7 Deadly SEO Sins | SEO Mistakes To Avoid

SEO mistakes are like disco cakes. Easy to make, hard to swallow.

Here’s what’s up: It’s not your first ring around a rosie. So you’re kinda intrigued to know what the 7 deadly SEO sins are.

Here’s your run-down of SEO mistakes and how to avoid them like the plague.

 Lust

Writing about flamin’ hot topics because they’re sexy, not searchable.

I get it. We all have our ‘thing.’ Heck, I’d love to write little ditties about my days on the Readcity blog.

I’d love to share a long stream of cat photos and caption them with their imagined cute names.

And man, I’d love to do a deep-dive into the world’s finest chicken wings.

But they’re all terrible ideas for me because:

• They have nothing to do with copywriting
• They’re not targeted to my audience
• They’re not adding value to (or no doubt being searched by) my ideal peeps

Don’t make these SEO mistakes. Really think about your ideal clients or customers. What are they actually interested in? What are some of their flamin’ hot frequently asked questions? How can you add value to them?

By answering questions your ideal client has, you’ll be more likely to be seen as an authority and positioned as someone who ‘get’s them. *Cue the heart flutter*

Angelic alternative: Research keywords to discover which has the most searches and lowest competition.

Envy

Stopping yourself from creating SEO content because you fear you’ll never catch up.

Tickled green. Long glares. Snake hair. That’s what I think when I think of envy.

But envy is also one of those devilish SEO mistakes that captures many of us.

• “My competitor has hundreds of SEO articles – I could never compete!”
• “It’s too late, they’re already ranking everywhere – I’ve lost my chance.”
• “May as well crawl into a tiny cave and never write any content again.”

^^ My most common overhead envy remarks.

But here’s the dealio, muchacho. It’s never too late. You’ll never catch up if you don’t start. And use their content to fuel your fire. How can you make your content better, more detailed, more engaging to the reader, more valuable?

Angelic alternative: Start. 

Gluttony

Not focussing on proving your E.A.T (Expert, Authority and Trust)

For Google to give two margaritas about your website, it must be trusted. Not giving Google reason to believe that your content is credible, true and backed up is a serious SEO mistake.

Google’s got its peepers set on proven data. Meaning? You’ll want to link to reputable sources. Google’s also big on knowing the origin of the piece of writing – I.e. who’s the author, are they a credible source and can they be trusted?

Angelic alternative: Have an in-depth overview of you and/or your writers on your about page. Work to build backlinks to and from trusted sources. 

Greed

Adding in all the keywords zillions of times and forgetting to write for humans.

Here’s the dealio. Google’s smart. Like lining up for three hours to get a front row spot at an AC/DC concert kind of smart.

In the beginning, there was light, sound and an intense amount of SEO keyword stuffing.

Now? Google’s using what we call semantically related keywords. This means searches appear based on the searcher’s intent, rather than their exact key phrases.

As noted on SEM Rush:

“Google isn’t just looking at strings of words anymore. It’s analysing query context and trying to discern a user’s search intent, meaning that the more relevant information provided – via logically related primary and secondary keywords – the better.”

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • 12 SEO Trends to Know for 2021, SEM Rush

Angelic alternative: Write for users, stay on-topic but never resort to keyword stuffing.

Sloth

Not writing anything at all.

Get that. Many small business owners make the mistake of pouring hours of writing, research and perfecting into blogging… all without SEO optimising the content.

So, not only do they have to drive all the traffic to the piece of writing, but they’re also far, far less likely to be discovered by a wider audience.

Maybe writing’s not your thing, you don’t know what to write about or other business stuff keeps getting in your way. Whether that’s bookkeeping, meetings or client work.

But when it comes to marketing, SEO is one seriously strong contendor worthy of your time.

Unlike social media, SEO content:

• Doesn’t expire
• Works for you 24/7
• Is designed to reach a wider audience
• Helps build authority in search engines
• Is here to stay

Save time and energy with SEO content. Even if you start small. Think: One blog per month, heck per quarter! If not getting started is your sin, start small and work your way up.

Angelic alternative: Start (but make your hard work worth it by learning SEO first).

Pride

Sharing SEO content with lots of people (but they’re the wrong people).

Link building is a big ol’ part of SEO.

Link building includes:

• Guest blogging on other people’s sites that link back to you
• Having your SEO article referenced on another site, and linked back to

But it’s the quality of those links that really matter.

Angelic alternative: Set up a Google alert for your business name to see who’s mentioning you (they could be linking to your site too) and guest post on reputable sites relevant to your industry. And while you’re at it, check out these 10 common myths surrounding link building by Novi Digital. 

Wrath

Steaming from the nostrils because it’s all too confusing.

I get it. SEO can feel really bloody confusing.

You know it’s important, but you’re not techy and are really short on time to learn the ins and outs.

Good news legend, I’m launching something super soon to make SEO clear, easy and dare I say… FUN.

You heard it here first! Check back in early 2021 for that bad boy’s official release.

Angelic alternative: Make SEO clear, easy, dare I say… FUN. (Stay tuned, early 2021!).

Avoid these SEO mistakes like the plague

Now that you’re all over the 7 deadly SEO sins like a rash, start getting jiggy with your SEO strategy! And remember to keep an eye out for a some flamin’ hot SEO help in 2021. Spoiler alert: It’ll only take 90-minutes.