If you think that you can simply create great content and let the search engines do the rest, then you might be in for a rude surprise, if you have not already been shocked. Following are the reasons why the relationship between great content and traffic is not so direct:
- Each search engine is different. They not only use different algorithms, they also keep changing them often. So you would find that you might do well with Google but not so good with Yahoo or MSN. In fact, some websites do extremely well in one search engine while the others throw them out. In other words, there is no way you can satisfy all search engines equally well. So just learn to live with it.
- The Internet is very dynamic and truly global. So every time a new page is created by anyone on the net, the percentage of real estate that you own on the Internet is proportionately reduced. In other words, you are less popular than you were a few moments ago. So do not expect that if you simply keep adding new content, your traffic will continue to grow. It might actually decline.
- Your ranking in search results (or sometimes also called as SERPS) may drop over time. This may happen for variety of reasons and for no fault of yours.
- Search engine optimization firms and other highly technical people who invest tremendous amount of resources in how search engines work and what new algorithms are in place can often successfully manipulate search results. Thus, you might see websites that use many dirty tricks show up much higher. The search engines like Google and MSN do an excellent job of keeping such websites out but they are not perfect. Yahoo is the most susceptible search engine to manipulation and most results are somewhat manipulated.
- Ignore them. This may sound difficult to do when you suddenly realize that all your traffic has disappeared and months/years of hard work has gone waste, but if you obsess over every small change that search engines make, you will lose focus.
- No need to fall in the trap of search engine optimization. Simply follow the basic guidelines of web design and you should be in reasonable shape over the long run.
- Do not try to play dirty tricks or outsmart the search engines if you are trying to develop a sustainable, profitable business.
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