With the ever-changing rules of SEO and best practices on the internet, it can be hard to know what will work for your website. And, on top of the changing rules, there are also SEO myths that just won’t die. The SEO world likes to call them Zombie myths, because we try to kill them with facts, but they always come back. Here are 5 of the most common Zombie myths, and our Utah SEO specialists’ debunking answers.

5 SEO Zombie Myths

1. Content is All You Need

   While content is very important to have a great site, it’s not the only thing you need for good SEO. You could have the best website in the world, but that won’t matter if you don’t have any way to get to your website. Good SEO is a combination of great content, internal and external links, meta data, and site speed.

2. Site Speed Isn’t Important

   False! High-speed internet is the norm now, and your site’s visitors don’t want to wait on a slow site–especially on a mobile phone. In the early days of the internet, site speed wasn’t a concern, but today’s best websites are fast, sleek, and easy to use. Make sure you don’t bog down your sites with large images and videos. If you need help speeding up your site, Utah’s best SEO specialists can help!

3. Links Are Dead

   Nope! Much like the content myth above, links are still vital to your website’s rankings. But, Google and other search engines are much pickier when it comes to what kinds of links you have. In the olden days, the amount of links you had was all you needed. You could have 5,000 links from terrible, spammy, and even porn sites. Now, if you have a bunch of links from bad sites like that, you’ll get dinged. When you are building links and directory listings, you need to make sure that it’s a reputable site, AND that it’s related to your business.

4. You Don’t Need a Sitemap

   No matter how big or small your website is, it’s always important to have a sitemap. It helps search engines to know exactly how many pages you have, their hierarchy in importance, and even when they were last updated. Make sure you have a current xml sitemap on your website. If you need help creating one, give us a call! We would love to help.

5. SEO is Just Snake Oil

   There are many shady people on the internet trying to scam others for money, but SEO is real, and absolutely necessary for a successful website. It’s worth noting, however, that not all SEO firms and specialists are created equal. If you’re looking for the best SEO specialist in your area, do some research and find out their practices, their knowledge, and their philosophies. If you have a great SEO specialist working on your website, there’s nothing to stop you!

There are many more Zombie SEO myths out there, but these are the most popular ones that we hear from our past and present clients. If you want to know more about what SEO can do to grow your business, give us a call today!