Search engine optimization (SEO) is tricky, and Google changes their SEO algorithm on a constant basis. With that being said, many people have the wrong idea about SEO. They are going about it the wrong way and end up damaging their SEO efforts instead. This article will cover 7 common SEO myths about Google and the truth behind them.
1. “The more keywords, the better.”
“Keyword stuffing” refers to filling a webpage with lots of keywords with the goal of trying to rank higher on search engines. It’s easy for Google to recognize this practice and penalize your website. Instead of focusing too much on getting as many keywords on your page as you can, focus on creating better content for your users. When you have plenty of lengthy and quality content, more content on your site is indexed.
One way to combat this issue is to use latent semantic indexing (LSi) keywords, which means to use words and phrases that have a similar meaning to your original keyword without using that keyword itself. For example, you can use the keyword “car service” on your page followed by “vehicle maintenance,” “auto services,” and others. Keyword stuffing can lead to penalizations, which leads us to our next point.
2. “Google wants to ban and penalize websites.”
It’s easy to think that Google is against us with their penalizations. For example, Ford is a popular car brand. If a user searches for “Ford” in their search engine and Google doesn’t show the Ford official website due to penalizations, it will only frustrate the user. Google is very user-oriented and wouldn’t completely remove a website based on penalizations.
The good news is that, for example, if your competitor were to send 5,000 spammy backlinks to your website, your website probably won’t be penalized. Google will likely see this as negative SEO and ignore it.
3. “Guest blogging is dead.”
Guest-blogging can be a great way to build backlinks to your website, boost your SEO, and market your business or dealership. However, the way that most people publish guest blogs makes it so that it does virtually nothing to help your website. On websites like Forbes, it clearly states that the author is a “Guest Blogger,” which tells Google to basically ignore it.
With that being said, guest blogging itself is not dead. If you do it correctly and publish it on a high-quality website, it will still help you with your SEO. When you guest blog, it is important that it is published as if you are a regular contributor to the site. Make sure your article isn’t categorized under “guest posts,” that your content is fresh, and If the website doesn’t have high domain authority, it will actually hurt your website, which brings us to our next point.
4. “More backlinks will improve your SEO.”
Backlinks are external links that are directed to your website from a different site. Backlink building is an important part of off-site SEO because they tell Google that other sites trust your content. The important thing to note here is that not all links are treated the same by Google. Google actually advises against backlinks. Too many backlinks, especially when they are on websites with low domain authority, will actually damage your SEO efforts. Google can tell when people are trying to “cheat” their way with SEO and it will result in penalizations to your site.
5. “If you use PPC ads, you don’t need to worry about your SEO.”
Pay Per Click (PPC) ads are a great way to get more visitors to your dealership website when you aren’t getting as much organic traffic as you’d like. However, PPC ads don’t replace SEO efforts completely, especially in the case of local SEO. Local SEO is crucial to connect to customers in your area. PPC ads themselves don’t improve your SEO or help you generate organic traffic. Organic traffic, or website visits that weren’t generated by an advertisement, makes up 70% of all web traffic. A combination of strong SEO and effective PPC ads are the best way to boost traffic to your website and build name recognition.
6. “Once you’ve done your SEO efforts, you are finished.”
Search engines and keywords are constantly changing and there is no way to predict what will work tomorrow. Google changes their algorithms around 500 times a year. Aside from search engines themselves, search trends are constantly changing as the needs of consumers change. SEO is an ongoing effort that you need to invest in your website because what works for you today might not work for you tomorrow. This is why it’s important to have a designated SEO expert on your team, or to hire a SEO company for your dealership like AutoJini.
7. “Google is the only search engine that matters.”
When you limit your reach to just Google, you are limiting your reach to just 60%. At AutoJini, we think that 60% is not enough. Yahoo and Bing account for about 40% of web traffic, which is why you should tailor your SEO for those search engines as well. You can also run ads on Yahoo and Bing. Using this strategy, you can reach so many more customers than your competitors.
SEO algorithms are always changing, but AutoJini’s performance is always at the top. Our team of marketing experts use manual entries and updates, not automatic software, to constantly fine-tune your keywords, submit directory listings, and keep your SEO at the top. To learn more about SEO and our services, call us today at 515-232-2024 or send us a message!