When done correctly, search engine optimization can dramatically improve the rankings for your blog or website. But if you are not careful, you could end up making costly mistakes. Here are some examples of what NOT to do when developing an SEO strategy:

– Giving your page(s) a poor title. The title of your page is the first thing the search engines see when they crawl your website. If your title is unclear or misleading, the search engines will have no idea what your site is about and it will not be indexed correctly. Even if it is indexed properly and gets a high ranking on the SERPs, if the title of the link does not grab a person’s attention they will not click on it. A good title is a clear and concise one that includes one or all or your keywords. You should also have a different title for each page on your site. Do not try to trick people into clicking on your link by using an attention grabbing practice that has nothing to do with the actual content on your site. This is a black hat SEO practice that can result in your site being removed from the search engines.

– Not picking the right keywords. Poor keyword research and selection are the easiest ways to kill your site. When doing keyword research, it is important to remember the big picture. People get so caught up in wanting the “high-demand” keywords that they forget the reason they are doing keyword research in the first place. The point of keyword research is not to rank for the most popular keywords. The point of keyword research is to find the keywords that will actually result in conversions. What good is that “high-demand” keyword that you have spent hours and hours working on if it does not convert for you? Pay attention to your pay-per-click campaigns. They will give you an idea of what keywords actually convert for you.

– Targeting the wrong market. If you are running a niche website, not knowing your audience can be a very costly mistake. In order to have an effective SEO campaign, you need to know who your customers will be. Once you educate yourself about your audience, you will be able to deliver goods and services that are the most value to them.

– Having low quality content on your site. If you have bad content or no textual content at all, people will have a harder time knowing what your site is about and they will be less likely to view it. It is important to have fresh, unique and useful content added to your site on a regular basis. When viewers find your content helpful or interesting, they will come back to your site over and over again. In the age of personalized search, this kind of brand loyalty will result in your site receiving higher rankings in their search results.

SEO is something that you want to get right, the first time. Developing a quality SEO campaign takes patience and hard work, but it always pays off in the long run.

Author Bio: Bruno is a web entrepreneur and social media marketing consultant working for the Norwegian dog community website Hundefeber.no. He also owns a lovely Pomeranian and a Mops dog.

Category: Internet
Keywords: Business,Finance,Business Online,Marketing,Creative Business Online,SEO,Search Engine Optimization