Oneupweb : Four Things to Give Up for SEO Lent

That’s right, SEO Lent. We worship at the altar of an occasionally inscrutable search deity with a taste for vengeance and blood. It’s like a religion. Unfortunately you missed SEO Mardi Gras, where we all get beads for taking off our heading tags.

So on this March 10th, let’s look at four things you can give up for forty days during this period of reflection and sacrifice.

1. Thin Content

We’re all working on our beach bodies (I haven’t eaten solid food in three weeks) and trying to get slim for the summer. But thin isn’t good all the time. The United States used to be a trim and tight 13 colonies, but then that mad genius Thomas Jefferson went and picked up a half continent of land at a price that makes the ’11 Detroit real estate market look like Manhattan. And that was a good thing indeed.

Your content shouldn’t be slim, either. Look at that page I linked. What’s the point of that? Nothing. Don’t let your site turn into a bunch of 25 word pages that awkwardly employ search questions. Make them useful. Make them beautiful. Make them rich, thick and creamy.

2. Boring Content

Boring is more than just dry. It’s also worn out or cliche topics. Like list posts.

Do your content writers still think Chuck Norris jokes are the pinnacle of humor? Or do they know that the true trend-setters of the internet have moved on to Dolph Lundgren? Do you put “keywords” into your content so that people searching for “keywords” are able to find the “keywords” they are looking for, even though those “keywords” are awkwardly placed into “keyword” rich content? Because that is boring and borderline indecipherable. People can be bored literally anywhere, and they’ll move quickly when bored on the internet. Be the fun guy at the party with some new info, not the guy repeating internet memes from three years ago and pouring beers in the sink to keep up with everyone else.

3. Irrational Exuberance & Panic

It’s a two-fer. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. The important thing in life and SEO is to keep an even-keel, and keep moving forward. When your rankings and traffic are on the rise, stay focused and don’t rest on your laurels. Bubbles don’t last forever. But on the same token, an algorithm tweak is never the end of the game. You just have to keep searching, and you might find something you never noticed before in your site or strategy.

4. Ignoring Mobile

Most business owners are over thinking that mobile is a phase, but I know there’s some holdouts. Every day, your mobile strategy grows more important. And every day, you’re missing opportunities to improve and optimize your site for the mobile experience. Ever since that first somewhat disturbing telephone call, the phone has been changing society. And it’s going to continue. Don’t miss out.

If giving up these habits is just too hard, maybe you should come to Oneupweb. We live by these principles and more, every day of the year, not just during made-up SEO Lent.