Is Being ‘Above the Fold’ Really That Important?
February 1, 2014Web Design Trends of 2014
May 23, 2014Search engine optimization the process of using different techniques to increase your rank in search engines. This is how you increase the amount of traffic to your blog. Although there are many proper ways to utilize SEO, there are also many SEO mistakes you need to avoid making.
#1: Repetitive Keyword Usage
A very common SEO mistake people make when blogging is keyword stuffing. They believe that if they type a keyword enough times, then the rank of their blog will increase, giving them a prime spot in the search engine result pages. They write the keyword so many times that it ruins the quality of their content and blog.
Nowadays, keyword stuffing actually can hurt your search engine rank. Major search engines do not like content and websites that keyword stuff, and they will even temporarily or permanently ban a website that does this.
Instead of keyword stuffing, think of one or two important keywords, and use them very sparingly. Focus on the quality of your blog and its content. This will increase the traffic to your website, and you won’t be banned for unethical practices.
#2: Using the Wrong Keywords
Another common SEO mistake is using the wrong keywords. You shouldn’t overuse keywords, so the keywords you do decide to sparingly use need to be very good. For instance, do not use keywords that are very broad in nature and that would have a lot of competition with other sites.
For instance, if you blog about baking, using baking as a keyword is too broad. There are thousands of other sites that are probably more popular and use baking as a keyword. Use keywords that aren’t as popular.
You also need to try and use more specific keywords that describe exactly what your blog is about. Adding to the previous example, if you blog about baking, your keywords should not be anything like television or any other completely unrelated word. This will attract people to your blog that won’t be interested in your content.
#3: Using Too Many Low-Quality Links
Links are a great way to get your blog more traffic. However, you shouldn’t use a ton of links on your blog since it will be distracting. This will deter readers. Also, your links shouldn’t be to questionable websites. This will make your blog look questionable, as well. Moreover, the links shouldn’t be to poor quality websites, either. Try to find one or two links you can use to high-quality websites.
#4: Duplicating Content
Another SEO mistake you need to avoid making is using duplicate content. A lot of people try to cut corners by putting the exact same content on more than one page, and then they tweak small areas of the content. Duplicating content makes the risk of search engine penalty a lot higher. It also causes your blog to be of much lower quality which will decrease traffic and dedicated readers.
#5: Having Stale Content
A well-designed site with frequently updated content will rank higher than sites that are never updated. Some people believe that once they have several pages of content written, they don’t need to write anymore. You actually should continue to update your blog with well-written, engaging content to have a good search engine rank.
When you have a blog and want it to have a good search engine rank, there are many mistakes you need to avoid making. Don’t use too many keywords, and make sure the keywords you use are relevant and specific. Update your blog frequently, avoid duplicate content, and only use a few links to quality sites.
