Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can be confusing at the beginning, but don’t worry we are here to guide you through it! We see a lot of content out there with common SEO mistakes that can be avoided.
Before we begin, do you know what SEO is? Read our blog, SEO 101: A Guide for Beginners to warm up and get a clear understanding of the basics.
1 Wrong keywords
Using the wrong keyword is one of the most common mistakes made in SEO. You can’t neglect the preferences of search engines and users. The way to reach your audience is by understanding and using the words that they use to refer to your products and services.
There is such a thing as using the incorrect keyword.
You’ll want to choose one that has relevance to your subject and will help your SEO. Conduct keyword analysis first to find out if it will have good results and will reach your potential customers. It should come across naturally in the URL, the title of the page, and your content. If there aren’t any relevant purpose to the content or the website, then you know it’s the wrong one.
We’ve only covered a tiny section on how to choose the correct keyword. Check out MOZ’s blog post on Keyword Research to get a detailed description on where to begin.
2 Failing to include relevant internal and external links
To get the most of SEO, you’ll want to include a mixture of internal and external links on your page. Don’t fill your page with random links but use well-ranking websites with reputations to improve your content quality. Internal linking will bring people to relevant content on your website and will encourage them to stay longer on your website.
Tip: Avoid using “click here” as an anchor text strengthen it by using words that will teach the reader how it will be beneficial to them. This also improves SEO as search bots will know what the link is about.
3 Not taking advantage of Google SEO reviews
Did you know that your Google business reviews have a huge influence on your business’ local SEO? By simply increasing the number of Google reviews with your specified keywords, you can see an increase in visibility of your website. You will want to take advantage of this and encourage your clients to leave Google reviews! Read our blog post on How Google Reviews Help SEO to get a better understanding and tips on how to optimize your SEO.
4 Low quality content
We are surrounded by content noise when we scroll through our social media feeds, and by publishing non-original content you will just be part of that noise. Publish interesting and valuable content that will set you apart from others. The goal is to provide real value content to your visitors. Your focus should be addressing their needs by crafting relevant content, and SEO should take care of itself.
Remember that you are creating content for people, not for robots. You want to make your content easy to read and follow:
- Use visuals
- Add sub-headers
- Utilize lists
- Be aware of your grammar
- Stand out!
Eager to know more tips on how to create quality content? Read our blog How Quality Content Can Help You Lead the Battle.
5 Avoiding tittle tags & meta description
Once you’ve chosen a target keyword in your articles, you’re not done with optimizing your content. Fixing your page titles and adding meta descriptions are important for search engines when they are crawling your website. If these optimizing factors are properly done, they can improve the performance of your content.
6 Poor social media presence
Once your content is published, you’ll also want to optimize it on social media to get the attention of users, specifically of those that have a significant online presence. Create relationships with the appropriate influencers to get noticed by your target audience and by search engines. Use their credibility to promote your content.
7 Forgetting about analytics
Forgetting to track progress is one of the most common mistakes! You can’t improve your SEO if you disregard the numbers. Google Analytics is a useful tool to measure your analytics and to see how your optimization is working for the various content and strategies you are using. Get into the habit of regularly checking your analytics and tweaking your strategy if nothing converts.
It doesn’t matter how many SEO blogs you read, you’ll make a mistake now and then. We hope that you can learn from these common mistakes’ others have made and avoid them in your own efforts.
Thanks for reading! Tweet us if you’ve caught yourself in one of these common SEO mistakes, we’d love to hear from you. Check out our other articles on SEO, WordPress, marketing, social media, and more!
