I read a blog post earlier, which was clearly written for SEO purposes, rather than for people. It was an example of an SEO tactic called keyword stuffing.
What is keyword stuffing?
Keyword stuffing is the process of over optimizing a page of content, for a word or phrase, which is then used over and over again, in order to improve the keyword density of the post. The higher the keyword density, the easier it is for search engines to figure out what that post is all about. The post I just read was 337 words long and repeated the same 2 word key phrase 24 times!
It’s a low value form of SEO, as these over optimized posts tend to achieve very poor conversion rates. Yes, people will find them via search engines, but because they are stuffed with the same phrase over and over and over again, they make little sense. So, people tend to leave those pages as quickly as they arrive.
Focus on conversions, not traffic!
Over optimized, keyword stuffed posts are tempting for bloggers, who are more focused on traffic than focused on conversions; sales, subscribers, emails, sales inquiries etc.
Whilst it’s nice to see a few thousand people visit your blog each day, if they leave within seconds because the content fails to earn their attention, what’s the point? It’s a little like sending a huge mail shot out to people, which contains a badly written letter that makes no sense to the reader. It would reach lots of people, yet generate no positive response.
Organic optimization
The reality is that a well written post, which is on topic and focused around a single idea, can easily be picked up by search engines, whilst being of value to your target readership. Such posts are organically optimized. It’s natural. It reads great. It converts!
For example, if I were to write a review right now, for my new HTC One X phone, there would be a number of times where I would need to mention the full name of the phone. This would include the post title, the initial paragraph and at least one of the sub-headings. I’d also need to mention the full name of the phone in any stats I produced as well as the summing up section at the end of the review.
In short: Attract focused traffic by optimizing organically. Yes, it’s a smart move to ensure your blog posts are easy for the Google bot to understand, but stuffing them with keywords so they make little or no sense when people try to read them, is a waste of your time.
Photo: Jma Work
Hi Jim,
Totally agree.
Good articles will be commented on, Liked, Tweeted, +1′s etc. That is what Bloggers should be aiming for, as one of many possible outcomes.
Have a great weekend.
Mark.
I hate sites like that. They look totally unprofessional and show the owners are clueless.
Great post Jim.
Hi Jim I agree with you. In my own point of view keyword stuffing is a spam tactics.
Thanks for the post!
Traffic is great, but conversions are better. Bloggers need to remember who the target audience is. It’s not the search engine robots. If human visitors don’t like your content, you’ll never succeed.
Hi Jim i totally agree with you… before the bloggers write a content they need to know who are they writing for, and what are their needs and requirements…
It’s a shame that keyword sites with keyword stuffed content are still ranking.
The only thing that keyword stuffing is guaranteed to achieve is disgruntled, dissatisfied and despondent readers.
Focussing on great copy with original ideas is the best way to win over a targeted audience.
Awesome post as usual, jim. And with surprisingly little fluff.
You’ve hit it on the head, Jim. Unfortunately, I feel like a lot of SEO writers have a hard time breaking bad habits of over-optimization and keyword-stuffing, even though it’s been bad practice for years. I think a big part of the problem is that a lot of non-writers (including the people who hire these writers) don’t recognize the bad stuff when they see it, or they don’t recognize how bad it is for marketing and for SEO.