What SEO is Not

There are many descriptions of search engine optimization (SEO), the benefits of SEO and why it is so important for a comprehensive online marketing strategy.  SEO is indeed very important, yet embellished descriptions may sometimes lead to unrealistic expectations of SEO.  To help give a more realistic understanding of SEO, we are providing a list of things SEO does NOT do and why.

SEO is not a quick fix to improve search engine rankings.  Positive, measurable search ranking improvements are typically enjoyed by our clients, sometimes in a short time, but normally it takes several months to a year for the true benefits of SEO to be realized.  In fact we recommend our SEO clients continue optimization well beyond the first year so we can monitor, track and refine their search rankings for today’s continually evolving search engines.

SEO is not a replacement for online advertising.  Online advertising attracts customers to your website via pay-per-click (PPC) and online media advertising, delivering immediate results.  SEO is a methodical, long-term process to improve organic search engine results for your website, naturally increasing the number of visitors who are looking for the products and services you offer.

SEO is not immune to change.  In fact, a critical part of good SEO is maintaining and improving knowledge of the search engine marketing landscape, monitoring how search engines rank websites and applying sound, methodical changes to keep abreast of the latest updates in search engine ranking algorithms.

SEO is not a replacement for solid web site design.  Best practices for navigation, information hierarchy and accessibility should always be followed when designing a professional web site.  These best practices make it possible for both site visitors and search engines to quickly and easily find your site content.  SEO works as an integral part of the solid web site foundation, often (and recommended) as part of the web site design process.

SEO is not limited to your web site!  In fact some of the most important factors in search engine ranking are the off-site factors.  These include a strong linking strategy, social media optimization and active participation, online press releases and even blog optimization.  Modern search engines build the “big picture” of  a web site from content found across the internet and mentions/links to the site from that content.  A web site with far-reaching influence on the web will often be considered “more important” and achieve higher search rankings than a web site with a more limited reach.

SEO is not what?  Tell us what you think! Post your ideas in the comments below and tell everyone what you think SEO is Not! (your site link is posted normally to pass link value!)

10 Comments »

1. [...] here: What SEO is Not | Web Ad.vantage Categories: Adwords, Google, SEO Tags: adwords, affiliate-marketing, facebook, industry-news, [...]

   Pingback by Live-Point Official Blog » What SEO is Not | Web Ad.vantage — September 5, 2009 @ 7:24 am

2. SEO is not content for search engines, but for users only.
   Daniele´s last blog ..Immaginiseo

   Comment by Daniele — September 6, 2009 @ 9:39 am

3. I totally agree that SEO should be always included in a professional website for quick and easy to find your site content. In all aspect SEO should be an Standard in a site specially those with huge database content to save more time in searching in a little information which hide beneath those so many links.
   Stefan´s last blog ..Ferienhaus information

   Comment by Stefan — September 8, 2009 @ 6:23 am

4. Really great post. I think too often people think that SEO is supposed to be something that happens overnight and is a miracle worker for your website being found. It’s a long-term process and needs to be part of your website development strategy – just like relevant content and thinking more about each page and the purpose it serves. Websites are so much more dynamic now – each page needs to be treated as a landing page and should be able to stand on its own. They are much more of a marketing tool than they were just a few short years ago and SEO, even though a large part of building and maintaining a website, is just one more piece of the puzzle. It’s not an end all, be all approach.
   Juli Barcelona´s last blog ..Moving On Down, To The West Side…

   Comment by Juli Barcelona — September 8, 2009 @ 7:19 am

5. I agree that SEO is not a quick fix, my clients think that because the internet is supposed to be running so fast, their pages should get noticed within seconds of being created. Many almost cry when I tell them that a good strategy sometimes will take a few months!
   Andy Bailey´s last blog ..Worldwide CommentLuv search engine trawling over 150,000 CommentLuv Enabled Sites

   Comment by Andy Bailey — September 21, 2009 @ 12:15 pm

6. [...] SEO is not a replacement for solid web site design. Best practices for navigation, information hierarchy and accessibility should always be followed when designing a professional web site.more [...]

   Pingback by What SEO is Not | Advertising Articles — September 25, 2009 @ 6:52 pm

7. I agree with what you are saying about SEO. But I believe that it can be helpful if you have the right people working with you and educating you on what to do to keep your company’s name out there. Look at what www.communitybuilderpromotions.com/ has done with their clients. Looks good to me

   Comment by Rosaria — September 28, 2009 @ 9:57 am

8. You make some very valid points with regards to SEO. I think SEO will always exist though as no matter how complex Google’s algorithm gets, it will always have to use certain rules to determine the relevance of a web page. It will evolve though, and eventually it will probably more boil down to the quality of content rather than votes (links) on other peoples websites.

   Comment by Website Optimization Software — January 16, 2010 @ 8:32 am

9. The points you’ve made on what seo is not are great. I especially agree with the fact that it does not make up for poorly made sites. The seo might bring you traffic, but they wont stay long.

   Comment by Adult Family Home — January 22, 2010 @ 9:47 pm

10. I’d like to add one to the list.

    SEO is not a replacement for common sense best practices for converting your visitors into customers. Too many people focus on just the SEO part, forgetting completely that more traffic is useless if they can’t make money from it.

    Comment by PLR articles — January 30, 2010 @ 2:58 am

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