Search Engine Optimization or
SEO is an interesting field. The weird part about it is that even professional can fail and there is no guarantee what so ever, even though many SEO experts do promise results but all are at the mercy of Google and other search engines.
Anyone can become an SEO expert all that you need is analysing skill. Compare the sites that are doing well with one that is not and you know what is working and what is not. This may look simple but SEO takes its own time and results are not immediate. So it is important you take the right steps. There are many factors that are involved and if you can identify them, you are the king.
Here are top 10 common SEO mistakes that you should really avoid
Copying Content from other sites
There are many sites that provide free content and allow you to publish the same on your website for free and in return they ask for a link to the author site.
If you are using this method do you really understand what you are doing? Well let me explain. First of all too many duplicate content on your site will bring your ranking down. Second, you are indirectly helping the author whose content you are using by proving link to his/her site.
It does help to write your own original content.
Same title and meta tag (duplicate) throughout the site
This is a common problem that I find on many sites. They have good content but the title, keyword and description is the same on all pages. In simple words it is like a book which has all the chapters and titles named the same.
It is very important that each and every page is unique with original content and has its own set of keywords, description and a title.
Overuse of keyword
Using keywords in your title, description and first paragraph helps in getting a higher position in SERPS. However overuse of the keywords can have a negative effect.
Instead of focusing on many keyword focus on one keyword per content. The recommended number of keywords you can use should not be more than 5 on a page of minimum 300 words.
SEO friendly URL
SEO friendly URL’s are not only easy to read but also allow you to add keywords within the URL. This helps in getting a better rank in search engine and search bots love simple URL’s instead of complicated ones. If you are using WordPress you already have that option.
www and non-www
For Google www.yoursite.com and yoursite.com are two different sites. If your site is accessible from both the URL’s you have a problem. The best way is to use .htaccess and redirectyoursite.com to www.yoursite.com or vice versa to avoid penalty.
Internal Linking
Try to manually link to older articles as and when you create a new content. Avoid automated link building. The more your site looks man-made the better your chances of getting your site higher in SERPS.
Bad keywords
What happens when you find out that the movie you thought to be an action film turns out to be an art film. Well that’s exactly what happens when you use a wrong keyword. Your title says something and your content something else and Google thinks something else.
Backlinks ( I will be back )
Backlinks are good, really good they help increase page rank and in turn move your site link further up in the SERPS. However it is a slow process and you need to find good links. Do not buy links or subscribe to link farms it will create more harm than good and it can even get your site penalized or banned.
Quality Backlinks matter so take your time it is a slow process it is just like finding good friends.
Content size
When it comes to SEO, content size does matter. Make sure that the medium words in your article are at least more than 250. There is no upper limit but in case you have a lot of content split it into number of pages instead of having it all on just one.
Poor Site Structure
It is not just the content but also the site structure that matters. A good site structure makes navigation easier and users can easily find their way through the site. Compare it with a book where you have a index page, you can go to any page you want, flip page forward, backward and even move to specific chapter.
Make sure you avoid these common mistakes which will in the long run, help you get a better position in search ranking
