The Biggest SEO Misunderstanding

SEO is hard now.

Actually, it?s only hard for those affected by Google animals. This cat-and-mouse-dance around best link building and content strategies is awkward.

This is why some skilled web marketers- with several years of experience even- are throwing in the towel on search engine optimization.

On the other hand, some are searching for answers? ?What do I need to do differently??

I don?t have all the answers, but there is one perspective I want to share.

No matter how you do it, SEO is just a marketing strategy.

If you do SEO, then it is everything to you. If your goals are to help businesses reach top organic placement in search engine results then you eat, sleep, and breathe SEO. That?s natural. However, don?t get swept up in believing that a #1 placement will make your client a billionaire. SEO is just one way to get discovered.

Truly successful businesses focus more on brand awareness. The biggest mistake you can make is focusing on the awareness, and forgetting about the brand.

That?s exactly why these SEO strategies fail:

• Spinning content so it passes a plagiarism tool before publishing on your website
• Buying links to increase Page Rank
• Counting keywords to keep density below 3%

This isn?t about white/silver/or black hat SEO. Successful SEO strategies don't neglect branding, and long term success:

• Original content gives brands a unique voice. You can?t fake personality!
• Every single back link should be an opportunity to introduce your brand to a targeted audience. Nobody likes or trusts a brand that spams, right?
• Quality web content is about a topic, not a keyword. (Putting the priority on testing placement means your web content and articles will be enjoyable- not awkward- to read; without sacrificing the SEO score of each page)

As a writer, my focus and expertise lies in quality content. Those words are used-- and abused- quite frequently in this forum.

Once again, I don?t have all the answers. But I am going to explain what I do know., and hope you at least consider this information as one way move forward.

What Does Quality Content Really Mean?

First, I want to ask how you would answer that same question?

It seems the typical response among black hat SEO providers focuses on: ?US English, no spelling or grammar errors, must pass copyscape...?

Bla, bla, bla.

If that?s the best you got? raise your standards and you?ll see a huge difference!

Mediocre content can pass plagiarism tools and be free of errors, but let?s be honest? mediocre content is boring to read.

My answer: Quality content is not boring!

After Panda, most people realized that ?quality content? is required to be successful. But the standards for ?quality content? is still remarkably low if you?re expecting any $5 writer to deliver content that truly engages readers.

After Penguin, people are a little less trusting of article spinning and prefer to do it manually.

Okay, I get that it?s cheaper. I get that you?re working with a tight budget...

But fifty of those mediocre articles won?t generate half the return on investment as just one true quality article.

I dare you to compare the results in a side by side test.

Real quality content is the reason that so many well known brands don?t even worry about SEO, yet dominate the internet.

Did you know that Matthew Inman used to work in SEO/web marketing? More importantly, he doesn?t apply any of those skills to ?The Oatmeal? comics. He doesn?t need to. His website gets about 7 million visitors a month. Just saying.

I cannot help but to notice your advertising your article writing services in this not so informative
guide. Everyone should know that since Panda and Penguin you need high quality content and that
if you pay little to expect less...Pay more and expect more. It is really common sense stuff.

Actually, I am not advertising my services, and the point is more about how you need a brand for SEO (brand awareness) to be successful. But thanks for your cynicism!

I'm in for the article challenge.....

I agree and disagree. For the most part link building is about getting organic rankings to drive traffic. The back links don't matter that much for the most part as long as they are considered quality back links to search engines. I mean you could work on brand awareness if you have a huge client or project, but for small plumbers etc on low budgets, brand awareness doesn't fit into the budget.

Nauthiz666 said:

I agree and disagree. For the most part link building is about getting organic rankings to drive traffic. The back links don't matter that much for the most part as long as they are considered quality back links to search engines. I mean you could work on brand awareness if you have a huge client or project, but for small plumbers etc on low budgets, brand awareness doesn't fit into the budget.

Click to expand...

On the contrary, small plumbers are easy to rank and raise brand awareness for on limited budgets, because the competition is scaled down. Focus on regional targeting, complete local listings and add special offers for more appeal. You'll rank higher and sooner, to the targeted audience. You'd build those links manually, and they are the most valuable.

john1444 said:

I'm in for the article challenge.....

Click to expand...

Haha thanks, but this was not intended as a sales thread! (That's just my signature.) If you really do want more information about it anyways... PM me or I can send the link with details. Please know that the $5 Article Challenge is not for original content, it is to repair an article or web page that is underperforming. (Up to 500 words).

You seem like a nice girl. I am not trying to pick on you or anything and I am sure some people could
find this sending them in the right direction of quality content.

So all the best.

Content is vital - but every metric and measure out there still relies on links.
What I've noticed is that links surrounded by "at least better than average content" perform well.

In fact if you check your GWMT and compare against say "SEO Spyglass" links report you find that most nonr content/context links are ignored by Google - and it's decent quality content that gives the context.
All that being said, I see people rank by gaming tens of thousands of links surrounded with crap still. It's getting rarer, but it is still possible, at least in the short term.

Scritty

Scritty said:

Content is vital - but every metric and measure out there still relies on links.
What I've noticed is that links surrounded by "at least better than average content" perform well.

In fact if you check your GWMT and compare against say "SEO Spyglass" links report you find that most nonr content/context links are ignored by Google - and it's decent quality content that gives the context.
All that being said, I see people rank by gaming tens of thousands of links surrounded with crap still. It's getting rarer, but it is still possible, at least in the short term.

Scritty

Click to expand...

I agree, but I think you missed the point of SEO being viewed as a marketing tool, a way to get brand exposure. Forget about the ranking "systems" for a moment, and consider the value of each individual link as targeted brand exposure. That doesn't mean you shouldn't look for the best and most cost effective link building strategies... it just means that SEO isn't the only reason to build those backlinks. Brand awareness is an even bigger benefit. When you forget about search engine ranking, you can understand WHY those content-related links are more valuable. Above and beyond SEO.

Exactly, content gives you a chance to rank but without links it will be a difficult journey in order to rank. I understand the concept, the content creates links on their own but that is not always the case, depending on niche.

unclemike said:

You seem like a nice guy. I am not trying to pick on you or anything and I am sure some people could
find this sending them in the right direction of quality content.

So all the best.

Click to expand...

Thank you, but I'm a nice girl. Not guy.

I don't know why I should think you are trying to pick on me?

Finally, this post isn't meant to promote the need for quality content. It simply uses content (my expertise) as an example of how SEO is often misunderstood. So to elaborate on the point I was trying to make (apparently, I didn't do so well this time)...

SEO is just a marketing strategy.

You have to ask why anyone wants to get on the front page. It's to get found. So you can make more money. But SEO is just one way of getting discovered... and brand awareness means absolutely nothing without a solid brand.

Getwhatchuwant said:

Exactly, content gives you a chance to rank but without links it will be a difficult journey in order to rank. I understand the concept, the content creates links on their own but that is not always the case, depending on niche.

Click to expand...

That is a good concept, but not the point I was making. I did not imply that great content will help you rank. I am only saying that the goal of obtaining the rank is simply a marketing strategy. That branding is more important, because what good is the #1 spot if it isn't for the long term?

QualityContentWriter said:

Thank you, but I'm a nice girl. Not guy.

I don't know why I should think you are trying to pick on me?

Finally, this post isn't meant to promote the need for quality content. It simply uses content (my expertise) as an example of how SEO is often misunderstood. So to elaborate on the point I was trying to make (apparently, I didn't do so well this time)...

SEO is just a marketing strategy.

You have to ask why anyone wants to get on the front page. It's to get found. So you can make more money. But SEO is just one way of getting discovered... and brand awareness means absolutely nothing without a solid brand.

Click to expand...

Edited ...Yeah your right people focus to much on SEO at times and forget other avenues of product branding
and even social media outlets.

QualityContentWriter said:

That is a good concept, but not the point I was making. I did not imply that great content will help you rank. I am only saying that the goal of obtaining the rank is simply a marketing strategy. That branding is more important, because what good is the #1 spot if it isn't for the long term?

Click to expand...

Understood, the other point though is how to get found. All the great content in the world means nothing if it is not seen. Kinda like does a tree falling make a sound if no one is around to hear it?

If you are a capable writer I would like to test your theory, we get articles written weekly and pay top dollar, way more than what people sell for here on BHW. If you think you can create compelling, bran awareness quality content for us, I would love to give your work a go... PM me if you are interested.

Getwhatchuwant said:

Understood, the other point though is how to get found. All the great content in the world means nothing if it is not seen. Kinda like does a tree falling make a sound if no one is around to hear it?

If you are a capable writer I would like to test your theory, we get articles written weekly and pay top dollar, way more than what people sell for here on BHW. If you think you can create compelling, bran awareness quality content for us, I would love to give your work a go... PM me if you are interested.

Click to expand...

PM sent, looking forward to the juicy details!

And I think you do get it. I'm not saying that branding is more important than awareness either... just that most SEO providers are so concerned with following systems and formulas to *get there*, that they neglect what is REALLY important. I guess it helps to look at the bigger picture, and not everyone is capable of seeing beyond the rehashed "seo tips" being sold for a dime a dozen.