SEO Blunders Can Be Costly In More Ways Than One

Tweak Your Biz » Management » SEO Blunders Can Be Costly In More Ways Than One

SEO Blunders Can Be Costly In More Ways Than One

by davethomas on October 12th, 2011
29 Comments

If your company’s SEO efforts are not up to speed, it can lead to not only a bad online reputation and image, but also lost revenue, neither of which are good things.

In today’s Internet driven world, having a good SEO campaign is a necessity in order to market your brand and services online. Without a strong SEO plan, your company can be left behind in a short matter of time.

So, what are some of the more common gaffes a company can undertake and in doing so, hurt their SEO objectives? Among them are:

Not updating content – Most people on the web want today’s information yesterday. That being the case, stale content will hinder your ability to generate the kind of online traffic you want. Spend the needed time to update your Web site and make sure you utilize SEO related keywords to make it more attractive to search engines;
Repetitive content – Along with stale content being a hindrance to your Web site, the same content over and over can be damaging to your search engine rankings. The first and foremost goal is to have unique content that drivers readers to your site;
Giving the impression of over optimization- If you’re shoving too many keywords down the throat of your readers, they are more than likely to rebel, as will the search engines. Keywords are a necessity, but they should be placed in a story in a sequence where they will flow smoothly, not hinder the reader;
Bad linking and URL’s – The bottom line here is that too much linking turns readers off. When placing your links, be sure to do it from a strategic stand point. That being said, your URL’s should also be clean. If your URL’s are too long or hard to follow, you will also lose some of your audience;
Too much imagery – Remember that search engines will have a hard time identifying your content if the page copy and navigation are hidden in images. The idea here is to utilize text-based navigation.
Using software programs in automating directory submission – In order to avoid this issue, be sure to provide well-established directories, along with authoring unique titles and descriptions in focusing on area and niche directories;
Duplicate titles and Meta descriptions throughout the site – When providing too much duplicity, your search engine screams that essentially your webpages do not have much variety. The goal here is to have unique and accurate page titles and Meta descriptions for each and every page;
Too much spam – Having too many advertisements that distract and obstruct the main content can be the kiss of death for your site. If you do have ads on the pages, make sure they do not distract from the content, otherwise you come across as advertiser and not content provider.

Providing a comprehensive SEO approach is not hard, it just takes time and effort.

When you have a Web site that you want to be effective and informational for your audience, remember the above-mentioned no-no’s so that your SEO efforts stand out for the right and not the wrong reasons.

“Image from rangizzz/Shutterstock.”

Category: Website

Tags: brand, business seo, internet marketing, marketing, search engine marketing, search engine optimisation, search engine optimization, search engine optimization tips, SEO, seo tips, Web site, what is seo

The Author: davethomas

With 23 years of experience as a writer, Dave covers a wide array of financial topics, including discussing SafeAuto and its auto insurance offerings, along with internet reputation management and payroll companies.

Add Your Comment

http://www.tweakyourbiz.com Niall Devitt

Hi David, some excellent tips here! Thanks for sharing them
http://www.smartsolutions.ie/blog/ Elaine Rogers

Wow – great tips Dave, lots of them a website owner can do themselves, rather than having to confer with the developer constantly.
Thanks for sharing
http://irishfarmerette.com/ Lorna

This is a great idea and apart from working to increase Irish sales, it works to promote people’s understanding too regarding what they are putting in their shopping trolley – just how much of our weekly shop is Irish.
http://www.sianphillips.ie/ Sian Phillips

I agree Lorna. I must admit I’d never thought of it before but after this interview I will keep a better eye on it now. Thanks for the comment
http://www.sianphillips.ie/ Sian Phillips

Thanks Niall. Philip really has some great ideas which came across so well on the radio I knew he would be worth speaking to. Glad you liked the interview.
http://twitter.com/DenisMcCaul Denis McCaul

I read this article at lunchtime today and then couldn’t remember the name of the company this evening. I remembered it was something his kid had mentioned but knew it was not related to the product.

So I went on to Google.ie and typed in the usual keywords you might think would be associated with the product, coupon, coupons, coupon ireland, coupons ireland, grocery coupons ireland and nowhere did Bubblegum appear until the bottom of SERPage three had a result for this article.

I am a digital marketing student and was surprised all your competitors are ahead of you considering the owner has an internet and e-commerce background ?

Suggestion : If you are going to give your internet business a cool name that has nothing to do with what you are selling or the keywords your customers may type into a Search Engine, then make sure you have a good SEO person onside to ensure your website is correctly optimised to get found.
http://www.bloggertone.com Niall Devitt

Do a search for “smart phone” or “tablet” and see how far back are Apple?
Angie O’Brien

Excellent interview Sian – I’ve been using IrishDeal.ie for my coupons but will definitely check out Bubblebum
http://www.sianphillips.ie/ Sian Phillips

Thanks Angie – you might want to check the spelling of Bubblegum.ie though
http://www.smartsolutions.ie/blog/ Elaine Rogers

I commend your inspiration Philip and your vision for Ireland and our consumers. I went on the site, and after a few clicks, was diverted to 5 different sites, one offering a direct printing of a coupon (score!!) and for the others I had to divulge information.

The cynic in me thinks, I am not signing up for a 60cent coupon, so that company can gain a “fan”, or add me to their mailing list to “send” me offers every day. I also resented the fact I may have to print out 5 different coupons on an A4 each on my expensive home printer, and remember to bring them with me to the shops. I did however appreciate that I found 5 offers on 1 site, and that saved me time.

What I expected as a consumer, after reading the interview, was to go to the (wonderfully named) site, gather my coupons, print them and head off to do my shopping. Is this even viable? And is it something Philip is thinking about for the future?

I know some people would do anything for money off, but surely the easier it is for the consumer, the more likely they are to use the site. My musings from a consumer POV.

It’s a great business idea, and I wish Philip well with the growth of bubblegum.ie
http://twitter.com/#!/antonmccarthy Anton McCarthy

Interesting read Sian! I enjoyed reading how Philip went about setting this up, and it is admirable that he did.

One comment I would have probably resonates with what Elaine has said – that in 2012, with all the local-social-mobile technology we now have, the idea of going to a website to print off paper coupons, cutting them up to fit, and having to remember to bring them with me to the shop seems positively quaint

That said, not everyone is going to be open to the ongoing evolution of technology that allows you to be pinged or notified with a deal every time you are within range of a store, or in a store – so it does cater to a certain market

One comment for Philip – for offers that do not direct to a third party site, I would expect to be able to simply check all the coupons that I want and print them all off in one go on the site, rather than have to go in and print individually! That is going to make the site more usable, which means more customers, more revenue, more sales, more jobs…
Eamonnobrien

Great story and love his comments on not taking no for an answer – determination pays.
http://www.bubblegum.ie/ bubblegum.ie (Philip)

Thanks Lorna. Buying Irish is something we all need to be aware of, you’d be surprised how many “Irish” brands are no longer manufactured here.
Philip_bubblegum_ie

Thanks Niall, it’s just a matter of getting the message about the site out there for business & consumers to start using it. As for not accepting no for an answer, right now may not be the best time for someone, but tomorrow they may have got their second cup of coffee
Philip_bubblegum_ie

Thanks Eamonn. Really appreciate it
Philip_bubblegum_ie

Hi Anton,

Thanks for the comments. In the next rollout of the software powering the site, coupons are going to be straight click & print. Some clients want traffic directed to their site & we will comply with that in those cases.

The problem with having an app or phone based barcode display is the the retailers here aren’t geared up for it. If you consider that to just pay with a credit or debit card, each checkout has to have a terminal which has to dial for authorisation each time (as opposed to a permanent shared connection), it’s not feasible right now for them to scan a handset screen with barcodes on it & then receive payment of redemption. It would take a huge change of POS hardware/software & retraining to just be able to do that. And of course there’s the users who don’t have a phone with a large enough display.
Philip_bubblegum_ie

Thanks Angie ! Many more great grocery offers coming.
Philip_bubblegum_ie

Thanks for the comments Denis. Unfortunately Google Ireland is pulling in details from mostly the .com version of itself. This is most probably down to the fact that we’ve never really had a coupon culture here.

We’re working on SEO & hope to be achieving a higher score soon. Incidentally, we weren’t going for a cool name, it just happened to be available & we liked the sound of it
http://www.bloggertone.com Niall Devitt

I was jesting somewhat with the apple comment but thanks for your response and wonderful explanation, It’s appreciated and sorry that the Disqus swallowed it up the first time. Why don’t you consider joining the team here at TYB?
http://www.bloggertone.com Niall Devitt

Actually better yet, why don’t you consider joining the team here at TYB?
http://www.bloggertone.com Niall Devitt

Actually better yet, why don’t you consider joining the team here at TYB?
http://tweakyourbiz.com/ Niall Devitt

Hi Marciel & thanks for this. You’ve highlighted lots of new productivity apps I need to go check out.
Maricel Rivera

Glad to help, Niall.
Maricel Rivera

Thank you, Aqib, and you’re welcome.
http://about.me/Lindeskog lyceum1776

Maricel Rivera: Have you tested Workflowy or Trello? With these tools you could get an overview of all your projects and workflow.
Maricel Rivera

Hey, Martin, thanks for letting me know about these two apps. I haven’t tested either of them. I’ll go check them out, too.
http://about.me/Lindeskog lyceum1776

Maricel: You are welcome! I look forward to hear that you think about these tools.
Maricel Rivera

You’re welcome, Herby. I’m glad you liked it.
Abbas Javed

Nice Post Rivera! I liked web conferencing part the most. But there is another leading web conferencing app named Banckle Meeting which competes all the above you mentioned in various sections. The facts you described spending time, energy, money on long travel is true and online meeting app is quite a solution. I will request you to check out the banckle meeting as well. Thanks! http://banckle.com/apps/meeting/overview.html

Bloggertone

Tweak Your Biz » Management » SEO Blunders Can Be Costly In More Ways Than One