Debunking The 7 Most Common SEO Myths
While most people have at least a basic understanding of this concept, it is a constantly changing system. Myths about SEO run rampant and many peoples knowledge of SEO is centered around these myths; whether they are rooted in past truths or are entirely false.
So we wanted to debunk some of those myths and set you on the path to becoming SEO-friendly!
1. SEO is a Myth
Let’s get this out of the way right off the bat. SEO is not a myth. It is a very real concept! And if you are not using it to your advantage, you are already behind the eight-ball.
Yes, there are many individuals and companies that make outlandish and false claims such as “Get Ranked #1 On Google For Just $100”. And yes, you have probably been inundated with spam emails from many such a company. The fact is anyone who says they can guarantee you non-ad-based ranking (which we refer to as organic) is misleading you.
Just like any other technological advancement, there are those that will seek to use the general population’s lack of knowledge on the topic to their favor and will try to take advantage of small businesses that may not fully understand SEO.
Sifting through these unscrupulous con artists to find the companies that truly do good SEO work can be the toughest part. But once you find the right company, you will reap the benefits and never look back!
2. SEO Is Easily Done
Along with all the companies trying to trick you, there are others who will provide seminars and e-books to teach you “simple SEO”.
There is no such thing as simple SEO. You can definitely learn the basic concepts through materials like this, but to truly master the art while staying on top of new trends and developments, you will need someone fully devoted to your SEO.
You could hire someone in-house or you could have someone in your marketing department spend some of their time doing this. But when it comes down to it, hiring a specialized company to manage your SEO is the best way to go without bogging down your day-to-day operations.
There are too many changes and too many factors at play to handle this yourself. Don’t get lost in the battle for online visibility!
3. SEO Only Needs To Be Done Once
One of the biggest myths out there is that once you have made your website SEO-friendly, the work is done.
False!
There are many reasons that this is an ineffective approach to SEO. First and foremost being that one of the biggest factors can be the need for new and fresh content if you want to stay relevant and visible.
Beyond that, there are many technical aspects that do not allow you to simply let it sit. Links break, keywords relevance may change, and search engine algorithms constantly evolve.
For those reasons and many others, you cannot “one-and-done” SEO. It is a constant battle!
So make sure you have the right people in place so you have more time for the things that your business needs.
4. SEO Checkers Are Your Best Friend
Whether you work with SEO professionally or are looking to have your SEO done for your business, you have probably heard about “SEO Checker” tools.
These can be handy in certain situations, but they are not all they are made up to be.
There is a multitude of “SEO Checker” tools available for free use on the internet, but many of them are outdated; providing you with irrelevant information or outdated metrics.
As we discussed earlier, SEO is constantly changing and these tools are very rarely updated to reflect the actual metrics being used by search engines today. What might have been the most important aspect of SEO when the tool was created, may have a minimal impact now or could even be completely irrelevant.
While these tools may be beneficial to check factors such as broken links, missing descriptions or link redirects, they ultimately do not have the analytical skills required to validate the quality of the content that you do have in your website.
For instance: Your website page title is advised to be anywhere from 56-60 characters long to come up effectively in a search. A content generation plugin can fill that up with text it pulls from the body of your page. The SEO checker will verify to see if you have text present in this tag and whether it adheres to the character count, but it will not be able to tell you whether or not the title is, in fact, effective and targeting your desired audience.
“Eat here now!” is certainly not as effective as “Toronto’s best seafood restaurant!”.
Automation has its place, but it cannot replace an analytical mind.
5. Google Hates SEO And Will Always Find A Way To Ruin It With Their Algorithm
Google does not hate SEO! What Google does hate is manipulative SEO.
And manipulative SEO, or making your company and its content appear to be something it is not, is usually what you are actually being offered when companies claim they can get you to #1 on Google through “one-and-done” SEO work.
Many such methods like buying links or keyword stuffing may no longer hold weight at all. And in the case of link farming through questionable directories and websites, you may, in fact, hurt your ranking with search engines, and land yourself in proverbial hot water.
An SEO professional will be able to assist you in cleaning a situation like this up if you have received a warning from Google because you trusted the wrong company.
6. The Only Way To Get Ranked Is To Use Paid Ads
The paid online ads trend has exploded in recent times. It is hard not to notice and even harder to ignore.
And as they climb in prominence, so has the myth that the only way to get a high organic ranking is through the auxiliary use of these paid ads.
And while it is easy to see why that would be profitable to a company like Google, there is no evidence to back that up.
Countless studies have shown absolutely no correlation between the use of paid ads and the organic ranking on Google.
Paid ads definitely have their advantages and should be used in the right situations. There is no getting around that.
But if you want to have a high placement in the organic ranking, understanding factors such as competition and category in which your business resides, building your authority and getting your website and content SEO-friendly is the smart way to go!
7. Higher Rankings Equals Higher Revenue
Some companies will guarantee you to see a rise in revenues if you use their service. This is simply an impossible guarantee. That is not to say that you will not see gains.
It is very likely, in fact!
But the main focus of SEO is to give your business optimal visibility. Good SEO gives you the best possible chance to bring in more organic visibility and online traffic to your business.
What you do with that opportunity, is entirely up to you!