Why Search Engine Optimization doesn't Matter!

Introduction

SEO -- everyone talks about it. Everyone says I need to have it to have a successful blog. If everyone says it's true, it must be true, right? Well, I'm here to say it is NOT true. Maybe that's too strong. Let me rephrase it. I have another opinion. I never worry about SEO. It happens naturally.

Show me you say?

Don't you hate it when someone asks for proof? I love it. If there is no proof, or at least support, then it's an unsubstantiated opinion. This will be a "one-substantiated" opinion as I'm only looking at one website. If you disagree with this opinion, I'll cheer you on to show me another website. Between us, we can find the truth as we want to express it. Not the real truth, mind you. Just the truth we decide on for the present.

Master Blogger's site

Steve Scott is one of the people I respect most in the world of writing and making  money on the internet. Consider buying every one of his books on Amazon. Study them carefully and extract what you can use.

He is also an excellent blogger. He has been doing it since about 2007, maybe earlier. Not only doing it, but working hard at it. He shows real numbers in his books and sometimes on his blogs. This means we can learn how to make as much as he does.

 Alexa

Sarah Arrow from www.sarkemedia.com mentioned www.alexa.com. You plug in a website and out pops some statistics.

 I noticed only about 10% of Steve's views come from search engines. Huh? Yep. Only 10%.  How did I find his site today? The long story is I first heard about it in a book. Now the autocomplete function in my browser finds the site when I type the first two letters. This happens to most of the sites I visit.

Where does traffic come from?

Check out my site http://48statehike.blogspot.com. You don't have to read it. Take a look at the picture on top and then forget about it. Set a reminder for a month from how and try to remember the site name. My guess is most people won't, but if you have autocomplete turned on for your address bar, when you type 48 the URL will appear.

Looking at  my personal browsing habits, I use Google for a one time visit to a blog and autocomplete for most of my repeat visits. Given that Alexa says only about 10% of people's views come from search engine, I suspect this is normal. 

First two characters of blog name

In my opinion, the first two characters of the blog name are critical for repeat viewers.

Conclusion

Look at Alexa to see where your viewers come from. What's the right metric to improve?  I think it is the Daily Time on site. This is the amount of time unique visitors spend on the site. I can't think of a better way of grading a blog than this.

Forget about SEO for a long time. Work on quality content so people read what you write. If they are reading what you like, they will come back. They might also buy your product if you are selling one.

Comments?

Why my Brains don't Fall Out!

Introduction

I write eBooks for a living. The only reason I can do this is I get retirement pay from the Air Force and have another small source of income. So, writing for a living is an exaggeration. I make $500 to $600 a month selling eBooks. By itself, it wouldn't be much of a living, but hey, I'm almost always in the top 1 or 2% of authors on Amazon. In other words, I'm doing something right.

This is why I'm slow to listen to suggestions.

Unauthoritative suggestions

Is unauthoritative even a word? I don't know, but it means suggestions coming from people who are not yet successful on Amazon to the same extent that I am. 

Do I listen to them? Absolutely, I listen. But I don't always follow. The suggestions I follow come from the example or the words of those who are more successful than I am. There are some things I've noticed.

Successful authors seldom use social media. Oh, they tried a couple years ago, but almost without exception, they have disappeared from Facebook.

People often say I have to advertise. This sounds rude, but I don't HAVE to do anything. I suppose it is rude, but here is where it is coming from. I've tried advertising on Facebook and Adwords. I could not show it had any statistical impact on my business. If anyone can demonstrate a statistical impact for their books I'd be glad to listen.

Although I get a few sales from blogs, it's not enough to justify the time. I blog for fun, not profit.

What I think when someone makes a suggestion

Thanks for the suggestion, and I really appreciate the thought. I'll evaluate the suggestion and either take action or not.

What I'm doing is working

What I'm doing is working, so I will keep doing it. When it stops working, I'll try something else.

"You have a closed mind..."

to which I respond "That's so my brains don't fall out!" Seriously, in Positive Mental Attitude, the Science of Success!  (US market only), Napoleon Hill said self-reliance is one of the most important attributes for success. (Hint to those in the US: This is an advertisement on a blog. Please prove me wrong by clicking on the link and picking up a copy of the book! It's only 99 cents.) 

I like hearing new ideas. I really do! I often read what others say. However, at some point, I make a decision. When I make a decision, I close my mind. An open mind lets in self-doubt, and that can be more destructive than not doing the perfectly right thing.

Conclusion

This post is a bit blunt, but I can't write and I don't care! Besides, at some point we all have to close our minds and get to work.