Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an ever-changing field with search engines, especially Google, rolling out algorithm changes from time to time. While it’s challenging, you can be successful at it and rank well in the SERPs if you do things right.
Today, SEO is about building trust, relevance, reputation, and providing valuable service and information to users—because that’s what search engines are focused on as well. Their goal is to provide the best and most relevant results each time a search query is made.
A solid SEO campaign is comprised of different elements—from content, web design, and overall functionality of your website. However, it’s equally imperative that you pay attention to pitfalls that can weaken your rankings, so that you can avoid them or at least find and apply appropriate solutions in case you’ve already fell to them.
Here are 15 SEO mistakes that can mess up your rankings and what you need to do to avoid them.
- Settling for poor content
Yes, it’s an overly used cliché, but you just have to accept that when it comes to internet marketing, content is really king. That’s why you need to work hard to provide content that’s a cut above the rest. Yes, it may be challenging, but its attainable and definitely necessary.
It was in 2011 when Google rolled out the Panda algorithm, which is focused on putting websites with quality and relevant content to the top and pushing down those with thin and irrelevant content. So today, no matter how frequent you publish new content, you will still not improve your SEO score if your posts lack substance.
Your goal should be to be the best answer to search queries relating to your niche, so spend time with content planning and research. Never copy-paste content from other websites and eliminate duplicate content within your pages as well.
READ: 10 Secrets for Creating Content that Stands Out
- Believing that SEO and PPC are the same
SEO and PPC (pay-per-click advertising) are two internet marketing techniques that aim to increase exposure, visits, and conversions. However, they are not one and same.
SEO focuses more on optimizing your websites and employing techniques that help you land on the top of organic search results. Meanwhile, PPC is paid advertising and works by bidding on search terms or keywords so that your ad will appear each time users input those words in the search box.
SEO and PPC can work hand in hand in reaching your marketing goals. In fact, statistics show that SEO done alongside with PPC can result to a 27-percent increase in profits as opposed to just focusing solely on either technique.
- Setting unrealistic SEO expectations
SEO success doesn’t happen overnight. Just because you launched a new website doesn’t mean that it will rank on the first page of SERPs and generate a high number of conversions just because you had it optimized. SEO success takes time because search engines takes into consideration the history of a particular website when placing it in search results—which is something that new websites don’t have. That being said, doing a little bit of PPC can be helpful when launching a new website to help jumpstart exposure before results from organic techniques trickle in.
READ: Is PPC Suitable for Small Businesses?
- Stuffing content with too much keywords
Keywords, while still essential, is not the be-all and end-all of SEO.
Stuffing content with keywords you’re trying to rank for, especially if you nonsensically do so, will just hurt your SEO score. Sure, search engines may recognize you, but don’t expect a boost in ranking. In fact, you should prepare for the worst, which is getting penalized and de-indexed.
Writing web copy should be about relevance. Remember that the first thing search engines prioritize these days is quality, and that’s one thing you should never compromise on.
- Broken links
By all means, conduct regular housekeeping of your website!
Broken links are basically hyperlinks that no longer direct to their intended pages. Overtime, sites naturally gain broken links, but visitors don’t like them. Plus, what if users are so engaged with your content that they want to know what’s next and they clicked on a broken link. Imagine the visitor’s disappointment and decline in your credibility it caused in a snap.
Just the same, search engines don’t like broken links too, because they affect your reputation and user experience.
- Duplicate title tags and poor meta descriptions
Just like content, you should refrain from using duplicate title tags. Set a unique title for every page in your website, and make sure it reflects the content. Doing so allows search engines to index your pages properly, lets the users recognize their relevance, and makes them click-worthy.
Meta descriptions are also something commonly overlooked. Meta description is a 160-character snippet that introduces what the content is about and why people should check it out. Write compelling copy for meta descriptions. Make it so persuasive to that point that it will leave users with no other choice but to click on the link leading to your entire content and finally see what you have to say.
- Failing to check analytics
All your SEO efforts will be for nothing if you avoid dealing with analytics.
Examining data from search engine analytics will let you know how you’re SEO campaign is doing—which areas are generating results and which ones need improvement. It’s how you track your progress.
Configure your website with Google Analytics and Google Webmaster Tools, so that you can access data on how your strategy is paying off.
- Going for cheap SEO services
As a business, it’s essential that you find cost-effective solutions for your internet marketing needs, but that doesn’t meant that you should compromise on quality.
If an SEO company provides you with a too-good-to-be true offer, then, it probably is. Most of the time, entities offering cheap SEO services are those that employ black-hat practices or manipulative and aggressive techniques that go against the standards of search engines.
Before doing business with any SEO firm, investigate and do your research first.
- Not setting a budget
Technically, doing SEO is free and getting a good ranking will not cost you a dime. Yes, you can do it on your own, but it’s easier said than done. That’s why there are tools and services that can help you craft and implement strategies, but they usually come with price tags. Because SEO is essential in gaining a digital leverage, it won’t hurt to set a particular budget for it.
- Links that lack credibility
Linking to low PR or suspicious websites can cause your credibility and reputation to crumble. Sure, link building and promotion is essential to SEO, but don’t just link for the sake of quantity. Make sure you’re linking to credible sites relevant to your niche, so that you can maintain a strong reputation.
- Not linking internally
Linking to other content in your site is also important. It helps improve navigation and increase exposure of other pages. More so, internal linking also increases content visibility, which makes it more crawlable by search engines. If some of your pages are not being indexed, it could be due to a lack of internal links pointing to those pages.
- Neglecting keyword research
While exact keyword matches don’t bear too much weight these days, it’s no excuse to skip keyword research. Keyword research remains to be essential because that’s how you know what people are searching for, which enables you to tailor content around their queries.
Tip: Recognize the value of long-tail keywords. Yes, they may not have the highest search numbers, but they are more specific and focused, which means that people who search for them are really intent on finding a particular information or making a purchase. Also, ranking for them is easier as compared to other search terms because competition for them is typically low,
- Slow loading time
Faster loading speed increases your chances of ranking higher in the SERPs. Likewise, if you’re running ads on your site, they can get more clicks if your website loads quickly. If you’re site is loading slowly, consider using tools that can help you determine what’s causing the delay and find solutions to speed up loading time.
- Not paying attention to alt tags and filenames
Label the images you use on your website accordingly. Use alt tabs to describe them, so that search engines will have more information to use in identifying your site.
- Failing to take SEO into account before website creation.
Before creating a website, create an SEO checklist. This way, you can input necessary keywords in the URLs, HTML, and XML sitemap. Doing so will help optimization easier and smoother once the site is up and running.
Statistics show that 80% of customers use search engines when beginning their buying process. Furthermore, organic search accounts for 51% of visits to B2B and B2C websites. That’s why you should focus on doing SEO, and one of the ways that you can be effective at it is by avoiding mistakes that can threaten your rankings.
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