I have a pet peeve. Okay, maybe I have several pet peeves. But this one I see all the time, and repeatedly from some and it drives me nuts!
You know the people, the ones that never miss an opportunity to tell you that they rank number one on Google for all of the keywords relating to their business.
Yeah. Right. Sure You Do.
I know for a fact one of these so-called Google Braggers uses this line to woo new clients who don’t know any better… Ah the illustrious promise of the Google Promise Land.
Here’s my problem with that. Those statements 99.9% of the time are FALSE!
Yep. They are false. And, here’s the even bigger problem… the people claiming to have reached this state of Google Nirvana with their site ranking number one for every keyword, usually have no idea that they are making false claims because they don’t understand search engine optimization (seo) and rankings.
Take for example a local Sacramento company that makes this claim often. They aren’t even in the search engine optimization business, so it clear that they don’t realize how silly what they are claiming really is.
After about the fifth time I’ve seen them make this claim both in person and on Facebook, I decided to check it out. I cleared my browser history, I cleared my cache, I logged out of Google and I searched. Yes, they ranked number one for their business name and the two owners’ names – but everyone should rank number one for their branded keywords. Then I searched for them under the top seven keywords and key phrases I could think of that would fit their business and they didn’t even crack the top three pages. For several keywords, they didn’t even crack the top ten pages.
Here’s what you need to know. Your search results are relative.
The sites that come up in the results when you search for something are affected by your browsing history, the links you click on, whether or not you’re logged into Google, your location, whether you search for yourself 100 times a day, and more. That means that just because you come up number one when you search for yourself, it doesn’t mean you will when other people search for you.
Now, you can log out of Google, wipe your browser history clean, and clear your cache, etc. to get a fairly accurate and clean look at where your site stands. You also can use Google’s Webmaster Tools and other tools available to see your true stats.
If you get one thing out of this article, I want you to understand that everything online is relative and as we move more toward the socialization of the web, it will become even more so.
Also, don’t get sucked in by the promises of reaching the number one spot on Google for every keyword that applies to your business. There are companies that get paid millions of dollars a year to achieve that and if they have a hard time getting it done and have to work on hitting that goals day in and day out, your local entrepreneur, for whom SEO isn’t even a part of their business, isn’t going to make it happen.
What you can do, is hire a reputable company to do some keyword research for you and provide you a report back on the appropriate keywords and key phrases for your business that you can successfully compete on, and which keywords and key phrases that, no matter how hard you try, there is just too much competition in the market to be successful without a lot of money and a lot (and I mean a lot) of effort. That way you can get the best results for your efforts.
About Jennifer Bourn
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I thought I’d comment anyway Jen whther you are in the top ten or not as I find this interesting. I don’t completely get all this keyword stuff but I am trying to follow exactly what Ann Evaston taught me to do in her bootcamp and hope that that works :). I’m sure I’ll get better at it as time progresses so your article helped. – and sorry for the typos but for some reason if I try and edit the whole post disappears.
Louise – Well, then you’re already well on your way. The three biggest things to take into account to boost your rankings are 1) user friendly design with clean code, 2) frequently updated, high quality content, and 3) inbound links from quality sources. There are a lot of people who try to pose as experts, but they only know a small portion of the information. You’ve done well by choosing to learn from Ann too, she’s the real deal and a good friend!
Excellent article Jennifer… sharing it. (Will actually make it a recommended reading!) ;o)
Patricia – Thanks! That’s great to hear :) I appreciate you stopping by!
I am not sure if you are in the top 10 or not, but your subject matter is interesting and relevant, so really enjoyed reading this. I have tried SEO “specialists” three different times, and the biggest thing I learned is that they did not know everything I had hoped they would know! I am working with someone now who charges a whole lot less and seems to have a better understanding…the one part I am still weak on is getting inbound links, which takes time and effort I need to invest. Thank you for sharing your wisdom!
This is a pet peeve of mine too. I focus on helping clients develop quality content, but prospects often only want to talk about how quickly the next guy can boost their Google ranking. Sometimes it’s difficult to speak reason in the face of flashy promises. I understand why they’re impressed by the fast Google ranking, but I need to do a better job of explaining search results.
The sooner people realize the search engine optimization (SEO) is a zero sum game, the more inclined they are to understand the complexities of it. When you increase your rankings, it means someone else’s went down… So then they try to knock you down to get their content to rise… The bottom line is that if you develop great content that is useful and relevant to your audience on a regular basis you’ll win :)
Great information Jennifer! And the best part…it was easy to understand which is great for me. I sometimes get lost in all the “techno speak”!
To SEO not to SEO. That is the question. The points you made remind me that I decided to focus on content that people will find because I directed them there not because they searched.
Thanks.
I have friends who have sites that rank well and have never done an ounce of optimization for search engines. Plus, with all of the changes Google is making to make it more difficult to manipulate search results, SEO companies may soon find themselves out of a job. Google’s Matt Cutts has said in his videos that they no longer look at keywords or descriptions, and that even the H tags don’t matter like they once did.
The things that have remained consistent are the fact that user friendly website design and useful, valuable, personal, and relevant content that is fresh will help you gain more ground. Oh, and inbound links. Other sites of value linking back to your site is the ultimate prize – and good content will help you do that.
Being fairly new to this blogging world, I am just mystified by all that there is to learn!
Most of what I’ve learned, is self-taught (better on the ol’ budget!), but I’m always worrying that I’m missing out by not hiring consultants…. good to know, that’s not always the case!
Thanks for the useful information, Jennifer
Jen,
This is great! Thanks for the informations and as was mentioned earlier, for keeping it easy to understand!
Good point Jennifer. I am doing really well using my name as a search. Of course, in my business where I get business mostly by referral, this is good….it means that if someone hears my name and they look me up they will see me and because of all the links I dominate the first three pages. This is good. For new off the block clients…hmmmmmm…it will take a lot more work! Thanks for the reminder.
I agree with you that most companies, even the very large ones, are ranking for their branded keywords rather than for non branded keywords that is what their clients are actually searching on. This of course is compounded by the common mistake that their website is optimized for their company name than for what they actually DO, one of the things I cover in my free report. And yes, it can be misleading to say “we can get you on page 1 of google”. Yeah I’ll claim that .. if I can pick the keywords :) Anyone can rank for keywords that have very thin competition, even post mayday. But can you rank for decent keywords? That is the question … thanks for this educational message, it’s good to see it out there.
Kathy – I agree! I can definitely get you to the first page of Google … even the number one spot. But will it be for a keyword that even matters? That’s the key … targeting keywords and key phrases that 1) you can successfully compete on, and 2) your audience is searching for! You’ll love this article too I wrote on this exact subject: http://www.bourncreative.com/poop-and-googles-illusive-number-one-ranking
Great info, thanks for sharing. You’ve saved me a ton of time reading all those reports that promise top 10 rankings. Now off to write more posts with good content…:)
this is great stuff Jennifer – thanks for sharing. I had always wondered how these guys could claim that and it sounds like the law of relativity is definitely in play!
Lol- isn’t life all relative depending on where you happen to be standing at any specific time?
This reminds me a lot of people saying they are a #1 Amazon best seller. Amazon has so many different categories, your rank could completely depend on which category you list your book in (sort of like keywords). You could be #1 for five minutes (it is fluid depending on sales). So in reality, the author can say they were #1, but it’s all relative to the underlying facts!
Candace Davenport
http://www.ourlittlebooks.com
I love it that you expose the poseurs. I also learnt a thing or two which will be helpful. I need to clear my cache and my history to see where I really stand!
That kind of promise may have been attainable 10 years ago but it’s a whole other ballgame now! Thanks for the explanation.
Jennifer, great post! Very good info here. I spent a fair amount of time teaching myself about SEO and have found it all pretty weird and wild. I particularly like your mention of how the socialization of the web has and will continue to totally change the playing field. Many of the old ideas and things that use to work are not totally obsolete.
-Ron-
Thanks for the heads up. I’ll be more discerning when I see such a claim. Thanks also on the practical advice on looking for you rankings. I had not thought of clearing history and cache.
Always good, practical tips.
I always suspected that this was the case. For example, I can google Jen Sako all day long and I will be the entire first page of google. I thought, “big deal, who would be googling me by name??” I have some key words that I use, but there is so much competition that I don’t know if I will ever by number 1. Which is fine, but I don’t hinge my success on being number 1 on google. Interesting article. Thanks.
It’s amazing that when you start digging into the research to see how few companies actually reply on organic search. It is definitely something you need to be aware of, and it does need to be a part of your strategy, but usually it’s a high effort low return gain. One study I read talked about the fact that most traffic from search are people who don’t know you at all, and unless your a retail business, or restaurant, or smog shop etc., the statistics for a conversion are against you.
Our approach is that it is part of our overall strategy. Yes, we do our research and optimize for the areas we want to target, and we do get quite a bit of traffic from organic search, but our highest conversions come from other lead nurturing areas of our marketing.
For the service-based entrepreneur, I think it’s more important to have a stellar reputation and a strong, valuable presence online so you’re easy to find, than to rank number one. Now if you’re one of several local widget retailers, well, that’s another story :)
You can build a better mousetrap, but if the world doesn’t know about it, or know to search for it…
Good article with a great reality check.
Keyword is a mystery to me but I am slowly learning from wise people on. If you get #1 on one day what’s to say you will stay there on another for the same word?
I am learning about the keyword tool and I think I am starting to get it but I know only with trial and error will I get it. I’d rather know how to do it than to pay someone to do it and not know for sure whether they are just scamming me. [because I really wouldn't know]
Thanks again for such awesome information.