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Yes, SEO is an extremely important part to your success online, but there are literally hundreds of SEO myths flying around cyberspace that can dampen your overall results. If you take a good hard look at the majority of the information you will find that most of it is opinionated rather than factual. So today we want to share with you the twelve most common SEO myths on the Internet today.

#1- All Links are Equal- Even though this was once a successful SEO strategy, you will find that are links are NOT equal today. There are several ways to build backlinks to your sites, but only a few of them today are helpful. This is due to the search engines becoming more aware of what is relevant and what is not. So when you find someone with 50 backlinks to their site and a higher ranking then you with 1000 links, this is why.

#2- Keyword Density is Important- Another one of the monumental SEO myths is that keyword density is the most important part to your success. The truth is you won’t find any set of rules that guarantee success through a proper amount of usage. What it really comes down to is providing highly search and minimum competitive type keywords, and then placing them in the article appropriately.

#3- Meta Keywords Still Work- You have probably heard all the debates that go back and forth about meta keywords. Recently though it was discovered that this statement is simply one of the SEO myths. Google and Yahoo have announced publicly that they no longer use meta keywords for ranking purposes. So don’t bother working on them. However, meta descriptions and tiles are still valuable.

#4- Web Directories are Highly Valuable- Ah yes, back in the day web directories were extremely valuable, but one of the SEO myths is that they still are today. Granted, you can still achieve success with highly credible directories, but the general ones are pretty much useless anymore.

5. Blackhat SEO Won’t Get you Caught: Many people think that anything they do won’t be discovered, and that even if someone does find out they won’t get punished. The truth is that no matter large or small your operation is, you can get caught using illicit marketing or promotion tactics and you can get delisted from the major search engines as a result.

6. SEO Success Happens Overnight: Another one of the most common SEO myths that people believe in is that SEO success happens instantaneously. It just doesn’t happen overnight. SEO is a process that works over a period of time, and the results gradually improve. It requires long term dedication and not a quick fix strategy.

#7- Google is All that Matters- Once upon a time businesses could just focus on Google and make all kinds of money. However, those days are long gone and these SEO myths now revolve around utilize several search engines. You have to remember that the smaller ones like Yahoo and Bing still have people using theirs. Yes, Google makes up about 34% of all the searches online, but that leaves you without the other 66%. Plus, you can’t forget about other ways to market like Facebook, Youtube, and a plethora of other options.

#8- PageRank is Everything- Page ranking was extremely important when there was only one way to decipher the ranks. However, when the algorithms began to change in hopes of providing more relevant information, thinking they were everything turned into one of the SEO myths. It definitely still helps, but with the constant algorithm fluctuation it’s not as big.

9. Common Sense is More Important than Research: Just because you think one thing doesn’t mean that everyone else thinks the same way. This holds true for many areas, but is especially important when it comes to keyword selection. Don’t assume you know what people are searching for, what the competition is or anything else. Perform solid research that shows the facts of the situation.

#10- More Traffic is Always Better- If anyone throws these SEO myths at you, run the other way. The truth is you can have millions of visitors everyday, but without targeted traffic your sales will only be minimal. The idea is to have conversion rates that are off the charts, which means you need internet buyers not surfers. We recommend looking for targeted traffic first, then move on to expanding your base.

11. Buying Links and Link Farms Always Works: Google has long since sniffed out the practices of link farming, three way linking and buying links. You may be able to derive some benefits in certain situations, however in most cases many of these techniques fall into the blackhat realm and can see you penalized.

12. Once You Achieve a Ranking, Your Work is Done: One of the largest SEO myths of them all is that SEO is a one-shot deal. In other words, just because you achieve a ranking it doesn’t mean your work is over. In truth, that’s the easy part and the hard part is maintaining or improving on that ranking as time goes on. Your website has fierce competition from many sources, and you need to work hard to maintain your presence.

So learn from the mistakes of others and avoid these common SEO myths. Always remember, SEO is a dynamic and changing landscape, and what works today may not work tomorrow. Stay up to date with the latest trends and best practices and avoid falling into these and similar schemes and pitfalls.

To find out more about SEO strategies, visit David Baxter’s site www.SmartMediaInnovations.com for a dramatic improvement in your websites search engine rankings today.