Search engine optimization (SEO) can be simple for some and confusing for others. SEO keeps on evolving. Also, it an extremely important part of digital marketing.
It’s easy to get caught in a tangled web of SEO. So here are the top 10 SEO myths and facts, you should definitely be aware of!
1. A Few Broken Links Won’t Affect Your Website’s SEO
MYTH!
Google crawls your entire site. When it comes by broken links without any redirects, it assumes that your website isn’t managed well or is being neglected. This reduces your SEO score.
If you don’t have the time to work on your website, you should hire a company. It will constantly keep an eye on the website. And, send you emails with updates on any crawl issues that your website faces.
2. Content Is King, even for SEO!
FACT!
Content is one of the most important parts of your website. When it comes to content, quality is much better than quantity. Your website is nothing without proper content. And as the quote says, always prefer quality over quantity. It is better to add proper curated content than lots of useless content. Your content should always be relevant, organized, and easily readable for the average viewer. Make sure your content is That said, make sure you also focus on more than just content.
3. You Should Limit the Number of Characters in the Title
FACT!
It is a fact that title length of your content must not exceed 65 characters. If the title is very long, it can get cut off in search results and affect your SEO. Google now uses pixels to measure your title size rather than number f characters. It allows titles having width upto 600 pixels in width. So now it doesn’t depend how many characters you have. But, on the width of your characters. If the letters are wider, you’ll get a few less.
4. Google Will Instantly Crawl Your Website
MYTH!
Google has millions of sites to crawl. So it will eventually crawl your website. But, it won’t happen instantly. You cannot expect your website to get crawled as soon as you publish it.
When you add or update a bunch of pages, or if you completely relaunch your website, you can ask Google to manually crawl your site.
5. A Mobile Site Is Essential In Today’s Society for SEO ranking
FACT!
Did you know mobile searches now outrank desktop searches? If you didn’t — well, that was so 2014.
Back in 2015, Google published a blog that gave a very important update. It said that it would boost the ranking of mobile-friendly pages on search results.
This new update has surely been a game-changer for how websites rank. It has also become an essential criteria now.
6. The “S” in HTTPs Doesn’t Matter
MYTH!
The “S” in HTTPS stands for “Secure.” It’s usually preceded by a little lock icon before the URL field in your browser.
Having a secured website helps keep intruders, hackers, and spam artists from gaining critical information — such as credit card data — from your customers.
If you haven’t done so yet, securing your site should be at the top of your SEO to-do list.
7. Readable URLs Are Better
FACT!
If you are able to structure your URLs, do it!
Not only do readable URLs make it easier for people to understand and remember your landing pages, but search engines also favor readable URLs because they explain what’s on those specific pages faster.
8. Higher Bounce Rates Affect My SEO Ranking
MYTH!
You can conclude two things from a high bounce rate:
You provide great information and give readers exactly what they want.
Your readers didn’t like what they found.
High bounce rates won’t affect your ranking, but they may show deficiencies in your website.
A high bounce rate is of two types, A “good” and “bad” high bounce rate. Always check your load time in Google Analytics first, when you experience a high bounce rate.
9. SEO and Social Media Have No Correlation
MYTH!
This is such a big myth, Social Media highly affects your SEO. It really does!
By distributing your content on your company’s Facebook page (or other social channels), you’ll garner more page views and potential social media shares, which in turn give your website greater exposure.
When Google observes good interaction on a page, it sees a great page to show higher in search results.
10. SEO Is a “One and Done” Thing
MYTH!
The Internet is changing every day. SEO tricks that worked three years ago, won’t be applicable anymore! This is majorly because better ideas have come around.
You should actively invest time to keep a check on your SEO. Make it a point to keep all of your website team up to date on any major changes happening in the SEO world.
How Well Do You Know SEO?
We get it — SEO can be confusing. There are many twists, turns, and changes that can happen on the fly.
If you were unaware of some of the SEO myths and facts above, or if you don’t have the time or energy to keep up with SEO on a regular basis, make a better impact on your website by hiring an online marketing company.
At Quantazone, we have dedicated team members working on SEO every day. We can help you improve your website and make changes to increase leads and customers for your company.