SEO Blog

Some people go into business online fully expecting to have to build slowly and develop their reputation, just as with offline industries. However, others expect instant results. They hear about the success stories of others, building their reputation on social media and getting straight to the top of Google with SEO. Understandably, they want a piece of the action.

The Internet isn’t a lawless society based on principles that are easily manipulated. It is largely governed by search engines and their algorithms. Social media is an exception; however, there are still standards that people expect to be observed. You can’t simply turn up and achieve success, you have to earn it.

Whilst I’ve focussed on new websites, the same is true of older ones that have fallen on hard times. You can’t turn the tide overnight, it is a gradual process of building, evaluating and developing. Visibility, just like reputation, is earned. You play by the rules and yes, in time you have the opportunity to be a huge online success.

SEO is a system of best practices. Governed by the search engines’ own rules, it is about creating a website that adheres to their requirements whilst also developing something that will engage your visitors. The process of implementing all of the changes required takes time. You have to write unique content for each page, develop your Meta, create a strong linking profile and ensure your site architecture allows the search spiders to index it. This can’t be done overnight.

People spend months developing an optimised site. They then spend more time optimising it further to ensure that it keeps improving within the search engine rankings. If you start today, there is no way on earth that by dinner tomorrow you’ll be toasting a top ranking on Google. The likelihood is that you won’t be able to for a good few weeks afterwards either (if at all).

The same is true of other avenues of promotion, including social media. It’s all well and good creating a Twitter account or a Facebook page, but you have to build your following and converse with them. If your messages are uninteresting, full of unnecessary hashtags or too promotional, people will take no notice. Whilst you can get some early traffic this way, search engines still provide a more long-term model for success.

Essentially you don’t want to be duped into believing that success on the Internet is served on a platter. If you begin SEO work you can’t just abandon it if it doesn’t immediately get you climbing above your competitors on Google. Persevere, try new thinks and work on developing all aspects of your site. You can never have too many good links, you should never assume your content is perfect. Don’t tinker aimlessly, see what’s working and what isn’t, then make changes where they are needed.

It’s all very simple in theory, but of course the practice is very different. If your site is failing, SEO can’t always cure it. Look beyond your links and even content and see what might be deterring visitors. Are your prices higher, do you charge for P&P? Simple things can make a big difference.

When it comes to search engines, you need to make sure there is nothing on your site that could be holding you back. Toxic links can continue to drag down your score, so too can duplicate content or being hosted in a bad neighbourhood. If you have these problems, your good SEO work may be for nothing.