Unmasking SEO Sales Emails: Google’s Content Standards
Unmasking SEO Sales Emails: Google’s Content Standards
“Wow! Your website looks great, and you really look like an expert, but I noticed you’re not showing up in searches.”
Does this sound like a dozen emails you’ve gotten since your new website was launched?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a cornerstone for any business in reaching new clients or educating potential clients. However, with the noise of SEO sales emails claiming that your website isn’t “showing up” in searches, it’s important to understand what truly matters to search engines like Google. Time to debunk the myths and explore what is really helpful content!
The Myth of Appearance Over Substance
Equating how ‘good your site looks’ to ‘showing up in search’ is not necessarily correlative (meaning you can have an ugly shoe, but it’s still super comfortable to wear and protects your feet).
Content Quality Reigns Supreme
Content can be text, videos, images, and more as long as search engines can index the information. Here are a few examples across different platforms and industries:
- Educational Video Series on Financial Literacy: A bank or financial institution creates a series of short, informative videos on topics such as budgeting, saving, investing, and managing debt. These videos are designed to address common financial questions and concerns that users may have. Each video provides practical tips and strategies that viewers can implement in their own lives to improve their financial well-being. By offering valuable educational content, the bank not only helps users make better financial decisions but also builds trust and loyalty with its audience.
- Recipe Blog with Nutritional Information: A food blogger who creates healthy and nutritious recipes. In addition to sharing delicious meal ideas, the blogger also includes detailed nutritional information for each recipe, such as calorie count, carbs, sugars, macronutrient breakdown, and key vitamins and minerals. This content helps users make informed choices about their diet and encourages them to try new dishes that align with their health goals. By providing tasty recipes and valuable nutritional insights, the blogger establishes themselves as a reliable source of culinary inspiration for health-conscious individuals.
Relevance is Key
You can use semantic SEO tricks to give people what they’re looking for online. This means providing information that really matches what they want and making sure it fits the context.
An example of “contextually relevant information” is if someone searches for “best vacation rentals” in a particular city. In addition to listing top-rated vacation rentals, the search results would also include additional details like location details, customer reviews, ratings, booking availability, and local attractions and points of interest. This extra information helps the user make a more informed decision based on their preferences, enhancing their overall search experience.
User Experience Matters
Additionally, there are UX elements that are hidden, specifically for accessibility (vision, hearing, or other physical requirements). Images and photos that have alternative and descriptive text are indexable by search engines, and they are allowed to be displayed as search results.
Authority and Trustworthiness
- Quality Content Creation showcasing content that is accurate, comprehensive, and well-researched for your customers.
- Authoritative Backlinks where high-traffic websites in your industry refer to your website article.
- Share Expertise and include author bios, professional certifications, and awards.
- Transparency is easy to achieve by ensuring your content is accurate, up-to-date, and free from misleading or deceptive information.
- User Experience Optimization (as discussed above)
- Social Proof that includes customer reviews, testimonials, case studies, or endorsements from industry influencers.
- Regular Updates to your website with fresh, relevant content demonstrate your ongoing expertise in industry trends, developments, and best practices.
Lastly, avoid misleading or deceptive practices, like keyword stuffing, that may boost ranking in the short term but undermine your credibility and harm your rankings.
The Evolving Landscape of SEO
Some SEO resources:
- Official Google Search Central YouTube channel
- Search Engine Land News
- Moz Blog
- Yoast Blog (Blue Zoo includes the free version of Yoast on client websites)
Embrace SEO as a holistic approach to digital marketing, and you’ll achieve increased visibility and organic traffic over time.
Want SEO?
When it's time for you to E-A-T (showcasing your expertise, authority, and trustworthiness), we have processes, tools, plugins, and plans ready for you.