The world of website rankings changes very quickly so it is important to stay up to date with the steps you need to take to get your site found. You can’t simply stick with the same strategy and hope to keep your ranking; it is important to be proactive and constantly make sure you are doing the right things for your site. There are many misconceptions about SEO that you need to know if you want to stand the best chance of positioning your site this year. Here are the main ones.
1) High page rank is the most important thing
A few years ago this might have been true, and sites with higher rankings would be more valued and get good positions in search engines as a result. Google changed this because it was easy to manipulate and was becoming an increasingly unreliable metric. The page rank is still considered by Google’s algorithm, but it is the least important factor now.
2) Social media has no value
This couldn’t be any further from the truth. It is true that Google doesn’t reward sites for the amount of likes or followers they have, but social media provides important exposure and connects businesses with their audience. It can also be used to build brand loyalty. Google does reward sites for having a good reputation and engaging with their audience; social media helps achieve both of these things.
3) Content is everything
This is still true, but the mere presence of content is not enough. It needs to have context, be relevant, and above all else, it must prioritise the user. Content should never be devised with Google in mind; instead, it should always be written for the benefit of the consumer. This means you need to report about topics that will be interesting and useful for your target audience rather than just having posts for the sake of filling the site with words.
4) Focusing on keywords
Traditionally, content was written with a central focus on specific keywords that the site wanted to be ranked for. This is no longer relevant because it is very difficult to actually determine what people are searching for. It is more likely that they are using more specific long tail keywords rather than simple one or two word ones. Now it is better to write about a topic than focusing on one or two key phrases.
5) My site is already optimised
Optimising your site is an ongoing process, not something you can just do once. Every activity and piece of content you create should be designed to provide value to readers and get your site up the rankings. Google rewards sites that post good quality content regularly, especially when it is unique and insightful.