On-page search engine optimization is critical to an online marketing strategy. But what happens when optimization hits diminishing returns?
Of course, SEO will exist as long as people use Google or any search engine to discover web pages. Organic search is a major driver of site traffic.
Technical SEO is ongoing, focusing on server optimization and site speed as examples. Content marketing, which is often based on discovery research, is also ongoing.
But that doesn’t mean that some SEO activities, including some on-page SEO tactics, don’t reach a point where the incremental value added isn’t worth the effort.
Juice link
Let’s say a company focuses only on Google search and is constantly concerned about link equity (or link juice). In this case, this company may have reached this point.
The point here isn’t that links aren’t important, but at some point, rearranging your navigation to get a little more link juice probably isn’t worth it. There are many other things a business can do to engage its audience.
John Muller, a trends analyst for Google webmasters, made a comment a couple of years ago that helped spark this kind of discussion.
Answered a tweet which asked about site navigation and link fairness.
“I want to pass link juice from my homepage to my category pages. Where should I place my category pages, in the navigation menu or in the content of the homepage? read the tweet
Muller’s response: “I’d forget everything you read about ‘link juice’. It’s most likely outdated, incorrect and/or misleading. Instead, build a website that works well for your users.”
A tweet from Google’s John Mueller (“Johnmu”) in 2020 made a point of reevaluating where to place SEO efforts.
Some SEO professionals, including Roger Montti and Barry Schwartz, pointed out that a company could improve organic search rankings with strategies other than link juice, whether a link has more navigational or content juice.
Think of it this way: If your goal was to get 10,000 more visitors each month, how much time would you need to optimize URL structures, manipulate internal links, and play with title tags, and at what cost?
Traffic and engagement
SEO is not the only marketing discipline that can increase traffic. Other, sometimes complementary, marketing tactics can achieve the same goal.
Improve site speed. It’s probably worth focusing on technical SEO rather than on-page. A faster website can result in a higher ranking (site speed is now a component of Google’s algorithm) and also improve the user experience.
Double down on keyword research. Develop keyword-optimized content to attract, engage and retain the kind of customers your business needs.
Develop an email newsletter. Editorial newsletters are experiencing a renaissance. Email platforms like Substack have built an entire business around them. As of early 2022, the company had more than 500,000 paying customers to read newsletters.
It’s unreasonable to grow a newsletter list quickly. Sahil Bloom, an investor, podcaster and newsletter author, grew his list to over 100,000 in just a couple of years.
Create affiliate relationships. Marketers engaged in modern affiliate marketing often seek relationships with creators and influencers who produce content, have an engaged audience, and are willing to endorse products. Consider the value of an expert in your industry to explain the merits of your products.
Don’t skip SEO
I am in no way suggesting that a company should stop adopting a strong internal linking strategy. But at a certain point, working on internal links won’t yield as much organic search benefit as alternative measures.
