One of the most relevant digital marketing strategies today is to optimize your website for search engines and your mobile application for app stores. Good SEO traffic can change your business entirely. A challenge that website owners and developers should continually find solutions to, therefore, is how to generate traffic for their website and app.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an ever-evolving marketing wonder that digital marketers far and wide are trying to be a step ahead of. For most webmasters, even those with significant technical SEO knowledge, keeping pace with the changes can be a challenge. SEO misconceptions also proliferate and, sadly, are still being followed. It’s time we debunk these SEO myths, know the facts, and optimize our websites even more for better SEO and higher rankings in Search Engine Results Page (SERP).
Myth 1: The Main Goal is to Reach the First Page in Google Search
Most businesses claim that reaching the first page of search engine results in Google is the end-all, be-all, but that it’s tough and complicated to get there. SEO is, in reality, a continuous process.
Fact:It’s not rocket science to land on the first page of SERP.
The algorithm behind search engines is easy to master, and as long as you are doing things right by it, you can get high SERP rankings. Although it is not an overnight process, you can work towards it consistently. Tweak your website if needed, so it’s more user-friendly. Is your page responsive? If it’s not, then adjust it right away. Are you just focusing on major keywords? You get far more and better traffic from long-tail keywords that you didn’t try to score for when you. Start hitting those keywords and write useful content based on hot topics or queries in your target niche. Once visitors hit your web page with all elements in order, magic can happen once the content meets their interests.
Boost your search visibility, continually take necessary measures, and again, keep pace with the SEO changes. Regularly change your strategy, and you can stay one step ahead of your rivals.
Myth 2: “Content is King” is Just a Cliché
Some content creators just ram their websites with irrelevant, low-quality content, thinking the more articles they push, the more keywords they get to pack in their content, the better.
Fact: High-Quality Content is King.
For SEO, this statement rings true—has and probably always will.But it’s not just any kind of content that allows you to dominate. You won’t be able to produce the results you want, engagements you desire, and conversions you need without high-quality content.
Nevertheless, it is not enough to simply create and publish high-quality content. Most advertisers believe that they will be able to achieve strong search engine rankings precisely because they post engaging content with essential keywords that meet queries from readers in their target niche. The real trick is to optimize content using SEO features. You need to find the right keyword combination and add links to increase your probability of success.
You also need to provide a variety of content on your website. Include pictures, videos, infographics and the like to engage your audience better
People also want an efficient website, not just a beautiful one. Slow-loading websites lead to a massive loss of $2.6 billion in revenue every year, and an average user, who will give your site about 10 seconds to decide whether it is of value or not, will exit our of slow-loading sites immediately.
Myth 3: Hyperlinks are just a Hype
Some content creators don’t pay attention to internal hyperlinks that much. But a lack of adequate internal connections makes it difficult for users to access the website’s different pages. As soon as a reader finds a website difficult to use, they may give up and click away. Therefore, you drive away potential customers or readers.
Facts: Internal Links Matter
The quicker you get to access your website for visitors, the more likely your ranking is. The key to making navigation faster and easier is internal linking.Keep in mind that high-quality internal hyperlinks will contribute directly to the increased time spent on your website by visitors.
Sadly, 52.24% of pages don’t have a single backlink. Moreover, 91% of all pages never get any organic traffic from Google due to a lack of backlinks. It would help if you optimized your backlinks now, because the more backlinks a page has, the more traffic is generated for that site.
Myth 4: Meta Descriptions Affect Your Ranking
You may think that meta descriptions are an essential factor in SEO ranking. It’s no longer the case, however. Nevertheless, you must write a decent Meta description, but in no way will it affect your rankings.
Fact: Meta Descriptions are Important
If you don’t add one by yourself, Google will generate a definition for your URL using the content on the website, particularly the first few sentences. Meta descriptions are more useful to people, not robots. You will improve your chances of generating more visitors by writing a catchy meta description, that has your main keyword included in it.
Myth 5: Alt Tags are Irrelevant
You cannot ignore alt tags because, as of now, search engines are unable to view images and rely on SEO experts to add alt tags.
Fact: Image Optimization is Necessary
Alt tags are an attribute form of HTML that describes what the image shows. Not adding suitable alt tags can be a big mistake for you. Search engines won’t be able to see the images you post.
Note that images for evaluating your online presence are part of the “content” considered by Google. The addition of alt tags is, therefore, crucial.
Myth 6: The More Keywords You Use, the Better
Keyword density has gained validity through time. Why do you think all of these people stuffed white text for ranking purposes on white backgrounds? Then Google became way smarter and did away with keyword filling as a viable practice. And even people who have good results in density testing can’t rely on knowing the keyword density.
Fact: Use the Right Keywords
Although you can put a word too often, there is no specified scope of what ranks a page. However, you can now find answers in the accessible portion of the website where a keyword does not exist. There can be a similar semi-exact link in the references or in the picture tagging or elsewhere that is not part of the contents. That’s not typical, but it exists.
Instead of ramming keywords on your content, strategically use them for greater optimization. Make sure you include your main keywords in the first 100 words of your content and use a couple more variations in your heading or sub-headings. Opt for long-tail keywords, and don’t forget to include primary keywords in your meta descriptions, alt tags.
Myth 7: Blogging is Dead
The internet is overrun saying blogging is dead. Quite the opposite. Blogging is still important when it comes to SEO. A blog presents you with the best way to share your company news and announcements.
Fact: Blogging is Important
Blogging is a great way to show a more personal side of your brand and business, so your audience feels all the more that they are dealing with real people behind the webpage.
Today consumers and prospective clients want to stay up-to-date on their favorite brands’ recent developments, and blogs are an excellent avenue for it. You can communicate directly with them through your blog. At the same time, you can add keywords and backlinks to the content of the blog that will boost your rankings.
By blogging, you can establish credibility as a specialist in your field. With every new update, Google puts a higher value on authority. And there are several explanations of why every business and organization requires a blog. By maintaining a blog on your website can keep one step ahead from your competitor.
Myth 8: Encrypting Your Site Prevents You from Ranking Higher
Some claim that you should not have a securely encrypted HTTPS site if you want to ranker higher. It’s’ so far from the truth because Google algorithms include website security as a factor for SERP ranking.
Fact: Have a Securely-Encrypted HTTPS Site
Google prioritizes higher-encrypted HTTPS websites. It also reports to visitors if they are visiting an unsecured or non-SSL site. It causes visitors to escape these unprotected sites right away, thus producing higher bounce frequencies. SSL is Secure Sockets Layer’s technology that protects the website from attackers. It should be a top priority of your SEO to-do list to secure your site.
Myth 9: The More Pages in the Website, the Better
So, if you think you’ll get more visits to your website with a lot of web pages, you’re mistaken. It’s just another myth of the SEO. The same rule applies in this case as always choose quality over quantity. While you might think it’s reasonable to have a lot of sites with a larger footprint and better ranking in this manner, that’s just not the case for SEO today.
Fact: Produce High-Quality Web Pages
Search engines will not index all your webpages if the content you generate is too close to something that has already been published by other people, or you produced different web pages revolving around a similar topic, just because you wanted to increase your content and keyword density. And even if the page is indexed, it doesn’t mean it will bring more traffic.
Google also uses a different algorithm to develop proper analytics with the aim to reward content websites of value and penalize poor content. So, the key is producing high-quality content. It’s better to run a website with fewer pages, with each page proving of high-value, relevant, and constantly updated to your consumers and visitors. Follow current trends in web design and check if your UI (user Interface or design) and UX (User Experience) are at a premium. Fix bugs right away and look out for any cyber-threats that can compromise the performance of your site.
Myth 10: Duplicate Content is a Good Strategy
One cannot be more wrong to think that releasing duplicate content or similar webpages can land them high SERP rankings. You’ll actually get penalized for duplicate content
No duplicate content penalty has ever been placed. Google has a duplicate content filter, which means that Google will not rate both for the same request if there is more than one data object that is the same. It’s just going to rank one.The duplicate content filter also covers titles and meta descriptions.
Fact: Write Uniquely
Check your webpages and delete duplicate content. For instance, if you are selling bridal gowns, you don’t have to create a blog regarding long gowns, another page for cocktail, and another for bridal accessories, thinking that you’ll generate more traffic this way. It would be better to produce a long-form article that gives your customers a guide to all kinds of bridal wear and accessories.
Make sure all your titles and descriptions are different and unique as well, with strategic use of your keywords.
Conclusion: Stay Updated with Latest SEO Strategies
In the world of SEO, stagnation can be your downfall, SERP-ranking wise. Remember that search engines regularly change their Website Optimization Algorithms. Therefore, the high pace at which innovations are emerging is also one of the reasons for the constant rule changes. It would be best if you continued to search for updates and revamp SEO practices. Are there any SEO myths we missed talking about here? We’d love to hear that. Feel free to comment below.
AUTHOR’S BIO
John Ocampos is an Opera Singer by profession and a member of the Philippine Tenors. Ever since, Digital Marketing has always been his forte. He is the Founder of SEO-Guru and the Managing Director of Tech Hacker. John is also the Strategic SEO and Influencer Marketing Manager of Softvire Australia – the leading software eCommerce company in Australia and Softvire New Zealand.