Google’s algorithms are getting better and better, and this makes SEO work quite tricky – the rules are constantly changing and sometimes doing something that is good today, means you might need to get rid of it in a year or so, after some of its changes. In one of our previous articles, we’ve already discussed some of these examples.
But let’s look at the opposite situation today – let’s talk about practices that will never become ‘bad’, as they are timeless. To tell you the truth, these are not really ‘good SEO practices’ per se, but rather ‘optimising philosophies’.
- Always keep on working on your website’s speed.
This will never grow old. Our mobile devices will get better and better, users will become used to get the things they need faster and faster. You want to make your user happy; you don’t want to lose him as he gets irritated waiting for that page that takes ages to open. Google understands all of that too, so page speed is already a ranking factor. But in 2021 Google will introduce a new algorithm update, the ‘Core Web Values’, that is, in the most part, based on the loading speed of the website. So, if you think your website opens fast enough, try checking it with Google’s Pagespeed tool and you might be surprised. But the good news is Google will give you ideas on what you can do better. Just do no ignore it and ask your developer to fix as many points as possible. It will definitely be an advantage both SEO-wise, as for your users.
- Always put the quality of your content first.
Google just wants to ‘serve’ users with the best content out there, so that they are happy and keep using it as a source of good answers to any question. This is a simple truth and it will never change. So, how do you keep users (and therefore Google) happy? You work on your content quality. Your content should become ‘the best answer available’ to whatever your clients are searching for regarding your business. You think your content is OK because it is keyword-optimised? Very well, but now it is time to ‘client-optimise’ it. Think like Google – if a person is searching for this, what does that person really need? A page where it is easy and quick to buy? A page comparing your product to others on the market and explaining why yours is a good choice? A purely informational page about the industry, not directly connect to any exact products? Think what users need, give it to them and Google will award you some recognition soon enough.
- Always choose the ‘light side’ rather than the ‘dark side’.
People are having a hard time accepting SEO is a lot of work, needing much time, investment, and effort to MAYBE, one day, see some results. So, they always look for a shortcut. And there will always be people who find loops in the algorithm and ways to “cheat” the system (the so-called ‘black-hat SEO’). Those practices might work for a while and might even give you the results you need quickly enough. But eventually, Google will find out about ‘that new thing that helps you rank quickly’ and, in the best case scenario, just changes the algorithm in a way that stops it from having any effect, thus sending your rankings back to where they were. Or, in the worst-case scenario, Google may start penalising websites using that technique and in this case you might be damaged in a way that you might never recover from, or you will recover, but it will, for sure, take years of work to “clean” the reputation of your domain.
The bottom line? The best timeless practice is do not look for shortcuts.
If you’re chasing for SEO information, listen to Google announcements or SEO people with a pristine reputation. Stay on the ‘light side’ and away from the ‘dark side’, as it is always more advantageous in the long run.
