Search Engine Optimization Services: Expectations vs. Reality

The popularity of search engine optimization (SEO) has been on the rise more than ever. Most online businesses today rely on SEO to improve their presence and attract leads. The growing popularity, however, is also leading to many myths about the concept.

Most businesses think of SEO as a mere collection of keywords or how a website shows up in search results. There are also far more misconceptions about it. Let’s explore five such SEO myths.

1.       A significant marketing strategy

SEO might look like a part of the larger scheme of things in your marketing campaign. However, you can belittle its importance at your own peril. The benefits of SEO are multitude as you can cater to the needs of your target audience and search engine.

If search engines can navigate through your site at ease, it will ultimately help in improving your rankings. Similarly, you can expect improved engagement, queries, and sales if your audience resonates with your content.

2.       Use of keywords

Many businesses, especially the new ones, do not have the patience to get results. SEO is a long-term game that needs a lot of perseverance. Brands feel they can use several keywords on a single page to rank quickly in search engines. It is nothing but keyword spamming.

Such tactics can lead to penalties from Google, and the page will never rank. Google uses over 200 factors to rank a website. They also change the algorithm frequently, as their focus is to deliver quality content on the first page. When it comes to using the appropriate number of keywords, the density needs to be around 2%. Anything above the threshold leads to the content getting considered spam.

3.       Results

Businesses have unrealistic expectations about getting results from their digital marketing investments. SEO needs to be a part of your long-term strategy, which requires patience. It is not possible that results will show up in days or weeks. Agencies offering instant results make the matter worse as they give unrealistic expectations to their prospects.

It can take anywhere between four and six months for results to show. There also needs to be a steady mix of SEO tactics like link building, guest posting, etc. If you are looking to invest in search engine optimization solutions, make sure you do it from a long-term perspective.

4.       Internal links

Many fail to recognize the true potential of internal links. They believe if they are getting external backlinks, there is no need for internal linking. But it is a wrong notion that needs a change.

The idea behind internal links is to improve the navigability of your users. Besides being helpful for users, it also aids Google in understanding the website content for better crawling. Google also views the anchor text you use for internal linking.

5.       Authority building

It is one crucial factor that helps a page rank instead of its competition. Many businesses do not understand the importance of building an authority first instead of generating heaps of content. They feel there is no need to create more of it, which is wrong.

The website authority shows how much Google trusts a particular website. The authority of a website can increase due to blog posts, backlinks to other websites, and citations. If you get good quality backlinks, it will help you immensely in boosting your authority. You can also try SEO for local business tips to add to your authority.

6.       One-time investment

Businesses have this misconception that they only need to invest once in SEO, and there will be results for a lifetime. As SEO is an ongoing process, it requires a steady investment and patience. Businesses also feel that once they get the website optimized and content posted, they no longer focus on that.

A mere investment of six to twelve months won’t do any good. All that investment won’t be worth anything if it does not get a further boost in terms of continued efforts towards building authority and improving rankings.

7.       Visibility and reputation

When Google’s bots crawl through their website, their intention is to identify only the best information to display on the first page. So, websites that appear on the first page of search results are trustworthy.

When your website is able to rank, it will also help in improving your brand image and reputation. Your audience is more likely to trust your products and services in such cases. So it is essential to concentrate on these factors to grow your business.

8.       On-page and off-page factors

We have already mentioned that Google uses over 200 factors to rank a website. It includes various on-page and off-page measures. On-page factors include everything from optimised headline to keyword density and compelling meta descriptions.

Off-page factors, on the other hand, include link building, guest posting, blog comments, and much more. In order to rank your website, you need to consider all these factors and work on them. Only then you will be able to achieve the desired results.

Bottom line

SEO is a cost-effective tool for any business to improve its presence and attract leads. It also requires consideration from a long-term perspective. There needs to be a focused investment and a lot of patience to get the desired results. If you are looking for a reliable search engine optimization services provider, Digital Rhetoric can help you. Contact us today to know more about our SEO marketing services. We are your guide to SEO services and can help you achieve desired results.