Part 1: Your Guardian Angels
Part 2: The Virtues
Part 3: The Temptations
Gather ‘round, ye halo-wearing brethren! Those bruises, those tired eyes… search engine optimization is quite the uphill battle, huh? Especially with all of the pesky algorithm changes. Being such virtuous folks, it’s not like any of you took a real hit to your search rankings anyway, right? I’m sure you already have them memorized, but let’s have a quick review of some of the most prominent SEO virtues… for all the other people, of course.
8 Virtues of an SEO Saint
1. Page Relevance
Just as their actions parallel their beliefs, an SEO saint’s webpage parallels its domain name, remaining relevant and searchable from its very core. The name of the website or company always relates to the subject of the page, as does the URL. There are always multiple means of finding the page throughout its website design. An SEO saint also never forgets that the ladies (and gentlemen, and search engines) love site maps and archives.
2. Research Diligence
A renowned SEO saint manages to spread a message without being stoned to Google death by planning ahead. They know that standing on a soapbox while highly outnumbered is a losing battle. Thus, before ever saying a word, they research keywords and subjects that are popular but not saturated by fellow SEO evangelists. They also know that longer keywords (i.e. “how to lose 10 pounds” vs. “lose weight”) are best.
3. Focus and Consistency
An SEO saint is never distracted by the beauty of their own voice. Having planned around a specific set of keywords, they talk about one thing and one thing only. They understand that algorithm angels will have a rough time categorizing (and ranking) the page otherwise. The wisest SEO saints make sure to post consistently and predictably, too, for predictability delights the convenience-hungry people of the Internet.
4. Genuineness
A true SEO saint writes not for the gods of search, but for the readers of the page. For two reasons:
1. Conscious, sober readers (usually) don’t like to see a word – or variations of a word – repeated dozens of times in a single paragraph. Rich, true content goes beyond simply attracting readers to the page by actually keeping them on it and increasing the perceived legitimacy and usefulness of the domain, along with the likelihood that people are going to share the page. Traffic is useless if the people do not like what they read.
2. The algorithm angels are constantly getting better at seeking out writers trying to sneak their way into Google heaven. Writing straight to the gods of search (i.e. Keyword Stuffing) is the oldest trick in the book, and doing so will just come off as an insult to their intelligence.
5. Uniqueness
All SEO saints know that no two webpages are alike. And if any are, they might as well not exist anyway. People like original content. And search engines like people. To assume that search engines like original content would be a logical fallacy, but there’s no fallacy here – we checked.
6. Friendliness
Some believe that professional success is all about knowing the right people. So do SEO saints. A genuine SEO saint treats others as they would like to be treated, making and nurturing friendships on a daily basis. They link to other saints’ (rich, true) content within their webpages, and openly support websites that they believe to be relevant. They reach out to social media outlets, respond to followers, and offer ample opportunities for readers to interact and offer input. As a good friend to others, an SEO saint’s content is genuinely shared and praised by like-minded individuals, promoting natural link building.
7. Resourcefulness
An SEO saint never gets bogged down by tradition. They understand the constantly evolving nature of the Internet and search engine optimization as a whole. For that reason, they are always reading updated information on SEO, willing to change their methods at the drop of the dime. As silent heroes, they utilize all the tools at hand, never forgetting to include images and fill out meta descriptions and alt titles with accurate – yet relevant – text.
8. Patience
Once click-happy Internet users like anyone else, the hardest task for any SEO saint is to wait. The greatest of saints do not expect instant results. After an update of any kind, they give time for search engines to crawl their website, for users to discover their page, and for authentic success to engulf them. They comprehend the idea that webpages grow more legitimate with age.
Stay tuned for Part 3: The Temptations.
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What are some other virtues of an SEO saint?