Common SEO Mistakes to Avoid

SEO is one of the most important ways you can market yourself and your business online. It takes some time for SEO to really start showing results, but the work and wait time are worth it.

The problem is that SEO is a complicated and always-evolving process. Every time the major search engines change their algorithms or ranking system, SEO changes. You can make a whole career out of mastering and working on SEO.

The good news is that you don’t have to. Some basic SEO practices like keyword utilization and research can go a long way, but only if you avoid these common SEO mistakes.

Not Using Google Analytics

Google Analytics isn’t the only, or even the most powerful, tool for tracking your SEO and getting insight into your site’s performance, but it is one of the most valuable.

You don’t need to obsess over your Google Analytics. In fact, it’s better to check once in a while and see what works and what doesn’t work over time.

But, ignoring your Google Analytics is a missed opportunity and makes it a lot harder to track which changes are impacting your site’s performance the most.

Overly Generic Text

Generic text is fine, and you might even need to use some generic text like “Click Here To Buy” or “Contact Us To Schedule An Appointment” at first.

But, as your site grows and you’re able to add more branded content to your platform, unique text will work better. This is a small, but complicated switch, and you may want to do some A/B testing to see which text versions work best for your audience.

Like failing to use Google Analytics, using generic text is okay, but a missed opportunity. If you really want your business to thrive online, it’s worth customizing your web copy as much as possible.

Duplicate Content

Saying the same thing a dozen different ways might be tedious, but it can help your site stand out online. Google often penalizes sites that have a lot of duplicate content, so the less you use the easier it will be to get your site to the highest value ranked positions.

Keyword Stuffing

Keywords are an important part of SEO, and you absolutely should be using keywords in your web copy and content.

However, there is too much of a good thing, and Google and other search engines are long past the days when higher keyword density = better results.

Instead, Google and the other major search engines are looking for relevance, combinations of keywords and other text that makes sense together, and signs that the included web copy and content provide real value to your readers.

So, use keywords, but don’t abuse them.

Choosing The Wrong Keywords

Keyword research is a fine art, and it’s easy to target the wrong keywords or to try and compete for high-value high-demand keywords in your industry right off the bat.

The truth is that most SEO will actually work better if you start by targeting search terms with lower volume or lower competition and then work your way up to the broader high competition keywords.

Of course, you can also stray too far in the other direction. If there are keywords that websites in your niche absolutely must have to be competitive, ignoring those keywords won’t do you any favors.

It’s about balancing the high competition SEO work that’s going to take longer to win results, and the lower hanging fruit that’s easier to make progress with, but captures less organic search at first.

SEO is complicated, and getting it right takes some expertise and time. If you’re worried that you’ve made some of these common mistakes, or just want a more experienced hand steering the ship, Watt Media’s SEO services are here for you.

Need help with web design or building a social media presence? We’ve got you covered there too. Reach out to learn more about our services and which services are a good fit for your needs.