Search engine optimization is absolutely critical to a strong search engine marketing strategy. Through a combination of deliberate technical considerations, great content and organic searches, you can dramatically increase your brand’s exposure in searches on Google, Bing and beyond. In the pursuit of better SEO, however, we can sometimes become blinded to problems that over-optimization can create. Let’s spend a bit of time today talking about how SEO can actually be a bad thing, and when it is best to avoid over-using it for the sake of your content, audience and brand.

When Your Content Serves Machines Instead of People

We all know that content is king in the world of SEO. Without it, search engines would never give your website a first glance – much less a second. Because of this, many bloggers and content creators fall victim to one of the oldest mistakes out there: writing for search engines rather than people. Pinging to Google and other search engines content that is written with a technical concern in mind more so than a human one will fail to deliver. This is because most people will find the content to be less than useful, thereby triggering a variety of indicators about your website that search engines view negatively. In the end, it becomes an exercise in self-defeat. Writing for people, rather than machines, is the only way to improve your long-term SEO standing.

When Over-optimization Leads to Penalties

Search engine optimization is absolutely essential to any brand’s chances for success in search engines. There are literally hundreds of top-level optimizations you can make to content, design and web infrastructure – and many are necessary. However, too much optimization can sometimes be a bad thing. Obsessing over optimizations in your content, fretting over whether you need more links and thereby forgetting why – and for whom – you’re writing the content in the first place can lead to penalties. In fact, search engines are beginning to explore over-optimization penalties that do not relate to specific black-hat or gray-hat tactics, but rather, relate to the amount of tweaking that has been done overall.

When Links Become a Primary Goal

Link building is a necessity and in many ways indicates the quality of a particular website. However, this doesn’t always apply – especially if you’re obsessed with building links at all costs. Every website has its own value and purpose, but associating your website with others that may or may not have inherent value to your niche is a bad idea. Much like keyword stuffing results in pinging to Google negative indicators, so can excessive link building. You do not want to link to – or be linked from – websites with less authority than your own. Too many of these links and your original, noble SEO efforts can suddenly become a liability.

You need ample SEO as part of any brand marketing and content creation strategy. It’s vital that you know when to employ these tactics and when to hold off, though. Most people make mistakes when it comes to links, general optimizations and a focus on pleasing algorithms instead of humans, but you now know which major obstacles to avoid when improving your website’s performance in the future.