Consistent SEO Maintenance is Essential
I'm sure you've heard of SEO. It's short form for search engine optimization.
SEO is the *magic* of getting your site high rankings in Google and other search engines for the keywords your audience is searching for.
You hire a digital marketer and they wave their magic SEO wand and suddenly you're ranking at the top of Google forever, right?
Well, no - not really.
SEO isn't magic, and it isnt simple either. When most people think of SEO they might think of picking keywords and writing content optimized for those keywords on their site. But there is so much more to it than that! Your cauldron of SEO strategies must be diverse to be truly effective on the web.
Cheeky Monkey Media posted an excellect visual that shows exactly how much complexity there is to SEO, and how much there is to stay on top of as a digital marketer or business owner trying to manage SEO for a website.
There is SO much that goes into a successful SEO strategy. From backlinks to your site architecture to local listings and more. Having your site optimized by a digital marketer once is great - and will certainly boost your rankings if the marketer knows what they are doing. But you can't leave it alone.
SEO must be ongoing. Businesses must monitor their SEO and routinely optimize their to maintain their organic ranks in search engines. Why?
- Search engines are constantly changing their search algorithms. A recent example is the Google "Phantom" update that started to penalize sites with spammy link profiles. Because of the update, many popular websites that used to rank high in search dropped dramatically in ranks—like, off of the first few pages (into the SEO abyss). As Google changes their algorithm, what they consider *good* SEO evolves and changes too. So even if you rank well for keywords now, you cannot be complacent - because without consistent upkeep and SEO maintenance you might drop off the first page once Google changes their mind about what is considered quality.
- Search engines tweak the SERP. Google doesn't do this often, but occasionally there are changes to the SERP (search results page). For example, when Google got rid of all of the ads in the right hand column of the page it had some effects on the sites that were ranking organically as well.
- Competitors try to and WILL outrank you. You cannot ignore your competitors, because they will not ignore you. If you rank higher than them on the SERP, you can be sure they will be analyzing what you're doing and working to out rank you. Continuing to build a solid backlink profile, quality content, good technical site health, etc. will ensure you stay at the top.
- Your technical site health fluctuates. Have you ever ran a technical SEO audit on your site? I run monthly audits on my clients sites and there is frequent variation in their scores depending on site activity, algorithm changes, etc. From google updates, to duplicated content, to broken links - you want to stay on top of any sudden technical issues as Google catches onto them quickly and a negative score really sink your rankings. (Want to know your site's technical health score? Contact me for a quick technical SEO audit)
What Does Monthly SEO Maintenance Typically Include?
Ongoing link earning efforts (getting links from other authoritative sites)
Ongoing keyword research for super targeted, high quality keywords
Tracking keyword rankings
Ongoing search optimized content creation
Ongoing analysis of competition
Ongoing attention to Google algorithm changes
Ongoing technical SEO site maintenance
Ongoing review of analytics, tracking, and reporting on progress
So, there you have it. A case for consistent SEO maintenance. It truly is essential if you want to stay competitive in search and remain visible in the eyes of your audience.
Do you do any form of ongoing SEO? If so, let me know what works for you in the comments!