To me, keywords are like the frosting on a cake. They can attract someone to try a slice, but if the cake is stale even the best frosting can’t save it.

Your content works the same way. It needs to be fresh, rich, relevant and delicious. If it’s stale, the search engines and the people who visit your site will be left with a bad taste in their mouth.

Content is part of good SEO. More than ever before, it plays a large role in where you rank with the search engines — and it’s always been the deciding factor of where you rank with humans.

Google Panda, the king of search engine algorithms, has gotten so smart that it can assess the quality of your content much like the human brain can. Great content now trumps keywords, but that doesn’t mean you should stop using them.

Solid keywords, with a good search to competition ratio, coupled with fresh content is your best recipe for success on your website and blog.

I recommend a hot cuppa coffee for good measure!

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Have you heard of Google Panda?

He’s very smart. And although he’s cute, you don’t want to get on his bad side. Simply put, Google Panda is an algorithm that that filters websites into two main groups — sites it likes and sites it doesn’t like. The sites that Panda “likes” are upgraded in Google’s search results, while the ones it doesn’t like get downgraded.

Why You Should Care

If your website is breaking some of Panda’s rules your ranking could plummet, making it harder for you to connect with customers. If you adhere to Panda’s rules, and implement an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategy that Panda likes, you’ll be in much better shape.

Here’s a top 10 list Panda dos and don’ts:

DO

• Make sure you have original content on all your pages. Original and boring won’t cut it with human eyes or the eyes of Google Panda. Your content has to be engaging and interesting — offering value and relevance to the reader. This is often referred to as “rich” content. If you don’t have someone on staff who can accomplish this, hire a copywriter who can.
• Use keywords correctly in each web page as part of your SEO strategy. Keyword phrase choice, placement and density all play a part in where you’ll rank. 
• Use Market Samurai, a free SEO strategy tool, to help you choose good keywords and keyword phrases. Make sure you understand how to use this tool by reviewing the videos in their DOJO. If you don’t use a tool like Market Samurai, you’re essentially  throwing darts at a dartboard in the dark, while you’re blindfolded.
• Write for the reader, not the search engine. If you have nothing relevant to say on a web page or in a blog post, just delete it! Panda hates pages that have been created for the sole purpose of increasing traffic. Google Panda fancy’s pages that are full of relevant content, written with “passion.” Yes, algorithms are now smart enough to know (for the most part) if you’re posting with sincerity or if you’re just greedy for more traffic.
• Learn about your customers. What are they looking for? What problems do they need solved? What solutions can you offer them through your website or blog?

DON’T

• Lift content from other websites. This is called duplicate content, and it’s a rule breaker. Instead, write your own.
• Cut corners on keywords or quality content. A successful SEO strategy entails taking the time you need to create pages that are optimized well.
• Be boring. If a web page is boring to you, it’s probably boring to everyone else (including Panda).
• Create web pages with the mindset of getting more traffic. Instead, create web pages that people will get excited about. This will get you more traffic AND more business. Plus, Google Panda will like you.
• Use too many keywords. This is called “stuffing” and it’s another big rule breaker.

I hope you enjoyed this top 10 list of Google Panda Do’s and Don’ts.

Thanks for visiting!

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