars that together deliver lasting visibility: keyword strategy, technical SEO, content creation and link building. For each pillar you will find concrete actions and short examples of what we do for websites.
1. Keyword Strategy: The Foundation of Every Successful SEO Campaign
Good keyword research is the starting point. We identify the searches your target audience uses, assess search volume and competition, and determine the intent behind them: informational, comparative or transactional. On that basis we draw up a priority list of promising terms per site, category and product.
- Action point: draw up a priority list of short- and long-term search terms for each landing page.
- Action point: match search intent to content types (blog, buying guide, product page).
Mini case: for a client in the cycling sector, a sharper keyword focus led to 65% more organic traffic in three months (by targeting intent-driven searches).
2. Technical SEO: The Invisible Foundation for Better Rankings
Technical SEO ensures that search engines can index your website without problems and that users quickly find what they are looking for. A solid technical foundation means better performance in every search engine and fewer obstacles for crawlers. Technical SEO has a major impact on SEO performance, and in two ways. Technical flaws make Google and other search engines less likely to show your site, and your visitors run into the same problems and leave sooner. If a page does not load, the visitor is gone.
Technical SEO checklist (the basics): optimise loading speed (PageSpeed), mobile usability, HTTPS, sitemap & robots.txt, a clean URL structure, internal linking and structured data for rich results.
- Action point: run a technical audit and prioritise fixes by impact (LCP, TTFB, mobile errors).
- Action point: implement schema markup for products, FAQs and breadcrumbs so your site is easier for AI and search engines to read.
Want to know right away which technical issues are holding your site back? Request our technical SEO analysis and get in touch.
3. Content Creation: Relevant Content That Converts
Content remains crucial, not only for search engines but above all for users. Together with the client, we write optimised landing pages, informative blogs and product descriptions that match the intent behind each search, so that they genuinely speak to the visitor.
- Action point: optimise each landing page for one main keyword plus supporting terms.
- Action point: publish content series (buying guide, how-to, case study) that guide visitors through the customer journey.
Mini case: an e-commerce client saw 40% more organic conversions within three months after expanding and restructuring its product content.
4. Link Building: Building Authority in Your Sector
Relevant backlinks remain a strong ranking factor. We focus on earning quality links from authoritative websites, local listings and guest contributions that bring genuine relevance and traffic, without risky tactics.
- Action point: create linkable content (research, tools, data) that attracts links naturally.
- Action point: carry out targeted outreach to relevant websites and local portals in your sector.
Our approach is integrated: content, technical optimisation and link building work together to strengthen your website, and the sites that link to it, in search engines. That way you build authority organically and increase the chance that users find your site for relevant searches.
AI Visibility: The New Frontier in Search Engine Optimisation
Traditional SEO focuses on ranking in the organic results, but there is a clear shift under way: AI-driven overviews and generative answers are changing how people find information. Google's Search Generative Experience (SGE), ChatGPT integrations and similar technologies are changing the way search engines present answers. At Zalm Partners we prepare websites for this new interface and technology, and we invest heavily in it for our clients. Clients are still surprised when new customers find them through ChatGPT. The reality is that more and more potential customers are using AI chatbots as their search engine, and we are seeing real results from this for our clients. In sectors with many large players, where ranking high on Google is difficult, it pays to focus on AI visibility. That way you are presented as the answer, without having to fight your competitors for it.
Structured Data: The Language AI Systems Understand
AI systems and modern search engines read structured data to understand content unambiguously. By adding schema markup (Product, FAQ, Article, Breadcrumb, Review) you help search engines and AI models grasp exactly what you offer, so they can include it in their data and show it to your potential customers.
- Action: implement Product schema on product pages and FAQ schema on frequently asked questions.
- Action: use Article and Breadcrumb schema for blogs and categories so AI understands context and hierarchy.
Entity Optimisation: Beyond Keywords
Modern search and AI systems work with entities (companies, products, people) and the relationships between them. Rather than optimising for keywords alone, we build content around entities: consistent naming, clear company information and links to related topics. This increases the chance that your site is cited as a trusted source in AI overviews.
- Action: structure content with clear entity names and internal links to relevant pages.
- Action: use structured data and specific metadata to make relationships visible.
AI-Ready Content Checklist
- Clear answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ schema).
- Summaries and introductions that offer immediate value to a reader or an AI summary.
- Well-structured articles with clear headings and entity annotations.
- Up-to-date product and company details (price, availability, contact information).
Monitoring AI Visibility
We track not only traditional rankings but also visibility in AI overviews and generative results. In practice this means weekly checks on the snippets shown, monthly reporting on AI mentions and KPIs such as visibility in summaries and direct answers for our clients. We combine tooling with manual checks to spot changes in interfaces and performance and adjust quickly.
Note: forecasts (for example, the share of searches affected by generative AI) vary by source and definition. That is why it is important to prepare your site for both traditional search results and AI visibility. Businesses that invest in AI-ready content now gain a competitive edge.
Mind privacy and user data: when optimising for AI, we take privacy regulations into account and handle personal data with care. Make sure your site does not publish unnecessary personal information and that you state clearly what data you collect (privacy policy, cookie banner). For organisations that want extra privacy, there are also anonymous search engines and privacy-focused interfaces.
Want to know how well your site is prepared for AI search results? Ask for our AI visibility scan as part of your technical SEO analysis. We check structured data, entity implementation and visibility in generative overviews. Get in touch.
Hosting and Support: The Essential Foundation for SEO Success
Good SEO starts with a solid technical foundation. Hosting and ongoing support keep your website fast, available and secure, which is essential for search rankings. A slow server or unreliable hosting can undo all the work put into content and link building.
Our hosting and support services are tailored to websites that need to be found:
- Fast, reliable servers optimised for WordPress (caching, modern PHP versions, CDN integration).
- Regular backups and security updates to prevent downtime and data loss.
- Proactive monitoring with alerts for uptime, TTFB and Core Web Vitals so we stay ahead of problems.
- Technical support from experts who know your website inside out and can roll out changes safely.
Key performance KPIs we monitor: uptime (%), Time to First Byte (TTFB), Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) and error rates. By steering on these we improve PageSpeed scores and the user experience, with a measurable effect in your search results.
A practical example: when migrating a site to our hosting, we kept downtime to a minimum with staging tests, automated backups and a phased DNS switch. As a result, the site's search visibility remained virtually unchanged during the move.
We also take privacy and tracking into account: cookies and tracking scripts can affect loading times and privacy compliance. For sites that want to offer extra privacy, we recommend privacy-friendly options and a clear cookie and privacy statement for users.
Would you like us to include hosting and support in your technical SEO analysis? Just mention it when you request your scan. We review caching, CDN, backups, monitoring and the use of video and audio files (which affect loading time) and recommend concrete optimisations.
SEO Trends for 2025 and Beyond
The world of search is constantly changing. To stay ahead, we at Zalm Partners focus on trends that already affect visibility and will only become more important in the years ahead. Below we describe the most important developments, with a short practical tip for each.
AI-Driven Search Results
AI interfaces are changing how search engines present answers: summaries, direct answers and contextual overviews are becoming more common. Tip: create FAQs and short summaries that answer questions directly, and implement structured data so AI systems can use your content easily.
Core Web Vitals
User experience remains crucial. Core Web Vitals (LCP, FID/INP, CLS) help determine how well you rank in the most popular search engine and others. Tip: focus on improving LCP and reducing layout shifts by optimising images and video and prioritising resources.
E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)
Google looks for content from genuine experts and trustworthy sources. E-E-A-T helps you gain better visibility, especially in competitive niches. Tip: highlight hands-on experience in your content, add author information and use case studies and references to build trust.
Video Optimisation
Video appears directly in search results more and more often and can increase your visibility. Tip: use transcripts and structured metadata, and optimise thumbnails and titles so your videos are easier to find and display.
Alternative Search Engines and Diversification
Although the world's most popular search engine tends to dominate, alternative and privacy-focused search engines offer new opportunities, especially locally or in specific niches. Tip: identify the alternative search platforms that matter to your audience and optimise your content and metadata for those interfaces too.
Priorities for 2025: What to Do First
- First priority: improve the technical foundation and Core Web Vitals (quick wins in user experience).
- Second priority: strengthen content structure and E-E-A-T (authority and conversion).
- Third priority: AI visibility and structured data (long-term visibility in generative results).
Want to know which of these trends matters most for your website? Let us run a short trend scan. We will give you a priority list of quick wins and a plan for sustainable growth in search, so your site is found not just today but tomorrow as well.
Ready to Improve Your Search Engine Visibility?
Search engine visibility is not a one-off job but an ongoing process. It takes expertise, commitment and a flexible strategy that adapts to changes in the search landscape. At Zalm Partners we combine proven SEO techniques with AI-ready methods, so your website is found more often today and is ready for what comes next.
What you can do right now to get started: request a quick scan, book a technical audit or have a content scan carried out to get a priority list of improvements you can make quickly.
- Quick scan: a fast impression of your visibility and the main bottlenecks.
- Technical audit: an in-depth analysis of performance, Core Web Vitals and indexability.
- Content scan: prioritising landing pages, blog topics and entities so you are found more easily.
Want to talk it through right away? Call us on 010 360 28 11 or use our contact page to request a no-obligation SEO quick scan. We will set out the steps and show you where your biggest opportunities lie.
