5 Common Misconceptions about Search Engine Optimization

SEO is a huge part of any website’s strategy for marketing these days, but there are right and wrong ways to go about it. In general, we see that some mistakes are more common than others. Below we’ve listed the 5 most common misconceptions and mistakes regarding search engine marketing so you can avoid them.

1. SEO is not a one-time fix-all. Search engine optimization is an ongoing process. Keyword popularities change, trends change and new strategies come up to appeal to the search engine crawlers. Don’t think you can just hire an SEO company, optimize your content, and stay atop the rankings forever. Search engine marketing requires fine tuning, and is a journey rather than a destination.
2. Black Hat tactics don’t work. They may at first, but over the long haul, the risk vs. reward for using black hat SEO is very little. If a search engine finds you to be using unethical SEO, it can be very hard to work your way back from their bans and penalties. Avoid using doorway pages and hidden text, and build a solid white hat SEO strategy from the beginning for success in the long run.
3. All content needs are keywords. This is a huge mistake. It’s much better to plan your strategy around a few solid keywords you can really compete for than to jam your content full of any and all keywords. To any user this will be immediately apparent, and they will not return as your content will appear useless. You can always change your keyword strategy to try more competitive ones as things change. Build a good foundation and tinker with it rather than going for the gold from the beginning.
4. No agency of SEO firm has deals with the search engines, or can guarantee anything. Anyone who says they can get you in the top ten overnight is lying, because SEO changes take weeks to manifest. Any company that says this is of questionable legitimacy.
5. There is no “most important part” of SEO. Search engine marketing refers to using a combination of tactics to develop your brand online and get it notices. Link building, pay per click and keyword rich content are all important parts, but only their use in combination will create an effective overall search engine marketing plan.