Common Mistakes Made with SEO that Can Hurt Your Page Rank

Lois Ryan
To improve you page rank, you need to properly use Search Engine Optimization (SEO). However, mistakes can still be made and you page rank can decrease. There are several common mistakes that will hurt you rather than help you.

Duplicating content is a big mistake. Let's assume that you write articles for several freelance writing websites. You believe that you will increase your traffic by submitting articles from one site onto another one. Duplicate content will not increase traffic, since the search engines only will list the first one that is submitted. When you have duplicate content on several sites, your page rank may be decreased. It is better to make unique content for each website. If you want to submit an article to a second site, it is best to include something original within the article.

Think of keywords and key phrases as a marketing plan. You need to use the correct ones to get your page rank to increase. Some examples of incorrect keywords are ones that are too common, too many keywords and irrelevant keywords.

The title of your website is the key to whether you succeed in SEO or fail. You title has to tell your audience what they will find on your site. Also remember if you do not include a keyword that is in the title of your page, your page rank will fall.

Not updating your website will also make your page rank suffer. If you have a website that sells merchandise, for example, you need to keep up with inventory. It is very frustrating to attempt to order a product then find out that it has been discontinued

Having a boring website can also hurt your page rank. You need to pay attention to your layout and make it eye-catching to your audience.

If you have a website with several pages, you will want to link them together to make it easier to navigate the site. However, make sure that each link works. Just typing a link in wrong will turn your audience away. There is nothing worse than a broken link. The same thing applies to backlinks. Do not overload your website with links back to other websites even if these sites are adding yours. This is distracting to your audience and can hurt your page rank.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is there to help you increase your page rank on the Search Engine Results Page. However, it is not fail-safe. There are many mistakes that can hurt your page rank. By understanding the mistakes such as using the wrong keywords and duplicate content, you are on the way to moving up in the ranks.

Published by Lois Ryan

I have wiorked in the manufacturing business for over 15 years. I am married and have two daughters ages 12 and 14. I recently graduated with a Masters in Business from the University of Phoenix and want t...  View profile

To comment, please sign in to your Yahoo! account, or sign up for a new account.