Search engine optimization may be one of the hardest things to master. The method that should increase your ranking and get you on the front page of Google has changed a lot over the years. In fact, SEO has changed so much that these days, many pharma marketers are wondering what’s important and what’s outdated, what will help them get on top of Google, and what is simply a waste of time.
I know, I’ve been there.
That’s why I created this blog with SEO misconceptions that are still widely spread among pharma marketing professionals. And they really shouldn’t be.
Here are common SEO myths that you should put to rest once and for all.
Submitting your site to Google is essential for SEO
Some pharma marketers still think that their site will not appear on Google ranking unless they submit it themselves. But that’s far from true. In fact, Google is perfectly capable of finding your content by itself without any help from you whatsoever. So you may as well as save yourself the hassle of submitting the content manually and let Google do it for you.
Quality over Quantity
Having tons of links leading back to your website is important for your marketing strategy. But these days backlinking is more about the quality than the quantity of the links. Having your link shared by a truly important website with a lot of traffic is more important than the number of times the link is shared. And the only way to get yourself those valuable links is to create valuable content that matters.
SEO is all about getting to the top of Google’s ranking
This is not quite true. Though researchers have shown that results that are featured in the top three searches on the front page of Google are more likely to get clicked on it will take a lot more than pure ranking to ensure those clicks from the viewers. Sure visitors may see your website on top of Google search. But if the snippet they read is unappealing or is not related to their desired topic then they are likely to skip it, even if it’s on the top of the search results.
Meta descriptions are crucial for Google rankings
Meta descriptions are the snippets you see on Google when your content appears. Recently Google officials stated that adding a keyword to the meta description does not have a huge influence on rankings. But it’s still a great way to let people know what your text is all about. So you should still be careful about what you write.
Pop-ups will hurt my rankings
Pop-ups are used and loved by pharma marketers all over the world as they are a great way to generate leads for your sales team. In August 2016 Google has said that it will penalize the pop-ups that are intrusive. But that doesn’t mean it will penalize all sites with pop-ups. Simply put, Google has decided to penalize those sites with pop-ups that prevent viewers from seeing the marketing content, particularly on mobile. The bottom line: pop-ups only affect your rankings if they block the entire screen.
Keywords must be used as they are
For decades, people added keywords to their websites exactly the way people were typing them in the search box. This was meant to ensure high ranking. But now Google uses a machine-learning algorithm that can easily track various variations of the keyword to find content relevant to it. So instead of adding keywords that are the exact match of what people are searching for, try using synonyms or word variations that will be more appealing to the visitors of your website.
You must add a keyword to H1
H1 is now seen by Google as purely a style you are using to convey your message. So it matters much less to have your target keyword in H1. What is important, however, is keeping the keyword somewhere at the top of your content.
Hope you found this blog useful and are ready to get rid of these SEO myths that simply don’t work anymore. As you can see there is no simple solution to nailing your SEO. SEO is still in many ways all about the overall experience. And there is no magic trick that will catapult your site way up on the front page of Google search results. You must make sure to give your visitors relevant content. And the ability to easily move through the site if you want to be graced by the almighty Google.
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