SEO Sunday and Google basics

The truth about "SEO" is quite simple.

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization.

It stands for a relationship between what we read and what a search algorithm (in 98% of Google) thinks we like to read.

Now because Google spits out stuff it thinks we like to read, the "adapted" pages get higher rankings. And in return, we spend more time there.

Hence the algorithm thinks it was correct and successful. SEO stands for trying to persuade the algorithm that the page is good.

The truth is pretty basic, though. SEO is based on mostly three things.

1) Do not try to cheat on Google. (or your spouse, but that is for another post)

2) Create text your grandmother would like to read even if she didn't know it was from you.

3) Lots of patience.

There are other things, but for our first post, let's stop with this.

People like the easy road. Some copy-paste from the competitors, and we are all done. Some AI-generated text, and voila.

It's not as easy as that.

Or it is, in a way. Just don't cheat.

Years ago, I worked on a project. We made above-average but not excellent pages (one out of many) on a subject. We used simple text, explained it simply, and even put 3 pictures and 1 link to a PDF on the site we controlled.

Things were going ok. Traffic solid. Nothing to complain about.

Until...

One day the traffic went booming. The client called what we did; he did not expect much traffic.

What we found out was this. We had gotten a pretty good ranking (first-page Google, within the first 5 results).

But somebody decided to just copy-paste our site and throw it in there. Google noticed the algorithm knows a copy-paste.

And at the same time, some other sites copied it even more. So much so that it used the exact links to our PDFs.

What happened was Google knew immediately. And because stealing/plagiarism is the best form of flattery...

Google decided our client was the expert in the field of this subject. Hence it threw the page (because others cheated and copied) to the top (1st result).

So do not cheat. Use your own content. You can analyze the competition, but DO NOT copy-paste. You will be doing them a favor.

Pretty easy, huh? Well, you would think people would know not to cheat. But NO. You would be surprised how lazy people get when they need to write a 600-word presentation.

Cheating will not get you there. Great content will.

And for the last - patience?

Don't expect miracles, but prepare for one. We did not expect a miracle, but it did happen. On one subject, one client.

SEO without cheating is a good investment. But as with all investments - it takes time. Roughly 3-6 months till you see the first results. The power of 100! 100 days minimum!

So you should know the next time you hear about SEO mumbo jumbo and fast results. Fancy words disguise the simple basics. Fast results = fake results. SEO is an investment; treat it as such - long-term relationships and long-term results.

And last but not least - invest your time, not just your money. It's tempting to outsource the SEO, but it just won't work best.

You need to be grinding with them to prepare the best text. The text your grandmother would enjoy reading. Then leave the little tweaks and tricks to the professionals.

Next Friday, we will dig deeper into the forbidden forest and the green woods of links. I'll keep it simple because SEO is not complicated; it is just a long game with its rules. Rules that are actually quite common sense.

So stay tuned.