Common SEO tactics that are damaging your brand

We believe in SEO as a brand-building tool.

As per my article in Smart Company titled ‘You may have been doing SEO wrong all along — and what to do instead’, “When a potential customer is in the problem-solving or information-gathering phase, repeated exposure to your brand highlights it as a solution and makes it more memorable.

The more you appear in their search results, the more likely they’ll recognise your brand and consider visiting your website.”

SEO can do great things for a brand.

But when done without consideration for a brand strategy, it can actually do a lot of damage.

Either to the perception, market position, reputation, credibility, loyalty, financial performance or growth.

So, what common SEO tactics that SEO agencies and specialists love using could be damaging your brand?

Let’s find out, shall we?

Keyword targeting

When your marketing efforts focus on keywords that don't accurately represent your products, services, or brand values, you risk attracting the wrong audience or misleading potential customers.

For example, you might be tempted to target a search term that includes “cheap” because it has a high search volume; however, if you’re a premium brand, being associated with that term could affect the perception of your brand, not to mention a mismatch between what someone searches for vs what they get.

The type of people you’ll be attracting won’t convert anyway.

Don’t think being misleading with keywords is a big deal? In May, the ACCC fined Meg’s Flowers for alleging making misleading representations to consumers based on local keywords they were targeting.

Ultimately, the disconnect between keywords and content erodes trust and damages your brand's authenticity, causing long-term harm to your online identity and customer relationships.

Careful keyword research and alignment with your brand's core message are essential to ensure that your online marketing strategy truly reflects what your brand stands for and offers.

On-page content

One of the first things many SEO agencies will do is tell you to increase the amount of copy on your web pages.

And yes, sometimes it is necessary.

But when not done carefully, it can do more harm than good.

Here’s why.

If the content is overly stuffed with keywords and lacks genuine value or relevance, it can lead to a poor user experience. Especially as long and dense content can be intimidating and off-putting to readers, discouraging them from engaging with your brand.

Visitors may struggle to find the information they're looking for amidst the clutter, leading to frustration and increased bounce rates.

Also, an overload of content can dilute your brand's messaging and make it challenging for users to grasp your core value proposition.

When users don’t connect with your brand, you become like everybody else. And when you’re like everybody else, why would someone choose your business?

It's crucial to strike a balance between SEO optimisation and providing valuable, concise, and user-friendly content that truly resonates with your audience.

Blog writing

For business, blogs are a great way to get more keywords onto a site in a more natural way. However, writing the wrong blogs is a waste of time at best and detrimental to your SEO efforts at worst.

I’ve come across a few websites that have really in-depth blogs, but upon closer inspection, the blogs they are pumping out aren’t all relevant to their business.

The results?

A slow decline in website traffic and keyword rankings since Google’s Helpful Content update came about towards the end of last year.

Steadily declining traffic since the update

And steadily declining keyword rankings

Publishing blogs unrelated to your business can weaken your credibility and authority within your industry. Demonstrating expertise in your field through relevant content helps build trust among your audience.

When you delve into topics outside your expertise, it can make you appear less knowledgeable and reliable.

Maintaining a consistent focus on topics related to your products and services in your blog content helps to maintain audience engagement, credibility, and a clear brand identity.

And it’s great for SEO too!

Guest posting

While guest posting can be a valuable link-building strategy, it has the potential to damage your brand if not executed carefully.

If you create or accept low-quality guest posts solely for the purpose of backlinking, it can reflect poorly on your brand's reputation. Poorly written content lacking value or inaccuracies can make your brand appear unprofessional and untrustworthy.

Even if the sites you’re posting for have a high DA, associating your brand with websites with a poor reputation or engaging in unethical practices can lead to guilt by association.

Readers may assume your brand shares the same values and practices as those you associate with.

If you’re not even writing the guest posts and simply adding your website’s link to a post (ill-advised), you have little to no control over the tone of the article.

Consistency in messaging and tone is crucial for brand recognition and building trust with your audience.

Why brand strategy trumps SEO

While SEO undoubtedly brings visibility and traffic, it's the brand strategy that lays the foundation for lasting success.

A well-crafted brand strategy encompasses a deeper understanding of your audience, a unique identity, and a compelling narrative that resonates. It forges an emotional connection that extends beyond algorithms, fostering trust and loyalty.

As search engine algorithms evolve and user behaviours shift, a strong brand remains resilient. It's a guiding light that shapes your content, your interactions, and your reputation.

SEO should not compete with your brand strategy.

It should amplify it.

And you should be working with an SEO agency that understands that. Like us!