Maybe I’m A Little Slow, But…

Maybe I’m A Little Slow

OK, maybe I’m a little slow, but I have been posting faithfully each week on my blog for over three years, and I still can’t figure out all this SEO (Search Engine Optimization) stuff. I have an education and have been complimented on my tenacity and ability to figure things out, but figuring out key words (but not using too many), and using dynamic titles and eye-catching photos (but not too few), and link-building (but not too many) is driving me crazy. What the heck are SERP’s anyway? 

 

Oh, and then there is the White Hat Strategy and the Skyscraper Technique and the latest is the UX Signals for best ranking. I’ve figured out the alt-tags and meta descriptions but what is the difference between natural, organic and earned figures? And what is Search Engine Logic and Search Engine Positioning? Then there are site maps and Spiders that crawl on your site. Eeeek. It’s all Black Magic to me. I read and read and read article after article and only end up more confused than before. So many acronyms! It’s all a bit muddy.

 

Looks Like Greek

“If you just use the RSDE, then the IX will improve your MRWT and your BCZ for amazing results.”

 

Yah, right, whatever you say.  (Most articles look like Greek to me.)

 

Don’t get me wrong, I have diligently tried many of the suggestions, or at least the ones I could decipher, with no noticeable difference. So what is the point? 90% of them do not work, at least not for me.

 

Yes, I tried the Google Keyword Planner, and that didn’t make one iota of difference either. I laughed out loud at one article that said open a PPC account, but didn’t say what that was. Another said diversify your traffic sources but does not say how. Who are these people? Programmers, Marketing gurus, Search Engine Designers, Developers, Scientists, Digital Wizards, Witches and Warlords?

Maybe I’m A Little Slow, But…

Affiliate Programs

I’ve tried every second affiliate program out there too, with no success. Amazon is supposed to be so easy to use. HAH. I cannot get it to work at all, after repeated attempts over many years. And Amazon offers support that just says, “Sorry, I don’t know what’s wrong.” Great. 

 

All these gurus exclaiming how they have the secret to getting 10,000 new followers overnight, shout that you just need to follow their simple plan to extrapolate their theory of SEO optimization for all time, the magic plan to instant success, the overnight rage that everyone is talking about. They go on and on and on, then after 25 pages of basically nothing, demand that you can buy their exclusive, one-of-a-kind, only-available-for-the-next-hour program for only $199.99. What a bargain!

 

Don’t get me started on the videos that I will not waste another minute on. Hours and hours of lead-up to another let-down when they try to sell you another program for only 499.99, where you will get the secret to everything in the world. 

 

Crooked Roads

Oh yes, while I am on a roll – what about the meet-ups and live discussions that go on forever and waste another 2 hours of your time. Or Productivity Goals. As if. My goal is pretty simple. Write one story a week, and try like Hell to keep my website maintained and updated. That takes about 30 hours a week! 

 

Social networking I get, but again how much bombarding with your silly stories can a social network take? It feels like a gerbil peddling like a fool on his never-ending wheel. 

 

I got really excited once when I came upon a site that promised to analyse my site for free. Now this is what I need, I thought. The results were hilarious. It showed me where the errors were alright, but didn’t tell me how to fix them! What the frig good was that?

 

A straight road is what I need, not a crooked muddy path.

Maybe I’m A Little Slow, But…

Sleezy Ideas

Then someone says you need use YouTube extensively… start taking videos. Another says Podcasts are the way to go, so get out there and buy a decent microphone for $500. Another says develop a product, any old educational program will do, give the first chapter away free, then charge for the next ones. Ugh. 

 

Am I the only website owner that has a problem with these sleezy ideas? Or are they laughing all the way to the bank while I remain a purist.

 

Am I really so daft that I cannot get a handle on these SEO concepts? 

 

Monetization of Website

I don’t make a penny on my website itself. Not a cent. Yet all of these articles telling you how to sell a product on your website make me feel guilty. Feeling guilty is a waste of time, but somehow I feel bad that I am not focussing on learning all these confusing SEO terms and processes. 

 

I write because I want to, yet some days I think of all the work it takes just to maintain the technical aspects of the website itself, and all the time I spend on the computer writing and editing and re-writing, and I wonder why I don’t try to monetize my website like everyone else.  How foolish. 

 

Vicarious Travel Experiences

So I cannot master SEO and I cannot master affiliate marketing and I don’t feel right about selling a product just to make money, but I can write a sentence. I am good at sharing my experiences in an honest, straight-forward manner. Readers tell me all the time that they feel like they are right there with me, sharing my experiences vicariously. That’s the best compliment a writer could ever get, in my humble opinion. 

 

Another expert says you must read all the other websites in your niche and make comments. Now I do enjoy reading my competitors websites – a lot – but who has that kind of time? It takes hours and hours everyday. 

 

The Dilemma

So after years of trying, I have finally given up. SEO gurus – you are too technical for me. Afterall, I write because I love to write, not to earn some inflated manipulated status on Google. Those gentle readers who follow me are faithful to my weekly posts, and seem to enjoy them. So, what do you advise wise SEO experts? Am I really missing out on turning my site into an amazing blog with millions of readers, or should I just continue along much happier in resigning myself to simply enjoying sharing my experiences? 

 

This is my dilemma. I fluctuate back and forth between being totally satisfied with just loving writing and sharing my posts, and then suddenly deciding that I should be more diligent in promoting and developing my SEO skills, marketing my site, and I start reading again, only to end up pulling my hair out because I can’t understand 50% of every article!

 

Mostly I just want to enjoy travelling and writing about it, like discovering exotic tropical islands like these in Tonga…

Maybe I’m A Little Slow, But…

Maybe I’m A Little Slow, But…

 

There’s not many things I give up on. They say stubbornness has a good side and a bad side. The bad side is obvious; the good side is determination. Will I try again? Maybe in six weeks. Or six months. Or six years.

Or not…