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7 Shocking SEO Myths

Posted by Jennifer Lauro

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August 21, 2015

7_myths_blog Recently, I have been getting more interested in SEO and learning the details behind it. To start off, I wanted to separate the myths from the facts to get a clear understanding. Basically SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is optimizing your website for search engines to recognize the quality and trust worthiness of your website, but also ranking your website among competitors. There are a plethora of theories and opinions thrown out there regarding SEO, but here is a list of common myths that you should know about before getting started with SEO.

 

1.) SEO is mainly about ranking

-Ranking is not the end goal as it has been in the past. Even if you rank well for a keyword, you may still not make any money off of it.  Nowadays, searches that go beyond the top three are getting higher amounts of click-through rates and traffic. Higher click-through rates does not always mean success; success comes from your great content with rich text and how well you place it. Using rich informative content on your website allows Search Engines to view your website as an authority on the subject matter. The more knowledgeable you appear about your industry online, the better the opportunity is for your website to appear high in search rankings.

2.)  Meta Descriptions are a big deal for ranking

-Incorrect, meta descriptions do not help with your ranking, but they are still useful and necessary. Meta descriptions are what separate you from other websites that may be nonsense, and give a clear explanation of your page. That doesn’t have an effect on where you rank with Google. This fact was announced back in 2009 from Google.

3.)  Keywords are the key to SEO

-Our keywords are how we communicate with search engines and get across what we want known. Search Engines are actually searching for the intent of the keyword. In fact, you could be penalized for overusing a keyword.

4.)  Keywords need to be identical

-You do not need to repeat the exact same word over and over again throughout your content, because it is useless. Google's Panda update put an end to this tactic. It is now more effective for you to switch up the phrase, but still get the point across (hence, search engines are looking for the intent). You want a variation on your page to bring more attention to you. Google hates when you try to optimize too much for specific keywords. It is the relevant content about your keywords that matters.

5.)  More pages the better

-Okay, I know your initial thought is the more the better, but it is just not that way. Everything you publish will not always get indexed, and even when some pages are indexed, they don’t always stay there. The important thing to think about is, yes, your pages may be indexed. However, are all of them generating qualified leads? Maybe instead of creating more pages you should think about creating only pages that are effective and generate MQLs

(Marketing Qualified Leads). Look over data and see what works and doesn’t, and go from there.

6.)  You have to submit your site to Google in order to rank

-To start off, Google will find your website no matter what and will rank you whether you submit or not. Even if you submit your site to Google does not guarantee a top rank. Crawlers will find your website at some point and index it. No worries there! However, submitting your site to Google does not hurt your website and any simpleton can do this in less than 5 minutes. Submitting your site also helps search engines read the organization of your site. So, here at The Marketing Department we recommend submitting your site to Google but, then again, the search engines will find your web pages by any means necessary. Nothing is getting past them.

7.)  Having more links is more beneficial than more content

-Having more links is not beneficial. What would be better would be to have quality links from different sources that are relevant, and generating great content. Link building has changed these days with the advancement of technology; it is not about numbers. Keep in mind quality always over quantity.

I bet some of these shocked you that they were myths, and made you reconsider what you knew about SEO. It is important to remember that you are not alone. Most people get caught up in these myths and find themselves wondering why nothing is working. Now that you have read this, you are informed, an able to take the next step toward optimizing your website…correctly. Good luck!

 

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Topics: Search Engine Marketing

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