Google SEO Guidelines; 5 Ways to Improve Your SEO
It is no secret that Google SEO guidelines are a resource for both site owners and newbies since it clearly outlines what is acceptable and what isn't in this SEO streets. However, there have been some few additions to the guidelines recently to help steer site owners in the right direction what with the many changes that Google has put in place. Provided below is an overview of the improved Google SEO guidelines;
1. Avoid 'cookie cutter' approaches
A good user experience inevitably translates to good SEO, reason why you should always avoid doorway passages that are created just for search engines. For instance, creating large sets of poor quality pages with each page optimized for a particular phrase or keyword (quite synonymous with affiliate sites) only works to discourage visitors from coming back to your site. This is mainly because a user will click to open a particular page only to be redirected to another that isn't of use to them. Bottom line, do not try to play both visitor and search engine, your work is to ensure your visitor gets the best experience.
2. Multiple pages
Although Google recognizes that a sight can have two versions of the same site ( a printer friendly version and a web version), this mainly done to improve user experience and not to trick Google bots. There have been cases where webmasters create duplicate pages, subdomains and domains, creating a situation where a user comes across the same content within a set of results. As you can imagine this is not good for Google and therefore you stand to get penalized if found guilty of perpetrating such acts.
3. Affiliate sites
Sites that participate in affiliate programs have been known to use content that isn't unique. And you can't blame them either since such sites often promote the same product. However, Google advises that participating in an affiliate program shouldn't give anyone an excuse to produce spun content, instead, such webmasters should focus on creating useful content which gives value to the visitors.At the end of the day, you should always give your visitors one more reason to come back to your site.
4. Keyword Spamming
SEO is mostly about creating and increasing exposure. However, if you tell Google your site is about oranges but it is actually about bananas, your site will never do well for orange related searches. Do not use a keyword just because it gets the most number of searches, use it because it is relevant to your content. On the same line of thought, it is important to mention that there is no standard number of times that you should mention a keyword in your content for your site to get a better rank. The key however is to create content that flows naturally even with the keyword or phrase integrated within.
5. Avoid malicious behavior
This is more of a no-brainer. Do not turn your site in to a scam machine; avoid Trojans, installing viruses or phishing just to mention a few.
They say change is inevitable and SEO isn't an exception to this wise saying either. Keep track of what's new in SEO by updating yourself with Google SEO guidelines.