Want to improve your website’s search engine rankings? Search engine optimization (SEO) is your way to achieve that. But there are also lots of SEO mistakes that can actually lower your rankings in search engines. In this blog, we’ll discuss 9 such mistakes to avoid while you perform SEO for your business. Avoid these SEO “don’ts”, and you’ll be on your way to higher rankings, more website traffic and higher conversions.
1. Stuffing Keywords
One of the most common SEO mistakes is keyword stuffing. This means cramming a bunch of keywords unnaturally into your content just for the sake of SEO. For example:
“Our SEO optimization services, SEO packages will improve your SEO and website SEO with professional SEO service SEO SEO SEO…”
It looks and reads terribly. Even worse, over-optimized content like this will actually get your site penalized or banned from search engines for low quality content. Write for users first, not search engines. Use your target keywords naturally a few times per page rather than just repeating them over and over. Quality content is far more important than quantity of keywords.
2. Buying Links
Some SEO agencies offer to sell backlinks on high-authority websites. But buying links is strictly against search engine guidelines and comes under the umbrella of ‘Black Hat SEO’. It can result in manual penalties of your website affecting your domain authority. Stick to ethical (White Hat) link-building techniques like content marketing and online PR outreach instead. Organic backlinks you earn through great content carry far more SEO value anyway.
3. Keyword Stuffing Page Titles & URLs
You want your page titles and URLs to contain keywords, but make sure you don’t go overboard. Lengthy titles like “Best SEO Service Packages & Optimisation For Website Search Engine Results” look spammy. For page titles, focus on one primary keyword and keep them under 70 characters. And don’t just stuff keywords randomly into URLs. Keep them clean, simple and user-friendly.
4. Hiding Text or Links
In the early days of SEO, some shady webmasters would hide keyword-rich links in tiny font sizes, white text on a white background, or layered behind other elements. The intention was to attract search engines while being invisible to human visitors. But search engines quickly caught onto this and now penalize pages with hidden text and links. Avoid tricks like keyword stuffing, sneaking in keywords, hiding content, etc. They will only hurt your organic search performance.
5. Skipping Title Tags & Meta Descriptions
Every page on your website needs a unique title tag and meta description. But beginners often skip them, not realizing how important they are for both users and search engines. Page titles and descriptions grab the attention of searchers on results pages, improving click-through rates. They also provide search engines with clues about the topic of each page to inform rankings. Make title tags and meta descriptions a priority on every single page.
6. Bad Website Code
While search engines have gotten better at crawling all kinds of websites, pages with messy code can still create indexation issues. Too many errors may prevent search bots from easily crawling your site. Pages with duplicate titles, missing H1 tags, broken links and other technical problems are also red flags for search algorithms. Before doing any other SEO, make sure your website has clean, well-structured HTML code. Consider an audit to catch any issues early.
7. Ignoring Site Speed
With mobile usage growing worldwide, site speed has become a ranking factor for Google and other search engines. Slow-loading websites lead to high bounce rates and poor user experience and can sink your organic rankings. Test your site speed and optimize page load times by minifying code, reducing server response times, optimizing images, and upgrading your web hosting. Fast website response times should be the foundation of your SEO.
8. Not Claiming Local Listings
For local brick-and-mortar businesses competing for local search traffic, claiming and optimizing free listings on sites like Google My Business is absolutely essential. Yet many local businesses still haven’t properly claimed or optimized their listings with complete information, photos, correct categories, etc. This leaves a gaping void in their local SEO. Don’t neglect your Google My Business and other free local listings. It’s the easiest way to improve your local SEO.
9. Automated Social Media Posts
Authentic social media activity can drive referral traffic to your site and provide social signals. However, some marketers wrongly use auto-posting apps to spam low-value content on social media that doesn’t engage users. These automated posts typically get little to no engagement and can even upset followers with repetitive content. The high volume of posts can also trigger platform restrictions. Focus less on quantity and more on quality, timely, engaging social content.
The Truth About Fast SEO “Hacks”
Too many websites fall into the trap of chasing every new dubious SEO tactic promising fast rankings, what we call “SEO hacks.” But shortcuts that only offer a temporary boost ultimately won’t sustain long-term organic growth. Examples include buying expired domains, spamming low-quality directory links, keyword stuffing, link networks, etc.
At best, these tactics don’t improve actual site quality or user experience. At worst, they violate search engine guidelines and can lead to penalties. Create value, not shortcuts. Focus your SEO efforts on building authority through trustworthy links, quality content, positive real-user signals, spotless website code, proper optimization fundamentals, and good old-fashioned patience. By avoiding these 9 common mistakes and focusing on white hat SEO best practices, you’ll soon be on your way to climbing higher in organic search without getting penalized by Google.
