Its a new year eve. One more year gone and it has been a hectic one. Google has provided us many updates till now especially in the year 2013 and you might be expecting such updates in 2014. You may find various articles related to the SEO changes you need to consider for 2014 but i have explained the same slightly from a different angle in this article.
This article is not about what tactics should you use in 2014 or what to expect in 2014, instead this is more about the site owners and what they should understand about SEO in 2014.
The year 2013 was relentless year for most of the SEO’s as Google updates were never ending and dealing with these changes to the point, made it difficult to do the actual SEO work. A large amount of time has been spent by SEO agencies in dealing with these updates. Lots of websites came to these SEO agencies after being hit by these updates and they passed out many nights in mending the damage.
This affect shows that the way SEO is carried out has changed. In reality Google have always asked for the same type of things that are: build your brand, don’t buy the links, don’t game the system, don’t create the links that are irrelevant. So, those who have indulged in breaking these guidelines are now paying the price.
The problem here is the change in environment has remained unseen by anyone who is not in the industry. So, it is important for the site owners to see all the updates but if this is not their expertise area then it is not their fault exactly.
Earlier SEO was very easy- that is just to fill up the page with keywords and make sure that the links you create to that particular page were keyword rich. But then gradual updates frowned upon certain practices but the links were still the main currency that counted but only the white hat practices were adopted so as to get the security for the long term.
Penguin and Panda update have changed so much. Google now look for brands to build, want engagement, social interaction. They want that you should create informative content. Now no more directory links, article marketing, buying links, blog commenting, forum posting for easy creation of links.
If you believe that SEO is a quick win then you need to read out this. Here are some hard facts about SEO that all online businesses need to understand:
- SEO is changing constantlyart
- Google is constantly changing
- There are no overnight results
- What worked yesterday or today, may not work tomorrow
- Your competitors are also doing SEO
- If you have duplicate content then you have to deal with it.
- If you have deadly link profile , then you have to deal with it.
- If you lack content on your website, then you have to deal with it.
SEO is a continuous and a long game. If you think that you can achieve better results in few months, then it is necessary to re-read the above mentioned list once again.
Google now wants you to work for everything and that too in a perfect way following the guidelines of it. It really takes a lot of time- if you have received a penalty, then you could have 5 or 6 reconsideration requests that you have turned down before you see the penalty lifted. You then have to wait a bit longer before you see any positive changes. This will lead to sheer frustration but don’t let your frustration get in the way of understanding this process..
All of this is now highly important in the current climate. You have to understand all this before you embark any SEO campaign. SEO is going to become more complicated in 2014, so you have to be patient.