While it’s understandable that so many people want to jump into the SEO world and “show them how it’s done” it’s also much more challenging than it looks. It’s so easy to forget the little things and over-estimate the importance of what you are doing. Here are some common SEO mistakes that can easily unravel an SEO campaign long before it starts. And this is important to review now, because in the next chapter, we’re going to show you how to start a WordPress campaign the right way.

1. The site is never optimized.

While it is true that Google will automatically search for meta tags, it is NOT true that Google will automatically index your site, just because you write it and talk about it on Facebook. It could happen. But even if you are indexed, that certainly doesn’t mean you’re even coming close to the top 100 SERPs of your industry. If you don’t optimize your WordPress site with meta information and page information, you never really alert the search engines. Search engines can actually be “trained” to review your WordPress site on a regular basis, in contrast to sites that literally go months without any new indexing from Google, Bing or the others. News sites, or online magazines, are typically indexed every day, and you can literally see what you just published within a few hours in a Google search. However, if you do nothing, you can expect next to nothing—perhaps only a few indexed stories a year.

2. Duplicated Content

This refers to duplicated content, duplicate versions of the same home page (due to an error in URL complexities, duplicated title tags, and mirror websites with identical or highly similar content. We have come to the point where we don’t need this cheesy approach to business. The net is smarter, the search bots are smarter, and people are smarter.

3. Too Many Low Quality or Questionable Links

It is no longer advisable to artificially inflate your external links just in the hopes of building popularity. Actually, search engines are aiming so close to web spammers, that they are now scrutinizing what real links means, and what brands deserve popularity.

4. Poor SEO Management

Too many people make the mistake of chucking a few hundreds at SEO development, with high hopes of seeing an initial return on investment. While ROI is possible in the short-term, it is misleading to think that this is an easy and fast way to sell product. SEO works best over the long-term, when you continually feed the search engine with new and helpful content.

So many SEO firms and companies waste time publishing loads of low quality articles that the search engines ignore. The marketers seem to think that if a company focuses on quantity, they can hide the fact that the content is of low quality.

Furthermore, they think that just by publishing a couple of blogs or external linked article, that they can somehow make a name for themselves—and by competing against companies that spend literally thousands a year going after popular keywords. The competition of the SEO industry cannot be stressed enough. You either commit to web marketing, with a business plan and a list of specific goals as regards traffic and conversion, or you’re just playing around—and it is a waste of time.

5. Choosing the Wrong Keywords

Another big common mistake: going for popular or generic keywords, spending a lot of money, and yet selling to an audience that doesn’t want it. What a huge mistake, and usually because the company has no idea who it is targeting; they just figure a bunch of Internet visitors will eventually buy their product. But what if the entire campaign is wrong? This is why you shouldn’t let instinct guide you. You base your keywording decisions and strategies on your future goals.

6. Not Using Enough Long-Tail Keywords

Beginners will often lose a bundle by going after popular words or moderately popular words, in an attempt to brand themselves as #1…but in a niche that isn’t profitable. This is why going after longtail keywords—multiple phrases with specific adjectives or nouns—makes sense. It not only narrows the competition, but also better targets your ideal buyer.

7. Putting no effort in creating attention-directing anchor text, as well as a call to action.

The linked anchor text is not only to provide a quality link, but also sets up the page you are being directed to. Search engines pay close attention to contextual linking; matching up and rewarding WordPress sites and users that truly are looking for each other, in keyword, context, and niche area.

8. The website focuses too much on graphics, animation and interactive content that the text is minimal, and thus not search-friendly.

Ideally, you want to highlight the text and thus build your entire sit around a clean and easy-to-use theme for creating lots of text.

And #9 would be little or no SEO strategy implemented. Even if you do create a business plan to devote to web marketing, and an investment plan that’ s feasible, you still don’t have an actual strategy. A purpose and an agenda beyond attracting traffic. That’s what we’re going to discuss in the next chapter.

To Chapter 7: Creating A SEO Content Campaign And Strategy