Keyword Density

Keyword Density

One of the persistent myths of SEO is about keyword density. Keyword density is the belief that there is a mathematical formula that divides the number of words on a page by the number of instances of a given keyword. It is believed that this number is used by search engines for relevancy and for calculating the ranking of your site.

This myth has been dispelled many times over the years, but still returns again and again.

Although using the right keywords is important, it is also important to use them intelligently and with the reader/user in mind. The value of earning one good link from a site that thinks you have reputable content far outweighs that of including a keyword ten times in a page.

Paid Search Improves SEO Rankings

One of the most common SEO theories is that spending more on pay per click (PPC) advertising will improve your organic SEO rankings. Each of the major players have denied this, claiming that they have effective information barriers in place to prevent conflict of interest, between the search and advertising teams. In fact, many businesses have complained that even after spending millions on AdWords they still cannot get special consideration for search quality or to be removed from spam lists.

That being said, there is still unconfirmed evidence that if you already rank well for a keyword, PPC can help your click through rate.

Reciprocal Links

While the odd reciprocal link ("Link to me and I'll link to you") does not hurt, multiple deep site links (like in your blog or case studies) raise alarm bells that agreements or incentives are in place. 

The problem arose when search engines considered any incoming links as a ‘vote’ for that site. When webmasters realized that they could simply ‘trade’ votes with each other and improve each other's standing in the SERPs, reciprocal links became over used and defeated the purpose of the algorithm.