Since publishing our guide to making money blogging, I’ve got a lot of questions about the details and specifics of optimizing your blog. Here’s some insight for you guys…
Do you have a website or blog? Have you optimized it for visitors and traffic?
If not, now is the time to do so. However, there are several mistakes that you may make if you don’t take the time to figure out what tactics work, and which ones you should avoid.
While there are a number of resources and bits of information out there that you can use, such as Matthew Woodward’s SEO blog, you also need to know the most common mistakes that you need to avoid at all costs. When you do, it will help ensure you don’t make them and give your blog the best possible chance of ranking well.
1. Keyword Stuffing
One of the most egregious mistakes that you can make when it comes to optimizing your site is to stuff keywords. In the past, long before Google algorithms and search engine spiders, website owners will manipulate search engine rankings by stuffing keywords and creating content that did not have any real value. Today, those efforts are not only frowned upon, they are actually punished.
When creating content, you can choose a keyword to focus on, but don’t use it in any location unless it fits naturally. This will ensure that your website isn’t flagged, punished or even blacklisted due to these efforts.
2. Creating Content that Isn’t Valuable
Another mistake you should avoid is creating content that has no value. Again, if you create content to publish on your site or blog that isn’t related to the product, service or other purpose of the site, then you may not see very good results in the search engines.
The fact is, today search engines are smarter than ever before. As a result, they are going to “read” what you publish and then rank it according to value and merit. If the content is poorly written, stuffed with keywords or has any other issues that make it ineffective, then your site is not going to rank well.
3. Not Having a Mobile Friendly Site
Another mistake that you will want to make sure to avoid is having a site that is not mobile friendly. Today, the majority of searches start with a mobile device. If you don’t have a site that conforms to these measurements and specifications, you may find that your site does not rank well.
The fact is, Google and other search engines are now punishing sites that are not mobile friendly, which is something you need to keep in mind. If you don’t have a site that is mobile friendly, now is the time to make a change.
4. Not Paying Attention to the Competition
If you don’t know what your competition is doing, then you may not be able to develop tactics that will help you outrank them. Take some time to look into what type of SEO efforts they are employing and then figure out how you can do something different or better.
When you have a leg up on the competition, you will have a much better ability to outrank them.
This will help you in the long run and ensure you rank well.
5. Not Paying Attention to Local SEO
Ranking locally is now more important than it has ever been in the past.
As a result, you should make sure that you claim your local listings and that you are showing up in local search engine results. After all, if you are offering a service locally, you want to make sure that local customers are able to find you. The best way to do this is by focusing on local search results.
With the tips found here, you will find that creating an online presence that ranks well is actually easier than you imagined. You have to avoid the most common mistakes to rank well, so make sure to keep this information in mind.