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5 Outdated SEO Strategies You’re Probably Still Using

 Renew Marketing    Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

5 Outdated SEO Strategies You’re Probably Still Using

The SEO industry changes more frequently than almost any other industry in the world.

As a small business owner, keeping up with all these changes can be hard. The strategies that worked yesterday might not work tomorrow.

In fact, some strategies that worked yesterday can actually harm your SEO tomorrow.

With that in mind, we’re taking a look at 5 outdated SEO strategies that you may still be using.

5) Guest Blogging

Guest blogging exploded in popularity in 2012 and 2013 before being punished hard by Google in 2014.

Google specifically punished low-quality guest blog spamming websites. MyGuestBlog.com and similar websites, for example, were obliterated in search rankings. Websites that had backlinks from these websites were punished, effectively ending the guest blog spamming industry.

Guest blog spamming for SEO may be dead, but making original, quality content for high-traffic blog is always good for your business. Along with the SEO advantages, you make your business an authority in your industry. So guest blogging for SEO is only half dead – just make sure the blog is actually in your industry and visited by your target audience.

4) Unnatural Keywords in Metadata Descriptions

Placing keywords in metadata descriptions can make things easy for searchers but has no effect on search engine rankings.

Since 2009, Google has publically stated that keywords are no longer a ranking factor for SEO.

Of course, metadata descriptions are still seen by searchers. The main difference here is that you need to write these descriptions with your users – not search engines – in mind. Write them to a human audience instead of stuffing them with keywords.

3) Keyword Stuffing

In the early days of SEO, keyword stuffing was an easy and effective way to boost search rankings.

If you were a plumber in Houston you would write business descriptions like: “I’m a Houston plumber who serves all of Houston plumbing services and I provide low rates on plumber Houston work.”

You could spam nonsensical sentences like that and get ranked for “Houston plumber”. Over the years, things have changed. Search engines will punish your website for keyword stuffing.

Check the keyword density of the text on your website. Don’t be afraid to take out a few keywords if you feel the concentration is too high.

2) Targeting Single Keywords on Individual Pages

There was a time when the SEO industry recommended creating individual pages for individual keywords. For example, if you ran a pet care service in Dallas, you might want to create individual pages for “pets Dallas” and “pet care service Dallas”. After all, “pets” gets way more search traffic.

The problem with this approach is that it’s a waste of time: by attracting people searching for “pets Dallas”, you’re getting people who probably aren’t interested in your pet care services. That means they’ll click the back button and bounce away. When Google sees a lot of people bouncing away from your site, they’ll inevitably lower your search rankings.

Today, search engines are smart enough that you can put all related keywords onto one good page. One high-quality page filled with a diverse range of similar keywords is superior to many low-quality pages highly targeted towards single keywords.

1) Excessive Keywords on Anchor Text

When you link back to your website, you may feel the need to use anchor text like “Houston plumber” to try to raise your search rankings for “Houston plumber”.

In reality, however, using too many keywords in anchor text can be very harmful for search rankings. Google wants to see a natural link profile. When you’re constantly using internal or external anchors packed with keywords, it’s unnatural.

Mix it up. Link back to your site with words like “here” or “this locally owned business”.

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Paid search marketing lets you beat the SEO game and pay your way to the top of search rankings. When implemented properly, it provides a positive return on your investment: for every dollar you pay to be at the top of search rankings, you can earn $2 back in revenue.

As paid search marketing specialists, Renew Marketing stays up-to-date on the latest strategies and then implements those strategies into your business.

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