SEO Guides, Tips & More!

Often times search engine optimization is compared to chasing a moving target because of the uncertainty around Google’s algorithm changes. In fact, just this week Google announced a significant change which provides extra ranking rewards to websites that are designed for mobile users. Beyond this, it seems there is an endless parade of changes coming from Google and others that often confuse and create concern for accounting marketers. The good news is that much of what we hear “in the news” is indeed based on misconception. To make this clear, below is a list of the three common misconceptions about SEO. These include:

Myth #1 SEO is a one-time thing.

Just like a website is never finished, neither are your SEO efforts. SEO is not a one-and-done or a “quick fix”. You can build a great site with amazing content, but without an SEO strategy, search engines won’t be able to find your site and rank it high in the search results for people to find. If you are expecting to rank high in the search engines within a couple months of starting your SEO plan, you need to adjust your expectations. Just like Rome wasn’t built in a day, a good SEO plan involves consistent time, effort, and patience. SEO is something that needs to be a part of your ongoing marketing strategy and will require regular monitoring, fine-tuning, and improving. Your SEO strategy should be to get a few quick victories and then continue building on those over time.

Myth #2 SEO is all about ranking #1 for a specific keyword.

While ranking number one, or even two or three, will potentially increase traffic, it is important to note that this does not always yield additional or “qualified” traffic to your website. Hypothetically, you can rank well for a particular keyword(s), get an increase in traffic, and not get any conversions.  It is also important to note that Google is no longer trying to solely match keywords when returning results. This big change came a while ago as Google now considers search intent and attempts to return more relevant results. Let your focus instead be on creating high-quality, relevant content that centers on topics of interest to your visitors and not just the search engines. This does not mean you shouldn’t include keywords in your content, far from it. Just be sure to do so without merely “stuffing” them haphazardly throughout your site for the sole purpose of trying to achieve a high ranking.

Myth #3 Ranking in Google is all that matters.

When searching for SEO strategies and best practices on the web, you will undoubtedly find that most of the information out there is centered on building your SEO strategy around the Google algorithm. With over 3.5 BILLION searches daily on Google, it is no wonder that this is the case. Google is most certainly the dominant search engine and hence gets the most attention. However, there are others out there that we simply do not want to ignore. For example, Bing makes up 19%, which may not seem like much, but it still represents a large number of potentials visitors. Throw in the fact that Bing has partnerships with major players like Yahoo! and Facebook, as well as others, you can see why it is important to maintain a broad view. While focusing on Google should remain your top priority, don’t forget to spend a little time considering other search engines as well.

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Hopefully this provides some insight into a few of the common misconceptions about SEO and has presented some ideas to implement at your firm. If you need help getting started or you aren’t getting results with your current efforts, contact us today. We are here to help!