The 7 Biggest Mistakes Made by SEO Newcomers

by Larry Alton, Guest Contributor

One of the perks of search engine optimization (SEO) is that it’s ridiculously approachable. Whether you’re a coding expert or totally tech-unsavvy, whether you’re working for a major corporation or are a solo small business owner, you can learn about and use SEO to your advantage. 

Unfortunately, this approachability also comes with a downside. 

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Newcomers to SEO often get excited about their initial knowledge and move forward with a strategy of their own before they fully understand the topic. Usually, the mistakes they make aren’t so catastrophic that they’re wholly counterproductive, but they do frequently limit your potential. 

The Biggest Mistakes Made by SEO Novices
These are some of the biggest mistakes made by new SEO practitioners: 

1. Prioritizing quantity over quality. According to Sam Edwards of SEO.co, “Too many SEO newbies try to write as much as they can, or build as many links as they can. And don’t get me wrong, volume is important, but it’s more important to write good content and build high-quality links, even if you’re only working on a few at a time.” In other words, quality is more important than quantity; one well-written blog post is worth more than a dozen filler posts that were halfheartedly thrown together, and one strong link is worth more than a dozen low-quality links. 
2. Neglecting technical SEO. Even if you’re not familiar with coding or the technical elements of building a website, it’s possible to learn and practice the basics of SEO. For example, you can write high-quality content and conduct keyword research to gain a competitive advantage. However, it’s still important to learn the technical side of SEO, and most newcomers try to avoid this. If you skip these important lessons, your site may become non crawlable by Google, and/or never reach its full ranking potential. 
3. Relying exclusively on plugins. Most free website builders now come with plugins or similar extra features that allow you to “optimize” your website for search engines. These tools can be helpful in guiding the execution of your strategy, but too many SEO newcomers lean on them exclusively. The recommendations of SEO plugins aren’t always perfectly accurate, and they can leave you with blind spots that can hurt you in the long run. Use them as a complement to your skills, not as a substitute for them. 
4. Targeting keywords arbitrarily. It’s no secret that keyword selection and keyword research are some of the most important SEO topics. However, many novices choose keywords almost arbitrarily. They pick out a handful of keywords that “sound good” or seem relevant to the brand, and ignore the numbers and metrics that could guide them to a better decision. For example, it’s important to consider the subjective relevance of each keyword to your brand, but it’s also important to look at their search volume, competition rating, and historical search trends. 
5. Trying to do everything alone. If you’re a solopreneur or if you’re running a small business, you may believe you can handle your SEO needs alone—especially after you master the basics. But this is problematic for a few reasons. First, taking on your SEO strategy by yourself will necessarily pull you away from your other work, which may be even more valuable. Second, if you’re doing it alone, all your biases and blind spots will remain untouched—meaning you’ll be much more likely to make mistakes (and not even know you’re making them). 
6. Failing to measure and analyze. In many ways, SEO is a numbers game. You need to spend time measuring your results, and analyzing your efforts. That way, you can weed out the bad strategies and put more emphasis on the good ones. Too many inexperienced SEO practitioners simply assume that everything’s working correctly, without doing the extra analysis. 
7. Not staying up-to-date. Google is constantly releasing new updates, and SEO experts are constantly finding new ways to gain competitive advantages. The field of SEO is anything but stagnant. If you aren’t reading the latest news and paying attention to the latest updates, you’re going to be left behind. 

Overcoming Limitations 
As an SEO newcomer, there are multiple ways you can overcome the limitations of your own lack of expertise. The most straightforward is also the most difficult, and the longest path: learning on your own. With enough time, and enough willingness to research and learn, you can eventually become an expert in your own right. Unfortunately, most people don’t have years to spend developing that expertise. 

Instead, it’s often better to work with a professional SEO agency, or at least hire someone who truly knows what they’re doing. Otherwise, you may not be able to achieve your SEO goals, or reach your true potential. 

About the Author:

I am a professional blogger, writer, researcher and successful investor who contributes to a number of reputable online media outlets and news sources. A graduate of Iowa State University, I’m now a full-time freelance writer, business consultant and independent real estate investor. Currently, I write for Inc.com, Entrepreneur.com, TheNextWeb.com and BiggerPockets.com. I have previously contributed to the HuffingtonPost.com, and Business.com, among others. In addition to journalism, technical writing and in-depth 

research, I’m also active in real estate investing and spend weekends volunteering with a local non-profit literacy organization. When I’m not saving the world with my keyboard, I can be found rock climbing.

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