New Google video looks at common SEO mistakes

Google has uploaded a new video to its YouTube channel describing five of the most common search engine optimisation mistakes – and six 'good ideas' to help internet marketers get results.

The video is presented by Maile Ohye, a developer programs tech lead at Google. A summary of the slip-ups she mentions is presented below:

The first mistake is to begin to optimise your business' website without first establishing your USPs (unique selling points). Apart from the simple reason that conversion matters – appearing in search engine results pages (SERPs) does not mean that people will buy into your product – this could also be tied to Google's recent innovations in social search, as effectively-communicated USPs may encourage users to share your page with others.

The second mistake is to carry out your SEO separately from your other marketing activities. By tying offline marketing into online marketing, key phrases and slogans that users have searched for after seeing them on 'real world' adverts should begin to rank well in SERPs.

The third mistake is related to pagination – companies must use the latest standards to help search engines index their pages rather than using canonical tags, or fail to use code at all.

Ohye's fourth tip is to avoid getting caught in 'trends'. She uses the example of the way in which search engines and websites were once focused on attracting users, whereas now the focus has shifted towards achieving good rankings. As she points out, a good ranking does not necessarily mean good traffic.

The fifth and final SEO pitfall is, conversely, to fail to respond quickly to changes in search engines and within your industry. This includes simple matters like regular website updates, but also being able to quickly implement changes recommended by marketing and SEO teams when, for example, Google updates its algorithm.

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