5 Myths and Facts about SEO that Stump Most Business Owners

Increasing your SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is key to expanding your business’s reach online. When someone is seeking your service, having your website at the top of their search results makes it easier to find and more likely to be used. You might’ve heard some SEO tips and tricks thrown around, but do you know if they’re really going to help? Here are a few myths about SEO and the truth behind them.

Myth 1: Someone can guarantee to get you on the top page of search results.

Fact: If someone absolutely promises to get you to the No. 1 spot in search results, he or she is lying. Even Google advises against listening to anyone with that message.

Myth 2: SEO is all the marketing you need.

Fact: Businesses should never put their entire marketing budget into SEO. Instead, SEO should be one pillar of a larger marketing plan. How else are you working to make contact with your clientele? Are you using all of the available platforms and media methods available to you? Small and local businesses, especially, must connect with customers on many levels, through advertising, networking, branding, and more.

Myth 3: The more keywords, the merrier.

Fact: A 2017 article from Entrepreneur advises against keyword-stuffing, or filling up your website or domain with words that will make your company “pop.” While including a keyword can be useful (for example, plumbing businesses should use the word “plumbing” in their domain), too many can harmful. Google sometimes views this as a “spammy tactic,” and will refrain from pushing your website up on their results. Make sure you aren’t repeating keywords so much that it decreases the value of your content.

Myth 4: Higher rankings = more money.

Fact: Even if your website appears as a top search result, there is no 100 percent guarantee that you’ll receive more business. Customers might be early in their buyer journey when they find your website. They might click on it only to learn more about the product or service. While they might come back later, they may find an alternative they prefer.

Or, maybe they click on your website but find it difficult to use. If your website does appear as a top search result, check to ensure that your site is well-made and easy to navigate. While SEO can help you reach a broader audience, it’s up to you to make sure that a client’s experience after that initial click goes smoothly!

Myth 5: I did SEO once. I’m all set, right?

Fact: You must continuously work at SEO to maintain your rankings. Think about it: new stuff is coming up all the time. Links to your website become old or disappear, search engines change their methods (algorithms), competition is working against you, and your content becomes old. Yours will begin to lose rankings if you don’t keep it going.

SEO can be tough to tackle. Let us help you get started.