The Most Common SEO Mistakes to Avoid
Mistakes in SEO
Small mistakes in SEO implementation can cause rankings to drop, web traffic to suffer and your company’s bottom line to falter. Thankfully, most of the common SEO mistakes in digital content production can be fixed fairly easily.
As with most SEO matters, it can take some time to see the effects of correcting these issues. It’s important to know what to avoid and how to fix problems before they hamper your site.
Most Common SEO mistakes:
Having Broken Links And Dead Pages
One of the most common SEO errors our agency comes across frequently is having broken links and dead pages on a digital site. As a website owner, it’s important for you to regularly review your pages and ensure that all existing on-site links are updated and dead pages are removed and de-indexed. If this isn’t done, you could risk having a negative impact on your Google rankings alongside a poor user experience.
Crafting Content Around Keywords Instead Of Vice Versa
Many copywriters who are mindful of SEO begin developing their content marketing pieces with the SEO keywords they would like to include in the article and start from there. In order for content marketing to be effective, the inverse has to happen. Start with the content idea that is driven by the answer to the question, “What problem does my audience have that I can address?” SEO optimization can then occur.
Not Taking Steps To Improve Slow Load Time
Slow load time is a common issue affecting SEO results, but in most cases, it’s an easy fix. More websites are managed by individuals with less formal training, which can affect a site’s efficiency, especially when they upload images that are too large. Photoshop and other design software offer easy ways to “save for the web” and can reduce the website’s size significantly, reducing its load time.
Creating Content Before Doing SEO Research
It’s a commonly held belief that SEO considerations come into play after content creation. It’s actually the opposite. SEO research should be completed as a first step in the content creation process. Use keyword research to understand audience needs and motivations, and analyze search results to understand who’s winning and why. Only then can you craft the best, most competitive marketing content.
Ignoring Technical SEO Factors And The User Experience
Search engines are becoming more and more concerned with the end user’s experience on the website. If your website has poor loading speeds or a bad user experience, this technical SEO mistakes will hinder your rankings. And these factors are quickly becoming more critical for SEO success. Be certain that the website you’re trying to optimize is technically sound and has a good page ranking and speed scores.
Having Poor Internal Linking
Google looks for cues on your website. Such as how the pages, blog posts and other content link to one another, to determine which pages are most important. And for which topics and keywords they are most relevant. The fix is easy: Go through your site, and when something on one page or post relates to other content on your site, link them.
Overlooking Meta Descriptions
Poor (or missing) meta descriptions are still a common oversight for many businesses. These descriptions provide critical context for search engines and customers. And not adding them is a fast way to tank your content marketing efforts. Luckily, most website platforms, such as WordPress, have built-in sections for completing meta descriptions. They are simple to add and should never be overlooked.