Do you ignore search engine optimization (SEO) because you don’t understand it? Or are you not into the techy side of the web? Or feel like SEO is something you don’t need to worry about? (If you don’t know what SEO is, start by reading my Beginner SEO Guide.)
Poor SEO has a bad wrap, but it’s truly not as complicated and confusing as it is made out to be. When you have a baseline understanding of SEO, you will be able to leverage it to grow your business. Woohoo!
Today I’m busting some SEO myths in non-techy terms so you can start using SEO to boost your business!
- SEO is all about using the right keywords.
So many people worry about selecting the right keyword for a blog post and neglect everything else. When you do a Google search, it is considering over 200 different elements to return the best search result for you.
There is not one element of SEO that outweighs everything else.Instead of spending hours worrying about selecting the best keyword, spend your time creating consistent, valuable content, optimizing your website’s user experience and getting to know your clients so you can speak in their language. All of these little things will help you optimize your SEO. - I don’t need to worry about adding a meta description, Google takes care of that.
While it’s true Google will add a meta description (the blurb that appears directly under the title of the page on Google search), it will just pull the first few lines of text for each page of your website.
You can leave your meta descriptions up to Google, but why would you if when you can customize the meta description to appeal to your ideal client or customer? Think of the description as a way to draw your ideal client into your website. You can use keywords and phrases your client might be looking for to draw them into your website. - Why bother guest blogging? It doesn’t boost my traffic enough.
You’re up all night crafting the perfect guest blog post for a fellow creative’s site. You share your best tips and tricks, but you aren’t receiving any traffic from the post. You feel like you just wasted valuable time writing content for someone else instead of posting it on your own site.
When you guest blog on someone else’s site that links back to your website, you are creating a backlink or link juice. This link juice creates positive SEO vibes that increases your authority with Google. Google thinks, “Wow! This website is trustworthy because this site linked to her.” Therefore, the more guest blog posts you write, the bigger boost your SEO will get.
Learn more about guest blogging from the amazing Meg Clark. - Having a blog will help your SEO.
Just having a blog won’t help your SEO. If you aren’t consistent with your content or creating content that isn’t adding value, then having a blog isn’t going to help you out.Google is looking for consistent, high quality content. That might sound like a tall order, but here are a few things you can do to make your audience + Google happy:- Speak to your ideal audience in their language
- Choose keywords they will be searching for
- Create a content schedule and stick to it. Even if you only post once a month, your audience will start to see you.
When you create strategic content and provide value to your clients, your SEO will get a boost!
- SEO is too confusing, so I don’t need to worry about it.
Yes, SEO can be technical, but when you break the overarching concepts down, it becomes much more digestible and understandable. SEO is all about being found.
What might your ideal client be searching for when looking for your product or service? Take a few minutes to brainstorm keywords and phrases someone might search to find you. Go one step further and do ideal client interviews. You want to speak your client’s language.Stay away from industry jargon and technical terms they may not be familiar with.
Once you have a list of keywords and phrases, start to naturally infuse them into your website. Keep your content consistent and start to guest blog on other sites. Make sure your website is easy to use on a desktop and smartphone.
If you ignore your SEO, it can feel overwhelming to think about it. But if you work SEO into your workflow, it becomes much more digestible. If you want to boost your SEO, here are a few places to start:
- Create a content calendar and stick to it.
- Before you start to write a blog post, think about the language your ideal client is using.
- Make sure your blog post is offering value to your ideal client.
- Take the time to guest blog for sites that are bigger than yours.
SEO really isn’t as scary as it appears. When you consider it part of your workflow, you will start to reap the benefits.