Many business owners have a pretty clear idea of SEO (search engine optimization) and how it can be beneficial for the business and its objectives. It is highly recommended for start-up businesses to get them started in the right direction. SEO has gained so much popularity because it has been proven to be an integral part of the success of any digital marketing strategy.
For those who have heard about it but are not really sure what SEO is all about, it is a process where a website is improved in several ways so that it gains ranking on search engine results through certain phrases or words that are searched for by users. The results are what search engines such as Google think would provide the users with the most relevant information according to the keywords used. Ranking for relevant keywords for your business brings organic traffic, the lifeblood of most businesses, to your website to help you generate leads, conversions, and most importantly sales.
However, many sites that appear on the first page are usually those who have used SEO so that search engines understand their content. Research is also conducted by the SEO experts to decide the long tail keyword phrases users enter when they do their searches on specific fields so that pages are optimized appropriately. In other words, SEO is very useful in helping the target audience of a business find its site easily on Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other top search engines.
All the same, there are many words of advice regarding SEO, with some that are sound and beneficial and others that can pose problems if acted upon. The challenge lies in identifying which ones are factual and those that are lies. These SEO myths can be confusing because while others are obviously untrue, others may be more challenging to detect. Business owners who work with experienced best Grand Rapids SEO companies may find it much easier to spot the differences between facts and rumors.
SEO myths can come up for a simple reason. What was once effective for improving page rankr for websites may no longer work as efficiently, while they may still be recommended to an extent. Other factors could be the changes in algorithms or users being more reluctant to be marketed to.
At other times, an SEO strategy may be considered a myth by some business owners who have not found them effective for their website. It is always best to remember that industries vary, and the techniques employed for each one are different from the other. What may succeed for one does not necessarily spell out success for another. And SEO does change multiple times per year with new algorithm updates from Google.
Here are some of those SEO myths, busted so we an differentiate fact from fiction.
Duplicate Content Is Penalized By Google
One of the biggest myths surrounding SEO is Google penalizing sites with duplicate content. The main point of a website is to provide engaging and relevant content to attract traffic. There will be times when certain content may be considered a duplicate, which is a copy of a certain material that is also found somewhere else on the net. This could cause some websites to lose some traffic. There may be pages that have generated a lot of traffic in the past, but have not been as popular over time. Realistically, Google does not give penalties for duplicate content. It is only because of the way results are displayed by Google that makes people think so. Duplicate content may just be ignored or ranked lower by search engines, but this is by no means a penalty or manual action. The best SEO companies can help a business develop excellent content to make the site more engaging and help its ranking, regardless of any potentially duplicated or syndicated content.
Backlinks Are Obsolete
When conducting searches about backlinks, many articles may say that they are essential, while others may not agree. The fact is that white label links will affect a site's rankings and is far from being obsolete. They can positively or negatively impact a site according to the quality of the website that links are originating from. A website gets a backlink from another website that links to it, meaning that this site acknowledges what it links to, makes copies about it, and comes up with an Html code to produce the backlink to the site and shares it with audiences. Backlinks are actually one of the strongest marketing techniques that the best SEO companies would employ, especially since it is free and offers significant benefits to help a website succeed.
Regardless of what Google says every year, backlinks are one of the biggest ranking factors in their search algorithms. How ignorant do they think SEOs are when they proclaim this every year, or multiple times each year? Even some lower quality backlinks can still potentially be better than zero backlinks, because it at least puts your website on the board to be indexed and rank for keywords.
Immediate Results Can Be Expected With SEO
Nothing can be further from the truth. This is one myth that has persisted among many who feel that to increase their website visibility immediately, SEO can make it happen. While SEO is a marketing strategy that can help any company's website increase its visibility, the results do not happen overnight. It is a process that takes time and requires patience but certainly worth the wait. It is best to acknowledge that most pages cannot reach the top results for about a year and are not immediately forthcoming.
Keyword Research Is Unnecessary
Another one of the biggest SEO myths that is cropping up is the irrelevance of keyword research. Keywords are essential as they keep a site's content focused on the specific topic being shared. Without these keywords, it can be safely assumed that keyword research has not been conducted either. Because of this, there will be no means to know the search queries that people use on the search engines. Additionally, without target keywords with a site's content, relevant and high-quality content will not matter since no one will get to see them. Researching keywords is among the most important factors of SEO. The reason why other websites enjoy increased organic traffic more than others is through carefully researched keywords. The best Grand Rapids SEO companies focused on keyword research can help businesses find a profit-making niche, increase their website ranking through the topics they produce to generate traffic, and enhance their marketing efficacy in promoting the products or services they offer.
SEO Like A Pro
Business owners or marketers would fare better when they are able to distinguish SEO myths from facts. SEO myths can be confusing and can negatively impact businesses if they are heeded. Learning how to detect them, with the help of the best Grand Rapids SEO companies, can further their business growth by employing appropriate strategies and busting myths that can restrict their progress. Don't let search engine optimization misconceptions negatively impact your rankings and organic traffic.