When beginning to optimize your website for the search engines, there are a number of so-called experts out there that will fill your head with all of the things that must be done to be SEO.\u00a0 There are a\u00a0slew of common SEO myths that will waste your time and money.\u00a0 You will want to avoid those.\u00a0 I’d like to talk to you about my top 5, and hopefully clarify things for you.\u00a0 This will help you save your time and treasure for only the most important of SEO endeavors.<\/p>\n
Myth 1: SEO is expensive!<\/strong><\/p>\n This myth, and it’s cousin, (SEO is cheap) can leave you feeling either overwhelmed or disillusioned.\u00a0 Which emotion you feel depends on which statement you choose to believe.\u00a0 The fact is that optimizing your website is neither of these two extremes.\u00a0 It all hinges on how well your site was originally designed, who you choose to optimize your site, and how much you want done.\u00a0 Just remember in most cases the old adage “You get what you pay for” is true.<\/p>\n Myth #2: SEO is\u00a0difficult<\/strong><\/p>\n Again, this one can be flipped on it’s head to say SEO is easy.\u00a0 Just like the cheap vs. expensive argument, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.\u00a0 Anyone can\u00a0learn to optimize their website for the search engines. It does however require a certain amount of\u00a0time, energy, and money.\u00a0 SEO is not difficult to do.\u00a0 It is however very time consuming.\u00a0 Like all skills, you can’t be a champion overnight.\u00a0 This is why many business owners choose to have someone else do their Search Engine Optimization.\u00a0<\/p>\n Myth #3: Linking out (especially to Google.com) will boost your PageRank<\/strong><\/p>\n This is true only if you haven’t been linking out at all, and linking to other relevant sites for your business is looked on with much more favor than linking\u00a0to Google itself.\u00a0 What you really want is vice-versa. You want other sites to link to you.\u00a0 Then you will see your ranking grow.<\/p>\n Myth #4: SEO is a one-time activity<\/strong><\/p>\n Wrong, wrong-o, wrongy dong dong.\u00a0 This is not the Showtime Rotisserie and you are not Ron Popeil. There is no “set it and…forget it” here. Just like anything in our tech driven world, search engine optimization is a constantly evolving art.\u00a0 That would be like learning how to change a diaper and burp a baby and thinking you had parenting down completely.\u00a0As the child grows, so you must learn and apply new skills and techniques in otder to be effective.\u00a0 Same thing with SEO.\u00a0 More is being learned about the algorithms that the search engines use to index and rank websites and so your website must be tweaked here and there as new information becomes available.\u00a0 It is much easier to keep rankings than to get them, but if you aren’t #1 on the list everytime you are probably not where you want to be.<\/p>\n Myth #5: Your results are guaranteed<\/strong><\/p>\n This one definitely chaps my hide.\u00a0 Since when is anything in life guaranteed? Unless your SEO guys owns\u00a0or works for the search engines, he has no way of knowing what goes into the complex ranking algorithms they\u00a0use.\u00a0 Even with tons of skill and experience, no one can guarantee resutls for your website.\u00a0 I would steer clear of any site that guarantees\u00a0they can provide a certain ranking result.\u00a0 That is untrue and unethical.<\/p>\n Clearly, my top five myths don’t even begin to scratch the surface.\u00a0\u00a0 I felt the need to bust these myths in the interest of saving you\u00a0both time and money.\u00a0I trust that you have either learned something or been put at ease. Stay tuned for more great information about optimizing your\u00a0website.\u00a0 Y’all come back now…ya hear?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n