SEO is a common topic of conversation with many of our clients and strategic partners, as it should be. Sometimes we talk to prospective clients who are relatively new to SEO and have encountered some common myths.
Here are three SEO myths that need to go away.
Meta keyword tags are critical for SEO
Yes, there was a time when meta keyword tags were one of the most important things you needed for good SEO. But that time has passed. Google hasn’t been worried about meta keyword tags for a while now.
I’m not saying skip the meta keyword tags entirely—they still have some value for your website as a whole—but they’re not an easy fix for SEO. In fact, they’re not a fix for SEO at all at this point.
SEO is a one-time thing on a website
Another myth is that SEO is a one-time thing, either when you first launch a site, or when revising an existing site for better SEO. Yes, there are some basic setup steps that should be configured on any site. But SEO isn’t a one-time thing; it requires consistent effort over time.
If you talk to an SEO consultant who says they can configure some changes on your site for a flat fee and get you immediate results, proceed with caution. It’s possible (maybe even likely) they’re using some approaches that could end up hurting you more than they help you in the long run.
Rewording content will help with ongoing SEO
This one is partially true, because content is helpful for ongoing SEO. But just rewording your existing content isn’t going to cut it. Search engines are starting to tailor content to what they identify as the person’s intent, rather than the specific keywords or phrases they searched. And if the search engines read your site and see you’re just rewording content over and over, they’re less likely to consider that valuable content for the person searching.
So if these three things are myths, what exactly should you do to improve SEO? That answer is easy—create useful, relevant, and consistent content. For most sites, that means blogging on a regular basis on topics that your audience will find interesting.
