Search engine optimization (SEO) is a process of ranking your site to attain the top 10 position on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing.
Google is constantly rolling out new algorithms to refine their search engine capability to track down “spam” sites, and only display high authority/quality site on its 1st page.
Once Google or any other popular search engines suspect “unnatural” behavior, they will drop these sites back to where they belong, and sometimes even completely ban displaying them in the search results pages.
So, if you were creating your own website to earn money, you need to ensure you are not making the same SEO mistakes almost 80% of the people make.
Related article: How to Create Your Own Website and Make Money
Here is how not to do SEO:
- Targeting Wrong Keywords
Do not target the ‘wrong’ keywords. Although some keywords may be relevant to your niche and have high search volume per month, you should not go after high competitive keywords at first.
You see, there are already tens of thousands of sites or businesses competing for the top ten positions for the same keyword, or keyword phrases, however, there are only 10 spot on the first page of Google.
If you have plenty of money to spend, best of luck. Go ahead!
However, if you do not, then it is imperative that you learn how not to do SEO.
Do: Go after “low competitive keywords” that are more specific to your niche. For example, instead of going after “weight loss” keywords, try to find long-tail keywords such as “best products for weight loss,” or “shocking truth about weight loss,” etc which have less competition, while also having high search volume.
To determine the search volume, use Google Keyword Planner – a free keyword research tool – to see if these long-tail keywords have enough searches per month.
Do not: Do not target high competitive keywords. Instead, go after low competitive keywords, or rather long-tail keywords that are more specific and highly searched.
- Keyword Stuffing
Ten years back, keyword stuffing was the easy way up to the top 10 spot, but search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing have become smart, even smarter than the average SEO experts, to track “unethical” SEO practice and ban sites that uses it.
Keyword stuffing is the use of the same keyword throughout the content of the page to make it seem more relevant, and thus, influence search engine rankings.
However, when keywords are stuffed, the content obviously does not read natural. Rather, they appear “spammy”.
As a result, many readers reported of low quality user experience using search engines. Google, including other search engines such as Bing and Yahoo rolled out several updates – Panda and Penguin – to track and remove sites using keyword stuffing.
- Publishing “Low Quality” Content
Do you really want to know how not to do SEO?
Then stop posting ‘low quality’ content on your site. Do not copy content blatantly, even a phrase, from other sites and blogs and use spinning software like The Best Spinner to make it your own.
It may work for a short while, but if you get under Google’s radar, you will be punished for violating their policy to influence search engine rankings.
Google loves sites that posts high quality content for their visitors to improve user experience. Stop posting low quality content and start giving what Google loves: fresh, unique, and engaging content that your readers can relate and enjoy reading.
- Using “Cheap” SEO Service
You have started building a new website. The designs are complete and the contents are ready for publishing. But you realize you don’t posses Internet Marketing (IM) skills to promote your site. So, what you do?
You hire a SEO company that promises to deliver 1000s of backlinks to your site, or get your web pages or site ranked in the 1st page of Google, within 1 week. The SEO service looks cheap and seems to get what you want.
Like everyone else, you try using these ‘cheap’ SEO service to see what happens. To your surprise, you get great results –high rankings on Google – but as soon as you get there, Google will penalize your site. You wonder why!
Here is what ‘cheap’ SEO consultant will not tell you: They use ‘low quality’ directories – also known as ‘link farms’ – to submit your articles and generate 1000s of unrelated backlinks pointing to your site. As these sites are not authority sites, the link you get are low quality.
Recently, Google warns small business owners to stay away from using “cheap” SEO to influence search engine ranking.
Here is how not to do SEO!
Instead of buying ‘cheap’ SEO services, we recommend that you hire a SEO consultant to optimize your site and build ‘high quality’ backlinks from authority sites.
Once Google starts to see quality backlinks pointing to your site, they will start increasing your site’s rankings, and within few months (2-3 months), you’ll be probably in the 1st page of Google for highly searched keywords or keyword phrases.
Remember: Make it simple, natural, and offer value for exchange of a free backlink to your site. This way, you will not only reach the top 10 positions of Google, but also stay there for a long time because Google and other search engines know they can “trust” you.
If you were not sure how not to do SEO, follow these tips to stay on track and avoid the pitfalls that many newbie website owners make.
We would also like to hear from you. Have you made these SEO mistakes in the past? If you have, please share your experience with us in the comment box below.
If we missed an important tip that might be helpful for our readers, please mention it below.