Debunking 15 SEO Myths for 2023: Separating Fact from Fiction

Everyone knows for sure what SEO website promotion is. And many of you have tried to work on this in one way or another in order to improve your site’s search engine rankings. The site is meaningless without its promotion. Without optimization, the traffic of the resource will be very low or even zero if other methods of attracting traffic are not used. Those who work on website promotion face many myths. This is no coincidence. The SEO myths for 2023 still prevent many from working and getting good results.

However, SEO today and 10 years ago are 2 completely different areas of work. Search algorithms in systems change periodically, new filters and functions replace the old ones. The goals of search engines are clear and adequate – to provide users with optimal search results and earn more on contextual advertising. SEO specialists, in turn, have no choice but to accept the new rules of the game. The new SEO myths for 2023 aren’t just spreading fast. Many of them are already outdated, so it is important to know them and not succumb to general panic.

What is SEO website promotion?

SEO is suitable for everyone who is going to or is already selling goods via the Internet, looking for clients, customers, partners, etc. You should definitely promote your site if:

• your product is in demand among a wide audience;
• your company has Internet competitors;
• the goods are allowed for sale at the legislative level;
• you are willing to wait at least a few months for results;
• you are looking for relatively inexpensive website promotion systems that are effective and reliable in constantly attracting traffic;
• the owner of the resource is ready to invest time and money in his site, constantly develop and improve it;
• you plan to stay in the market in your niche or expand over time.

To achieve a quick effect, SEO optimization is not suitable. You will be able to see the first results after the start of work on promotion not earlier than in 2-3 months.
SEO promotion is aimed at improving the position of the site in the search results for the selected search queries. Its goal is to increase traffic, increase the popularity of the project, and increase the number of sales and leads.
Without SEO optimization, your project will be lost among hundreds and thousands of other projects on the same subject. And users will never be able to find it using search engines.

The higher the position of the site, the more visitors you will receive. Part of the traffic will be taken by contextual advertising, but most users choose sites from the top of organic search results. Therefore, it is very important to regularly work on improving the position of the site and not stop when you reach the top. Otherwise, you may be squeezed out by competitors.

How profitable is SEO website promotion?

Investing in SEO promotion is a more profitable type of investment than ordering contextual advertising. After all, the context requires regular replenishment of the budget for significant amounts. When using SEO after entering the TOP, you can reduce the cost of promotion by doing only the regular creation of new high-quality content.

Search engine optimization has benefits such as:

• low cost of attracted client;
• lasting effect even after completion of promotional work;
• more trust from clients, who may feel that lower quality projects need context than those that have taken first positions naturally;
• coverage of a large audience, etc.

Search engine optimization and website promotion are constantly evolving. Ranking algorithms are being improved, and new analytics services and tracking the results of the work done are emerging.
For example, for several years, search engine optimization of a site consisted mainly in building up external link mass. Today, the main stage of SEO promotion is working on internal optimization, and for external one, donors should be carefully selected according to the principle “better less, but better”.
SEO website promotion in search engines includes three key areas: external, internal optimization, or organic SEO and analytics. Each direction consists of different actions that must be performed in a certain sequence. SEO myths for 2023 will help you understand how to work better and what you should pay attention to.

Why it’s important for you to know the SEO myths and distinguish them

All site owners want to one day open Google, enter a couple of words, and see their resource not just on the first page of the search results, but, preferably, in the first position.
Getting data on constantly changing search algorithms is not so easy, as a rule, the search giants notify only about a part of the changes. If advertisers are not SEO professionals, then even this limited information can easily be skipped.
The most annoying thing in this situation is that the myths about the CEO lead to the fact that all the efforts spent on optimizing the site will not give results. As a result, new employees are hired, money is spent, and there is no output.
Knowing the myths about SEO is essential to an effective promotion strategy.

Here are a few reasons why it’s important to know SEO myths:

1. Avoiding mistakes. Knowing the SEO myths for 2023 allows you to avoid mistakes associated with outdated or incorrect approaches to SEO. This helps you focus on effective methods and strategies that will help improve your site’s visibility in search results.
2. Separation of facts and fiction. SEO is constantly evolving, and many of the statements that were relevant in the past may no longer meet the current recommendations and requirements of search engines. Breaking the myths helps you navigate the latest information and make informed decisions.
3. Improve efficiency. Using the right SEO information helps optimize your website for search engines and increases its ranking in search results. You will be able to develop an effective SEO strategy that will improve your site’s visibility, drive more organic traffic, and increase conversions.
4. Adapt to change. Knowing the SEO myths for 2023 helps you be prepared for changes in search engine algorithms and your own SEO strategy.
5. Education and professional development. Tracking changes, learning new facts, and debunking myths will help you grow as an SEO professional and help you become an expert in the field.

Remember that SEO is a complex and dynamic process. Following the right practices and updated knowledge will help you create an effective promotion strategy and succeed in improving your site’s visibility in search results. Do you want to understand how effective your SEO promotion is? Use the power of analytics to properly evaluate results.

Debunking SEO Myths 2023

There are several reasons why users create and spread SEO myths for 2023. One of them is a lack of understanding of this process. SEO is a complex and multifaceted field. It requires deep knowledge and constant learning. Some people may have a limited or incorrect understanding of SEO, which can lead to the spread of myths and misinformation. It is also important to remember that search algorithms and recommendations change over time. Myths can arise from outdated information when people continue to propagate practices that were once relevant but are no longer recommended.
In the SEO world, there is a lot of information from different sources, and not all sources are reliable or verified. Some myths may also arise from the spread of unverified or inaccurate information based on assumptions or personal opinions.

SEO is free traffic

If you still think so, forget about it. SEO customization has never been free and never can be. In order for this tool to work and organic traffic to the site, its owner must invest a lot of time, effort, technical knowledge, and modern technologies, bring his resource to the top, and only then reap the benefits of “free traffic”.
The costs of an SEO specialist are obvious, but besides him, the IT team indirectly deals with this issue. These are web designers, copywriters, marketers, etc., and they also need to be paid a salary.
It is worth considering other indicators such as the cost of entering the market and the cost of possible lost opportunities.

You can easily set up SEO yourself

If you are not an expert in this field, you cannot. Or go through the chain of training – practice – implementing SEO on your project.
High-quality tuning requires a lot of experience and constant practice since the rules of the game are constantly changing and you need to keep track of them.
The setup of an amateur who has read a few articles about SEO and decided to try it himself will never compare to the setup of a professional. Remember about lost time and opportunities if you rely on yourself in everything.

SEO does not work, it is better to use AdWords

This point often leads to the myths of SEO site optimization. Paid advertising is a great tool, but not a panacea, much less a replacement. According to statistics, only 10% of users who view ads click on them, which means only 10 people out of 100. The rest prefer organic search. Large companies care about SEO, it always brings good results.

If there is organic traffic, you can forget about other channels

Another SEO misconception. High-quality traffic from organic can only start coming after a few months of hard work, and this does not mean that there will be enough traffic for the successful operation of the business. Organic traffic needs to be constantly maintained, SEO Website optimization is a continuous process. Paid promotion, for example, through Google Adwords, are additional promotion channels, which, in turn, can have a positive effect on the SEO of the project.
Even large companies, known in many countries, spend about 10% of their revenue monthly on paid content promotion, telling the buyer about their promotions and new products. This study was conducted by the international agency Gartner Research. Buying ads increases brand credibility. Even the Top 3 companies on the first page of a search use AdWords, not to mention those indexed on the second and subsequent pages.

Every website needs SEO

On the one hand, it may seem – yes, to anyone, but if you dig deeper, some nuances begin to emerge.
Who is probably not suitable for this promotion channel:
– mono brands (competition with large resources);
– one-page sites (in 90% of cases, promotion will be impossible);
– projects with a low budget for SEO in a competitive niche.

Places in the TOP-10 can be bought

As much as multimillion-dollar corporations and small projects would not like it, places in the TOP-10 are not for sale. Not sold in the TOP-50 and TOP-100. If you want your site to move up the “ranking ladder” – implement SEO.

The site should only be in the TOP-1 or TOP-3

Being in the top three is, of course, good, but it can cost a tidy sum. Moreover, search engines bring their services to the first position, therefore, this is not always possible.
Important: If the site is reflected in the honorable 4th or 5th place, it can bring no less sales than the TOP-3. This is easily explained by the psychology of buyers who want to compare prices and assortment. The SEO strategy should be based on relevant keywords that will help users find the information, product, or service they need.

It is enough to advance in the TOP-10 and you can stop in SEO

These are also misconceptions about SEO, competitors do not stop. SEO is not a one-time adjustment, but systematic work. If today you are in the TOP-10, this does not mean at all that in a month everything will remain the same. The rules of the game change, and new market participants appear, so you won’t be able to optimize SEO once and enjoy the result.

Inexpensive SEO is possible

A lot depends on the niche and the competition. But the concept of “low-cost SEO” will be different for every business. Everyone has their own concept of inexpensive cost and promotion price. The cost of SEO includes several blocks:

• Filling content;
• site audit + changes;
• link building and etc.

The price tag for the services of specialists can also differ tenfold, but at the same time, the result of their work will be different. In SEO, a deep study of all the nuances is important, and budget specialists, in general, work superficially.

You need to create a landing page for each keyword

These are SEO myths! First, it will limit your content and make it keyword-poor. Secondly, this way you can create a lot of unnecessary landing pages that will not be as informative for the user as one article on one page with well-developed keywords. Thirdly, it will lead to a colossal waste of time and effort without significant output.

Do not link to third party sites

The main mission of any article is to leave a satisfied and satisfied reader, and if you need to go to another resource for additional information, there is nothing criminal in this.
The link will be useful to the user – good, no – bad.

Copy content – get punished

There has never been a penalty for copying content! Google filters out duplicate content, but this means that only one site will be displayed for a keyword. By duplicating someone else’s content, you will simply kill your SEO, but the great Google will not punish you.
The same filter is applied to title and description, so make sure they are unique.

Search engine optimization no longer works

There are enough examples and cases of specialists from different countries. They prove that sites with competent search engine optimization are well promoted in search engines and show positive dynamics of their development on an ongoing basis.

Almost all traffic goes to the first three sites in searches, the rest go crumbs

Yes, there are many such resources. But let’s not forget that sites are usually promoted by a large number of requests. In the process of analyzing key groups, it turned out that, if you look at it as a whole, then sites with TOP positions lure less than half of thematic traffic. Therefore, if the resource is in the top ten, then it will have traffic.

Content affects SEO

Content is very important, but this is only the beginning of SEO.
High-quality content, but with “lame” mobile and image optimization will not be useful, because no one will read it because of the inconvenience. Some time ago, sheet pages were a success on the Internet. But now search engines will “prefer” content that will be useful to the user. Even if it is ten times smaller. And then, even if one of your articles hit the TOP, you should not think that it will be there forever. The information may be out of date. And the content can drastically fall down. Therefore, you need to update the material on the site constantly. At a minimum, keep it up-to-date and authentic.

Conclusions

Website optimization for search engines consists of several stages. Most of it is done internally, but it is also important to attract traffic from external sources.
You can promote in search engines any site that sells goods, and services or provides useful information to users.
Before you start working on increasing positions in search results, you need to conduct a thorough SEO analysis of the site. Also, study your competitors and your thematic niche. Any action must go according to plan. To learn the basics of search engine optimization in more detail, it is recommended to take SEO training. Use also Artificial Intelligence – it can become your indispensable assistant in your work.

SEO is an ongoing process as search engine algorithms are constantly changing and the competition in the market is also increasing. Optimization should be continuous and include analysis of results, updating content, and adapting to new requirements.
We can conclude that SEO is a long-term strategy that requires time, patience, and continuous improvement. We need to discard the SEO myths for 2023 and focus on improving the content, user experience, and technical aspects of the site in order to achieve long-term success in search engines.