Mistakes, whether we like it or not, are part of everyone’s life. Quoting Oscar Wilde, “Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes”. Simply put, one needs to learn from one’s mistake. But sometimes a single error can cause too much damage, especially in the field of business. So it is always better to learn from other’s flaw. It is quite true in the case of SEO. Mistakes in SEO could cost the ranking or the websites if Google penalizes it.
Some common mistakes that “pops-up” in SEO are:
Unsuitable Keywords
Content is King, but it is the right Choice of Keywords that make it the true King. Keywords play the major part in online SEO. So choosing wrong ones would have a disastrous effect on the ranking. So how do we choose the right keywords? There are three major factors that need to be considered before choosing keywords
- Content/Context of the page.
- Preference of search engine.
- The users or customers preference in using long-tail keywords.
With proper background research, this issue can be easily rectified. There are tools like Google AdWords Keyword Planner, Moz Keyword Explorer, Google Trends to help your cause.
Too many Keywords
As the saying goes “Too much of anything is bad”, stands true for keywords too. Using too many keywords is known as keyword stuffing and the search engine considers it as spamming. Overusing keywords also makes the content boring, unnatural and useless.
Mismanaged Content
One can make many mistakes when it comes to content. First, is writing content which is unrelated to the keywords. Google prioritizes to give the best content for its users. So irrelevant content will be ignored affecting the ranking in the process. The second mistake is choosing quantity over quality.
Competition is understandable but quantity is not going to help them build up the rank. Non-Original content is another common mistake. Copy pasting content from another website could result in getting penalized. Original content will have its uniqueness to make its presence known.
Ignoring the asset – Title Tags and Meta Descriptions
Optimized content is not the only way to improve the ranking of the article. The search engine considers Title Tags and Meta Descriptions when it is crawling the website. Proper usage of the same improves the ranking of the page. Missing out on these is like missing out a golden opportunity.
Image Optimization – Another ignored asset
Google does not crawl images. Search bots cannot see an image, but take the image tag as the description for the image. So image tag is the deciding factor for assessing an image. Aptly worded image tags is another boost to your ranking.
Missing Backlinks and Internal Links
In internet, the links are the connecting thread. Links can be internal or external. Internal links, as the name says connects the different pages on a website. A suitably linked website offers a promise of more to its interested user. Care should be taken to note that the internal links are well organised.
The internal links present on the page should match the content. Like the internal link, external links are capable of boosting the rank. But such links should be pointing to quality websites. Again quality should be prioritised over quantity. Best practice for an external link is to open it in a new tab. Unnatural and unwanted placement of links whether internal or external is considered fraudulent practice.
Anchor Text and Internal Link
Anchor text is a vital point in SEO. Optimised anchor text has undeniable influence in boosting the ranking. Be sure to use relevant keywords as Anchor Text. It is always good to use a different form of Anchor Text. Using the same branded anchor text could result in penalizing.
Mobile ‘unfriendly’ site
People want to access information anywhere at any time. So undoubtedly smartphones has became the most frequently used device for internet access. Taking this fact into consideration, Google improvised their search engine to consider the “mobile-friendliness” of the site as a factor for ranking. One can check mobile friendliness using Google Search Console. They even provide methods to improve the same.
Slow Loading Speed
Loading speed of the site is a decisive factor. Customer loses interest if the website loading speed is slow and might leave the page before it is fully loaded. Even when you have highest ranking yet its loading speed is too low, the ranking is sure to go down. Using online tools like Pingdom and GTMetrix helps to fix the problems in speed.
Keep in mind these deadly yet simple mistakes. Be sure to learn from them. Comment if you think there is more. Happy Optimizing!!
