• Tweet
• Sharebar

April is typically the month which is littered with light showers; the weather is unpredictable and generally umbrellas and coats are still required. However, this year the weather has opted to take us all by surprise and instead of walking around in jeans, hoody and a coat, I along with thousands of others have been spotted at the local parks throughout the Midlands kicking a footy around in a t-shirt and three-quarter lengths. It’s amazing how the glorious weather can change the mood, not just in a small office, but throughout entire cities.

During the latest (friendly – honest) kick-around at the weekend, memories of school holidays playing football using jumpers for goal posts came flooding back – and I’m sure for many thinking about school holidays, the phrase “jumpers for goal posts” will strike a chord.

For those who aren’t aware of the phrase, it is a basic as it sounds; kids using their jumpers in replacement of goalposts. Unfortunately as they don’t provide the solid foundations that traditional metal goalposts with a crossbar offer, you can never be too certain as to whether it was a goal or not. For those competitive ones amongst us this could lead to tantrums if the result didn’t go in your favour.

Such an adage of “jumpers for goalposts” can be taken from the playgrounds and parks of the UK and thrown into the SEO world – especially when one of the main players of this game of football is the power giant that is Google (and the ball is its algorithm).

When it comes to playing football in the garden of SEO, Google seems to own everything; from the ground it’s played on and the ball used, through to the goalposts. Unfortunately not only does Google use this to their advantage, but they keep changing the parameters of the goalposts.

Some of the goalposts which Google are fond of moving relate to huge parts of SEO, article marketing and keywords. Here we’re going to explore the two main goalposts involved in article marketing and keywords, and also ways of ensuring no matter how much Google decides to move them, you still manage to score a goal that will rival any other goal of the season.

Keywords:

This is ultimately Google’s favourite goalpost; however it’s also the one that is moved a lot and can catch even the most prolific of goal-scorers out, if a close eye isn’t kept on it.

As all seasoned veterans of the SEO world will be able to testify, keywords play an important role within the success of an SEO campaign. Get them right and the campaign can make its progress to the top of the pile. However get it wrong and you’ll find your campaign scurrying around backstage, struggling to get the recognition it truly deserves.

Getting it wrong is easily avoidable, as long as you don’t keyword stuff. For example, a page which has been stuffed full of keywords, which not only looks forced but is also hard to read in coherent English, is likely to miss the “goal” completely and find itself not only in the basements of Google’s league, but also at the bottom of the said league.

To ensure that you manage to score that all important “goal” which doesn’t see the ball hitting the woodwork before the back of the net, you need to pay attention to the changes Google is making to its algorithm.

One major way in which Google is moving its keyword goalpost is by opting to favour brand-rich domains instead of keyword-rich domains. Therefore if you’ve have a domain such as buy-jumpers-for-goalposts.co.uk which previously ranked high for a “buy jumpers” search, chances are with Google now favouring brand-rich domains, unless you get a branded jumper into your domain name, your ranks will begin to slowly slip.

Providing the structure for the goal on this particular pitch is that of article marketing.

Article Marketing:

I may be biased on my thoughts about article marketing as this is the bread and butter of my experience within the SEO industry; however as I try to be impartial I have noticed various articles which suggest a potential fall from grace for such SEO campaign strategies.

Some fear that as Google moves the goalposts, article marketing could be made redundant. However, if used wisely article marketing can help you turn your campaign from relegation fodder to title contenders.

The main thing to consider with the article marketing goalpost is to ensure that it isn’t a content farm. Google have already brought out an algorithm change to prevent content farms benefiting.

Whilst a content farm may be able to provide you with reams of information to fill your well designed website with, the quality of the information will be as useful as a chocolate tray in the summer sun.

Instead, it’s better to go for quality over quantity. This way you can ensure that the information on your site is not only relevant to what you’re selling/offering, but that it’s also keyword-rich without being spammy, and that there is no duplicate content. By providing your site with relevant and unique content there will be no reason for Google to consider moving its goalposts.

That said, a bit like the child who doesn’t get his own way and finds that he keeps conceding goals at the park, Google is likely to continue to change its goalposts until a “bigger boy” comes along and offers a better alternative. This may see a full goal in use and a brand new shiny ball, making it a better proposition for others to play with, leaving Google to stand on the muddy field lonely and dejected.

Written by Michael Younger, Content Writer for Creare Communications’ a leading SEO company and internet marketing specialist offering search engine optimisation, video production, web design, ecommerce solutions and email marketing.