Are You Doing SEO the Right Way?

Using Duplicate Copy 

The Rule: Don’t copy content. 

Taking copy from another source and using it on your website or blog is an obvious no-no. But did you know using duplicate copy within your own website is also detrimental to your SEO? This even applies to content that's not a verbatim copy but very similar.   

When Google indexes your site and finds content that’s duplicated or extremely similar, it considers the content “not unique” and ignores it. And when Google ignores your content, that means your site is not showing up in search results.   

This often happens when business owners are working to build out the content on their website’s sub-pages, so they take snatches of content from other pages.  The better option is drafting unique copy of each page. If you must use copy similar to another page’s, ensure it’s written in a way that makes it entirely distinguishable.   

Including Too Many Keywords 

The Rule: Don’t do keyword stuffing.

Even a novice at SEO knows you shouldn’t stuff your content full of keywords.  Aside from the fact that keyword stuffing makes for terrible reading, Google knows something is amiss if you use the same keyword 55 times in a 500-word article.  To avoid this kind of keyword stuffing, some people choose to use a wide variety of keywords instead.  But the fact is, using too many different keywords can be equally as bad as using the same keyword over and over again. 

Ultimately, Google wants content to be useful to its users and not just written as a crutch to hold up keywords. 

The best approach is selecting one strong keyword and a few supporting keywords and use them naturally in your content. 

Content That’s Too Long 

The Rule: Longer content is better for SEO. 

It’s generally understood that longer copy is better for SEO.  A 700-word blog post is almost always preferable to a 50-word blog post. But the mere act of adding words to your content is not the way to go about it. 

Google is not only looking for unique and useful content, it’s also looking for content its users actually want to read.  Content that’s way too long does not make for a good user experience and a bad user experience can be a barrier to your search engine rankings. 

Rather than creating the longest content you can, focus on creating the most helpful content.  Create blog posts and website copy that’s effective. Write as much as you need to in order to reach that goal, but no more. 

Following the Rules of SEO 

SEO is constantly changing. And for local business owners who have their hands full running their company, it can be hard to keep up.  Fortunately, following the evergreen rules of SEO along with the subtle nuances we’ve listed here will keep you on the path to success.