[Hot] How Does Google Do SEO?
Google owns and manages over 7,000 websites worldwide, and according to Google's Sean O'Keefe, each of these websites "receive the same treatment as any other site on the web."
What does this mean? According to O'Keefe, Google must optimize its own websites for SEO to perform well on its own search engine. So how does Google optimize for...Google?
O'Keefe recently shared Google's own "cohesive SEO strategy" on Google's blog devoted to the digital marketing community, Think With Google. Beyond the strategy details, the post is intriguing for several reasons.
First, this post puts to rest the outdated, misinformed notion that Google and SEO are somehow at odds. Critics cite Google's frequent algorithm changes, which inevitably harm some websites rankings, or the search engines's apparent "silence" about algorithm changes, or the rare (but notable) cases of de-indexing, when Google wipes a site or sites from its search engine results.
In reality, the algorithm changes promote good content, and any incidental loss in rankings is usually recovered quickly--that is, if your site is a good site, with good SEO. The only sites that lose rankings, or suffer the worst fate, de-indexing, are spam sites.
Second, the post implies that Google is an impartial judge of content--after all, it's own sites do not receive preferential treatment. This is impossible to confirm, of course, and Google's previous actions, for which it has been fined by European anti-trust regulators, seem to undermine this implication.
On the other hand, the very nature or organic search, which defines Google's success, is to reveal the best content for any given search, so the search engine has a great deal of incentive to be as impartial as possible. Just as Google knows
no browser wants a results page full of AdWords, it also knows: To satisfy users, it must provide unbiased organic listings.
Finally, simply put, this post confirms the viability of SEO. AS O'Keefe writes, "When done well, SEO can provide an important — and cost-effective — strategy for organic growth." This is not an SEO firm saying this--it's Google! So, yes, SEO is "important" and more importantly "cost-effective."
So how does Google optimize its own sites for SEO? We discuss O'Keefe's three main points below...
Read: "Inside Google Marketing: 3 ways we think about SEO"
Start Small
O'Keefe's first bit of advice, to focus on small, "incremental changes," speaks precisely to what Alex Stepman, of Stepman's SEO, calls the "X Factor" of good SEO: small tweaks.
"Most of my new clients want to start big, with splashy content marketing, or aggressive AdWords campaigns," Stepman says. "But the best strategy, to begin, is to focus on the small SEO tweaks that make a big difference."
For Stepman and Google these tweaks can be described as "best practices," and happily Google reveals its own best practices on what it calls an "opinionated reference for building amazing web experiences," its Web Fundamentals page. By following these practices, O'Keefe notes, a number of Google's own sites have seen "strong organic growth."
However, before attending to the fundamentals, O'Keefe (and Stepman) recommends the Search Console's URL Inspection Tool for recognizing potential problems with your site.
Evolve With the Algorithms
Search evolves. To compete, you must evolve with search.
As O'Keefe notes: "It can be easy to get overwhelmed by...changes, but internally we’ve found that the more we embrace them and experiment with them, the better our SEO results."
In his post, O'Keefe refers to several recent developments in search, including structured data, AMP, and featured snippets, to illustrate how Google how applied fixes to sites to increase impression on its sites by up to 200%.
(This is not marketing fluff; it's Google reporting its own SEO results).
So how do you evolve with search? In our estimation, the easiest way to keep pace is to read SEO blogs and journals, like The Organic SEO Blog. Our SEO 101 series is a great place to start.
Read: "SEO 101: Rich Snippets and Structured Data"
Read: "SEO 101: Accelerated Mobile Pages"
Consolidate
O'Keefe's final bit of advice, to consolidate web properties (when possible), also speaks to the oft-repeated SEO mantra to create "unique content"--or "10x content."
As O'Keefe notes, "It can be tempting to create multiple websites, each containing very similar content, to target different customer profiles or geographic regions."
But this strategy, O'Keefe notes, is akin to duplicate content, "substantive blocks of content within or across domains that either completely match other content or are appreciably similar," according to Google.
A known SEO no-no for years, duplicate content can confuse users and search engines. One great site is better than multiple smaller sites--just as one great page is better than multiple similar pages.
Instead of duplicating properties, focus on differentiation.
Read: "Content Marketing 101: The Power of Differentiation"
Organic SEO with Stepman's SEO
If you're looking for an SEO company that understands how to effectively promote websites with content optimized for voice and mobile, we suggest contacting our sponsor, Stepman's SEO: 215-900-9398.
Stepman's SEO combines traditional marketing methods and organic SEO--with an emphasis on natural website optimization--to design thoughtful, inspiring, and effective content marketing campaigns.
What does this mean? According to O'Keefe, Google must optimize its own websites for SEO to perform well on its own search engine. So how does Google optimize for...Google?
O'Keefe recently shared Google's own "cohesive SEO strategy" on Google's blog devoted to the digital marketing community, Think With Google. Beyond the strategy details, the post is intriguing for several reasons.
First, this post puts to rest the outdated, misinformed notion that Google and SEO are somehow at odds. Critics cite Google's frequent algorithm changes, which inevitably harm some websites rankings, or the search engines's apparent "silence" about algorithm changes, or the rare (but notable) cases of de-indexing, when Google wipes a site or sites from its search engine results.
In reality, the algorithm changes promote good content, and any incidental loss in rankings is usually recovered quickly--that is, if your site is a good site, with good SEO. The only sites that lose rankings, or suffer the worst fate, de-indexing, are spam sites.
Second, the post implies that Google is an impartial judge of content--after all, it's own sites do not receive preferential treatment. This is impossible to confirm, of course, and Google's previous actions, for which it has been fined by European anti-trust regulators, seem to undermine this implication.
On the other hand, the very nature or organic search, which defines Google's success, is to reveal the best content for any given search, so the search engine has a great deal of incentive to be as impartial as possible. Just as Google knows
no browser wants a results page full of AdWords, it also knows: To satisfy users, it must provide unbiased organic listings.
Finally, simply put, this post confirms the viability of SEO. AS O'Keefe writes, "When done well, SEO can provide an important — and cost-effective — strategy for organic growth." This is not an SEO firm saying this--it's Google! So, yes, SEO is "important" and more importantly "cost-effective."
So how does Google optimize its own sites for SEO? We discuss O'Keefe's three main points below...
Read: "Inside Google Marketing: 3 ways we think about SEO"
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| Google optimizes its own sites for SEO to satisfy its own algorithm [photo source] |
Start Small
O'Keefe's first bit of advice, to focus on small, "incremental changes," speaks precisely to what Alex Stepman, of Stepman's SEO, calls the "X Factor" of good SEO: small tweaks.
"Most of my new clients want to start big, with splashy content marketing, or aggressive AdWords campaigns," Stepman says. "But the best strategy, to begin, is to focus on the small SEO tweaks that make a big difference."
For Stepman and Google these tweaks can be described as "best practices," and happily Google reveals its own best practices on what it calls an "opinionated reference for building amazing web experiences," its Web Fundamentals page. By following these practices, O'Keefe notes, a number of Google's own sites have seen "strong organic growth."
However, before attending to the fundamentals, O'Keefe (and Stepman) recommends the Search Console's URL Inspection Tool for recognizing potential problems with your site.
Evolve With the Algorithms
Search evolves. To compete, you must evolve with search.
As O'Keefe notes: "It can be easy to get overwhelmed by...changes, but internally we’ve found that the more we embrace them and experiment with them, the better our SEO results."
In his post, O'Keefe refers to several recent developments in search, including structured data, AMP, and featured snippets, to illustrate how Google how applied fixes to sites to increase impression on its sites by up to 200%.
(This is not marketing fluff; it's Google reporting its own SEO results).
So how do you evolve with search? In our estimation, the easiest way to keep pace is to read SEO blogs and journals, like The Organic SEO Blog. Our SEO 101 series is a great place to start.
Read: "SEO 101: Rich Snippets and Structured Data"
Read: "SEO 101: Accelerated Mobile Pages"
Consolidate
O'Keefe's final bit of advice, to consolidate web properties (when possible), also speaks to the oft-repeated SEO mantra to create "unique content"--or "10x content."
As O'Keefe notes, "It can be tempting to create multiple websites, each containing very similar content, to target different customer profiles or geographic regions."
But this strategy, O'Keefe notes, is akin to duplicate content, "substantive blocks of content within or across domains that either completely match other content or are appreciably similar," according to Google.
Instead of duplicating properties, focus on differentiation.
Read: "Content Marketing 101: The Power of Differentiation"
Organic SEO with Stepman's SEO
If you're looking for an SEO company that understands how to effectively promote websites with content optimized for voice and mobile, we suggest contacting our sponsor, Stepman's SEO: 215-900-9398.
Stepman's SEO combines traditional marketing methods and organic SEO--with an emphasis on natural website optimization--to design thoughtful, inspiring, and effective content marketing campaigns.