John Mueller, a Google Search Advocate, recently engaged in a candid discussion on the r/BigSEO subreddit, addressing questions on various SEO tactics and offering advice for aspiring digital marketers.
Mueller addressed topics such as geotagging images, blogging frequency, and the pursuit of online money-making shortcuts.
In a thread titled “incoming dumb question barrage,” a Reddit user asks the following questions:
- Should we be geotagging images. Does Google even care?
- Blogging. If we do it, is it everyday or once a week with some seriously solid stuff?
- Google Business Profile posting: Everyday, once a week, or why bother?
- Since stuff like Senuke died 10 years ago, is it all about networking with webmasters of similar and same niche sites for links?
- Piggybacking off #4, what about PBNs? Are they back? If so, does it have to be a group of completely legit looking websites vs some cobbled together WP blogs?
Here’s a breakdown of Mueller’s lengthy response to the above questions.
Geotagging Images & Blogging Frequency
In response to a question about geotagging images, Mueller stated that it’s unnecessary for SEO purposes.
He also addressed the question of blogging frequency, suggesting that content creators should prioritize unique and compelling content over maintaining a consistent posting schedule.
However, he acknowledged that regular posting might drive traffic and encouraged creators to review successful posts and expand on their topics with higher-quality content.
Mueller warned against the dangers of producing mediocre, “fluffy” content:
“The problem with trying to keep a frequency up is that it’s easy to end up with mediocre, fluffy content, which search engine quality algorithms might pick up on, and then assume the whole site is like that.
Taking risks like this in the beginning when it’s easy for you to start over is probably fine, doing that in the long run will be painful when it catches up to you. (All of this applies even more if you’re taking short-cuts with gen-ai content).”
Google Business Profile Posting & Link Building
Mueller didn’t provide specific advice on the frequency of Google Business Profile posting, but he responded humorously to questions about outdated link-building strategies like SENuke and private blog networks (PBNs).
He cautioned that discussing such strategies could be taken out of context and used to promote questionable link-building tools.
“SENuke, hah, that’s a name I haven’t heard in ages, lol. Sorry. Giggle. I have thoughts on links, but people love to take things out of context to promote their link efforts / tools, so perhaps someone else will say something reasonable, or not.
OMG, PBNs too. What is this thread even. Now I won’t say anything without a lawyer present.”
The Pursuit Of Online Money-Making Shortcuts
Mueller observed that the questions seemed to revolve around finding shortcuts to making money online.
He warned that many people are attempting to do the same and that some even sell tools and courses that promise success but ultimately profit the sellers rather than their customers.
He further explained that the best tools target companies that need to manage their online presence and are not meant for individuals seeking a quick path to wealth.
Advice For Aspiring SEO Professionals
Mueller concluded by encouraging people aspiring to work in SEO to learn HTML, programming, and other essential skills to understand the industry better.
“… learn HTML, learn a bit of programming, and go for it. 90% of the random tricks you run across won’t work, 9% of the remaining ones will burn your sites to the ground, but if you’re lucky & persistent (is that the same?), you’ll run across some things that work for you.
If you want to go this route, accept that most – or all – of the things you build will eventually blow up, but perhaps you’ll run into some along the way that make it worthwhile.
And … after some time, you might notice that actually building something of lasting value can also be intriguiing, and you’ll start working on a side-project that does things in the right way, where you can put your experience to good use and avoid doing all of the slash & burn site/spam-building.”
Above all, he emphasizes that a successful web presence involves more than keywords and links. Mueller strongly recommends experimenting and pushing the boundaries of traditional SEO strategies.
Featured Image created by author using Midjourney
Source: Reddit