Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot of talk about how SEO (search engine optimization) is no longer beneficial to websites because of the plethora of other ways a website can receive traffic. Sure things like; Google AdWords, social media and offline marketing can drive traffic to your website, however I still believe search engine optimization can be beneficial if done properly.
Many of my online marketing and web design clients ask me how I can make SEO work for them. The first thing I explain is the fact that SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. What I mean by that is that it takes time for search engines such as Google and Bing to develop a trust with your website, especially if your domain is brand new. Most of my search engine optimization projects take no less than 8-12 months and sometimes longer.
The reason it takes such a long time is because links need to be built up in a natural way. Sure you can add your site to directories, submit articles or do link trades however, if these are done within the span of a few weeks or months, search engines will realize you’re trying to manipulate their results and rank you far lower than you might deserve.
Backlinks to your website should appear organic and shouldn’t be linked the same way. If you are doing link trades with other sites, ask them to link to you with an image every now and again rather than text. If you are linking with text, make sure you mix up the terms to keep the search engines on their toes.
Another way to make sure you’re doing your SEO properly is to create unique and useful content on your site. Start up a blog and write an article or two a week to keep users coming back. If your content is unique and written for people rather than search engines, you may actually get links to your site without having to return one.
As an online marketer, I really do believe that search engine optimization is still very beneficial to websites. You just have to be smart about it. I’ve been practicing what I’ve been preaching for a few years now and it has helped many of my sites gain great organic search traffic.
August 10, 2011
Miscellaneous