Competition with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has Been Harder

u/Bashcool

Is Google intentionally making SEO hard for the little guys?

Hi everyone,

I'm here to ask a question that's also kinda sorta like I'm venting as well.

You see, I just launched a new deals site called DaBash Deals and I practically have $0 to spend on advertising. I already spent so much on web hosting, WordPress theme, etc.

Now I read and did a lot of research on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices and how one can rank well if you do certain techniques. Neil Patel is a great person that literally gives you free information you would normally have to pay for and I follow him a lot. But here's the thing:

The name of the game these days is backlinks and useful content as well as providing a useful tool.

Providing useful content is easy enough and making a simple tool that people can use is great as well. But backlinks? That's a monster for most little guys.

Even the other stuff I mentioned requires you to do a lot of heavy lifting to get people to even look at your site. Even Reddit won't allow you to post links of your site or else you'll be slapped with the self promotion label and get banned.

Backlinks are HARD to get and requires HOURS of emailing people in HOPES they don't mind linking you on their site. Some might do it if you pay, but where's the money for that!!!

Some even say that the best backlinks are those that are from website offering similar services or content as you. These are super juicy and can really boost your site… But so you really think Slickdeals would agree to backlink me? Or dailysteals? Or any other deal site or even any other affiliate site who's main goal is to earn money from affiliate links? Why would they drive people away from them when they want to earn money from affiliate links as well just as I do?

This leads me to one of the best options to getting your website up there fast… Pay Per Click (PPC). And guess who's in charge for the most part? Google.

The same Google we have to try hard to rank for organically is the same Google that we have to pay if we want to post ads in their search engines. Why would they want to make it easy on us to rank organically when they can just create all these rules and conditions which gives us an incentive to use their PPC services?

I may just be a winey baby who is frustrated about how slow his progress has become, and this may sound like some kind of conspiracy, but as a marketing consultant, I can't help but sense that Google would rather you pay up now or wait years ranking organically.

What does everyone else think?

Best,
55 💬🗨

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coltonmusic
It just depends how much time and effort you are going to pour into the process. I'm not paying for ads just yet because I'm trying to build up as much organic traffic as possible. It's a full time job to create content (my goal is 10 posts a month of 1500-3000 words each) and also to try and 2500 page views a month with an uptick in returning users. I have to hustle each and every day to drive traffic to my site for free but my hope is that by organically engaging on social media, I'll slowly build up brand recognition and increase my % return users. You have to have the drive and energy for the long game and you have to know that if you are chasing $$ in the short term, you'll be disappointed. Build a strong foundation of content, fill a need, and work your butt off to generate real traffic. Then when you've got a decent following and daily users/page views, maybe then you start an ad campaign to try and increase the monetization side of things. I'm still new so don't take my word for it this has just been my experience as I'm learning/growing my numbers.

Bashcool ✍️
I'm on the same page as you when it comes to content. But I'm a daily deals site… So in addition to content, I have to post deals daily… And a lot of em.

Sanbenito
The more active you are on social media will help with organic ranking. Responding to reviews using the keywords that people search for in those review responses is another thing that can help organic ranking. Remember, Google's search engine's purpose is to provide the best and most accurate search results for the user preforming the search. So the more active you are across the board whether it's social media posts, engagement with your sites, a presence and active role on your business' review platforms, website content, frequent updates, etc. is all going to provide, essentially, "social proof" that you are a viable business, that people are interested in and that you are in fact relevant to the search and a good match for that particular consumer. Search Engine Optimization is literally optimizing your business online to make it easier for Google to associate your website with a search topic/phrase/question, aka keywords. It takes a lot of time because you have to show Google why you should be shown to one of their consumers and if you can get people talking about you online wherever, that's the best way to get better organic ranking. Here is a great article I'm sure you've already read and are probably well versed in, but it's still a good one: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/7451184
Btw, I am in Social Media Optimization (SMO)- the best times to post are unique to your market. Think about who your consumers are and what are they doing with their time. Days of the week are not as important as time of day and consumer behavior/lifestyle. Who are your customers? Are they at work 9-5 or a stay-at-home Mom, are they young or old, male or female, what are they buying? For instance I work 8-6+, so I am definitely not shopping for "deals" or anything other than lunch during the day, nor am I early in the morning. I'm going to be online leisurely only in the evenings and weekends where as mothers with young children are probably feeding and putting their kids to bed in the early evenings and driving to soccer practice on the weekends so they probably do go online to shop early in the morning and during the day. Pick out your ideal customer and post during the most likely times that they would be online looking for whatever you sell.
coltonmusic
Loved the advice and appreciate you taking the time to write that out. It's a tough business to get into but I'm enjoying pouring my free time into it and am going to keep on pushing to build up my content and optimize my site for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and eventually start trying to utilize ads to drive more traffic. For now I gotta not spend money so I can use it for other side projects that I'm working on..

knight
It's Facebook group posting…I found free guestpost related groups filled with thousands of content writers and bloggers..and link exchangers..just write in the searchbar..free guest posts

Bashcool ✍️
I actually saw the group… It's kind of confusing. Is DA supposed to mean Domain authority?

Do you mind telling me how the group works as I don't really see any rules.

Sorry if I asked a very amateur question.

knight
Domain Authority (DA) is domain authority… Page Authority (PA) is page authority…these are very important ranking factors…and the higher the rates..the etter for Google …but you should not overdo High PA/DA in your backlinks..because that is red flags. ..every thing should be a mix between .guestposts…from various DA/PA levels..you also need to build some 2.0 websites at least 8 …blogger. ..WordPress…tumblr…wix ..weebly..good websites for free..and add related content from there…but you should treat it very well to make Google fall in love with it…then for the guestposting groups..their rules are pretty simple: NO SELF PROMOTION FOR PRODUCTS WITH AFFILIATE LINKS OR DEFAMATORY LANGUAGE…we all post asking for guestposts opportunities eiher paid or free..for example 3 days earlier..I posted this exact post.: I need free guest post for digital marketing niche..I posted it like in 3 groups ..and in minutes comments and private messages started flooding me like bees with unlimited offers…I got don offering for like 10$ a post ..but I took only the free offers.I still haven' replied to many of them and I was able to post 4 articles in great related websites related to my niche…You then contact the person who commented and approach them kindly…you will mostly receive emails from them on where to submit those posts…some have form standards..like providing at least 800 words unique content with image …so require more some…llless..all in all it's a holden nugget for anyone stuck with building backlinks in <year>..
Bashcool ✍️
So, When I see a post that says "I need free guest post…" that means that you have a blog that you would like to post as a guest on someone else's blog? If so, what is their incentive?

And if I see a post that says "I accept free guest post…" that means that a person wants a guest post on his blog?

Perhaps to answer my own question, people who "need guest posting" are those seeking to post their content on other sites in exchange for a backlink and in return, the one offering free guest post gets a good quality post for their website which boosts their Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

So for my website who has a Domain Authority (DA) of 5. If i guest post, I get a backlink and they get content. If someone guest posts on my blog, they get a backlink from me and I get content?

Is this how it all works
knight
Yes ..some are looking for good content to their blogs…some do a link exchange…and some want just a link to their website and provide good content to get it.

digitalnomadsage
I feel you LOL I totally understand! Have you tried promoting your blogs on Twitter? I realized that a lot of traffic is coming from Social Media Profile Referrals. I'm only 3 weeks in and through my posts I got a direct message to be interviewed for a Digital Nomad site for working remotely.

I'd say utilize social media for outreach. Keep posting and you'll eventually have people message you for interviews or guest blogs.

You can invite people to guest blog on your site in exchange for backlinks. It's a win-win situation. I'm utilizing the Skyscraper technique for blogging. It's a grind… but my organic traffic is slowly increasing. So just keep up the hard work and it'll pay off in a few months hopefully. Good luck!

Bashcool ✍️
Thanks for your advice and thank you for your vote of confidence.

digitalnomadsage
No problem!

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