Search Engine Optimisation has been described by many as a dark art. With no official guide from Google on how to rank in its search engine effectively most search engine optimisers, rely on either influencers in the niche or a mixture of their own experience and trial and error.

When a niche isn’t regulated you get many differences of opinion on what is a currently acceptable in optimising a site, from well researched case studies to pure myth as consultants lose touch with the ever changing Google algorithm.

Here we highlight 5 of the most common myths

1. SEO Is Dead – This is the main myth that causes seasoned SEO’s to bang their heads in frustration. Often preached by those that have broken the rules or no longer know how to effectively rank a site. SEO is one of the main ways to convert a website consistently, however you will often find studies by social media management companies, claiming social media is the way forward and that optimisation no longer works. It still works, in fact it works better, as the ones who are on the first page have worked hard to be there.
2. Keywords No Longer Matter–This rumour started when Google advised they would no longer tolerate keyword rich link building to influence the search engines. The truth is keywords are the only way to let Google know what it is you do and what you want to be found for. Instead of focusing on how many times a keyword can be mentioned in the text of a website instead we make sure the copy is quality, authoritative and points the search engine towards what it is you do. A strong onpage foundation with good content and authoritative and trusted links is the way forward.
3. Link Building No Longer Works – Again another myth. 60% of SEO is still link building but it’s the types of links that are important. Instead of just buying a link building package with quantity and page rank being the key, we focus on quality/relevant links. For example, if you run a kitchen site, getting a link from home improvement blogger is much better than a multi category directory. For more information, see https://moz.com/blog/seo-myths
4. I want To Rank no.1 For X Keyword – Rankings don’t matter. Well they do but not in the way you think in SEO for 2016. We no longer promise any rankings in search engines and anyone that does, runs the risk of getting penalised. According to Neil from ESP Projects “The truth is you shouldn’t care about rankings, what you should care about is conversion or the goal of your site. Whether that’s a sale, a download or an enquiry, this is how you should measure any marketing campaign. In fact, rankings come third after conversion and traffic.”
5. Page Rank Is Still A Way To Judge How Trustworthy A Site Is – Page Rank used to be a great measure on how authoritative a site way but the truth is Google haven’t updated in for over 2 years and will probably never update it again. What I mean by this is the Google Page Rank Toolbar. Don’t judge a site on its link worthiness on page rank alone. Instead is it relevant? Does it add value to your site? Does it have high PA (page authority) or Majestic Trust or Citation Flow. These are metrics judging a site on the neighbourhood it links with.