5 SEO Myths That Are Holding You Back

1. SEO doesn’t work

For every SEO success story out there, there’s a small business owner who’s been burnt by an SEO specialist or agency. Locked into an expensive contract with little results to show for it.

Sadly, I see this happen quite often in this industry, and it can give SEO a bad name (thanks to a few bad eggs). But it definitely doesn’t reflect the effectiveness of SEO as a marketing tool for your business.

Google has 4.3 billion users worldwide. That’s twice as many as Instagram and Tiktok combined. And people who use Google are actively searching for solutions you provide, not passively scrolling.

This makes SEO one of the best ways to get your business in front of potential customers who are ready to buy from you.

As an SEO expert, I’ve worked with almost 100 businesses who have all experienced first-hand how effective SEO can be for them, no matter the size of their business or budget.

It all comes down to having the right SEO strategy in place.

If you’ve tried to DIY your SEO with lacklustre results, it might be time to reassess your SEO strategy and make some adjustments. Are you targeting highly relevant keywords that you can *actually* rank for? Are you creating fresh blog content?

Do some market research. What are other websites doing that are ranking well? How are they using keywords? What can you learn from them? This will give you an idea of where you can make some improvements.

SEO can and will work for your business, you might just need some more guidance to get you there.

2. SEO is too hard to DIY

There are plenty of SEO specialists and agencies who will tell you SEO is hard. It’s techy. Google is constantly changing the algorithm so there’s no way you could possibly keep up with it.

Sure, Google updates their algorithm all the time – like, 1,000 times per year – but these updates are tweaks to the same ranking factors we already know about, rather than sweeping changes.

And if you’re doing SEO right then you shouldn’t be worried about these updates, because you’ll already have the foundations in place to set your website up for success in search results.

Here’s the truth: SEO is a lot easier than you might think. You don’t need any special skills. You don’t need to be techy.  You just need the right tools, the right resources, and the right information.

There are plenty of SEO tools on the market that will help you do everything from checking keyword density to finding internal linking opportunities. And there are plenty of resources out there in the form of blogs, Youtube videos and podcasts.

You just need to know how to use these to your advantage.

3. SEO is expensive

Just like anything in business, there are expensive options out there when it comes to SEO. But there are also plenty of affordable options.

Creating and implementing the right SEO strategy doesn’t have to blow the budget, You just need to understand which options are available to you, and which ones are right for your business.

If you want to completely outsource your SEO, it might cost you $1,000 a month to hire an agency, but it will be worth the investment if you’ve done your research and chosen a provider who will deliver results (with transparency and honesty).

SEO has one of the highest returns on investment (ROI) of any marketing channel. Making it one of the best channels to invest in for your business. And it’s not just your bottom line that will benefit – SEO can also increase your brand awareness, credibility and customer experience.

But most small businesses aren’t in a position to commit to a monthly investment in the thousands, especially when they’re just starting out.

This is where more affordable DIY and done-with-you solutions are a great option. Providing you with support and guidance to get started and see results, without the big price tag.

4. SEO takes constant work

Ready for some tough love? Your website won’t get to page one of Google on its own. You need to put in the work with your SEO.

But that doesn’t mean you have to spend every hour of every day updating and optimising your website.

The truth is, once you have the foundations of a solid SEO strategy in place – strategic keyword targeting, a logical website structure, and highly relevant and useful content – you don’t need to spend tonnes of time on your SEO.

This isn’t a case of set-and-forget, but there’s just a handful of easy monthly SEO tasks you need to stay focussed on that will help you maintain and grow your website traffic. By setting aside a few hours each month, you can avoid the SEO overwhelm and make sure you’re staying on top of the tasks that will have the biggest impact for your business.

5. SEO is a long-term game

OK, there’s some truth to this myth. Any SEO expert, including yours truly, will tell you it takes time to start seeing results from SEO.

But the same could be said for organic social media, email marketing or any effective business strategy. A harsh truth of running a business is you won’t get overnight results, so you need to be willing to play the long game.

If you’re new to SEO it can take time for Google’s algorithm to recognise you as an authority in your niche and start ranking your content higher in search results. On average, this process takes about four to six months, but I’ve also worked with businesses that have achieved results in as little as a few weeks.

There are so many factors that come into play here, from the age and authority of your domain, to how frequently you’re updating your content and even how competitive your industry is.

The truth is you can never really know how long SEO will take for your business. But if you start today, I can guarantee you’ll be better off in one, three, six, twelve months and beyond. Because you’ve made progress towards your goals.