The ever-changing world of SEO is full of competing firms that promise you top search rankings and endless streams of new traffic and conversions. Of course there are quality firms out there that really can improve your search results and help you achieve a stronger position in the market. However, there is also no shortage of questionable firms looking to exploit the quickest and cheapest SEO tricks to give you a temporary but perilous boost in rankings. Search engines like Google have been cracking down on these types of practices, too, so it is advisable that you steer clear of this low-quality SEO marketing. These top 5 red flags will tell you whether something is amiss when working with a Los Angeles SEO services company.
1. Dubious Link Building
The practice of buying and selling links is always suspect as an SEO method. Links that are bought and sold are rarely to quality sites, and Google doesn’t care much for the practice anyway. You can still join link directories, but be very careful about what types of links they contain. Your site rankings are determined in part by all of the different sites that are linked to you. The best policy for building links is to do it the old-fashioned way: get natural, organic links from quality, trusted sites that are relevant to your business.
2. Article Spamming
An older technique for ticking up your search ranking is to write large numbers of articles on similar subjects, with each article having only slight differentiations, and then submitting them all to article directories like E-Zine Articles. This method no longer works, and Google has long since demoted these types of article directories. Your Los Angeles SEO services company should be focusing on producing quality content that is useful to your visitors.
3. Keyword Stuffing
Keywords are definitely still relevant to SEO, but beware of the SEO firm that insists on stuffing content and headlines with keywords. This trick also used to work, but Google is now penalizing sites that engage in manipulative keyword strategies. A good rule of thumb for content is that it should be able to be enjoyed by human readers, as opposed to search algorithm bots.
4. Algorithm Gaming
There are other ways of gaming algorithms aside from the methods mentioned above. There are some trickier techniques that can be hard to spot for the layman, but Google can spot them all. For example, anchor text refers to the text that shows up in a link, or the words you click on when you follow a link. If your Los Angeles SEO services company is packing keywords into the anchor text in ways that seem forced, it’s time to find a new company.
5. Ignoring Local Search
This is less of a cheap trick and more of an indication that your Los Angeles SEO services company lacks SEO sophistication. Local search is increasingly figured into search results, and mobile search overwhelmingly uses local search in its algorithms, which many web users regularly make use of. If your firm of choice is looking to use mere brute force to tackle general search results, this may indicate a lack of sophistication that won’t hold up to competitive pressure.
Summary
When thinking about what makes great SEO, it helps to understand what doesn’t work. For anyone looking to game the system with tricks or workarounds which seek to take advantage of search engine algorithms, remember that the engines are always one step ahead of the curve. What a search engine like Google is looking to do is provide a quality search experience for its users. If your Los Angeles SEO services company is focused on creating useful, quality content that works with algorithms as opposed to tricking them, then you’re on the right track, and your efforts will hold up in the long run. Furthermore, make sure that your firm of choice is keeping up with the latest trends in the SEO world. That world is always changing, and some of the techniques that worked before may no longer pack much of a punch, so it pays to stay on the cutting edge.
Coalition Technologies employs only the most talented SEO gurus, all of whom are passionate about providing the best in SEO services. We seek to provide a quality experience for your customers, as well as a long-lasting improvement in your search rankings. We are careful to stay constantly ahead of the curve to provide you with real results. Give us a call today at 1-888-840-3469 for a free quote.