14

Myths & mistakes

Common SEO and AI-search misconceptions, debunked, and the mistakes to avoid.

1
Does heading order affect rankings?
Verdict: no. Google says it does not matter for ranking; it still matters for readers.
2
Does Google read llms.txt?
Verdict: no. Google Search does not use llms.txt. Other AI crawlers do, which is the only reason to have one.
3
Do rel=next and rel=prev still matter?
Verdict: no. Google stopped reading them. What matters for paginated series is each page having its own canonical.
4
Is keyword density a ranking factor?
The old 'use your keyword X% of the time' rule, debunked.
5
Does duplicate content get penalized?
The 'duplicate content penalty' myth, clarified.
6
Is the meta keywords tag still used?
The old <meta name="keywords"> tag, and whether it does anything.
7
Does longer content always rank better?
The 'word count is a ranking factor' myth.
8
Is SEO a one-time task?
The 'set it and forget it' mistake.
9
Do I need to submit my site to Google?
The 'submit your URL to search engines' relic.
10
Do Google Ads help organic rankings?
The 'paying Google buys better rankings' myth.
11
Will AI content get me penalized?
The 'Google punishes AI-written content' worry.
12
Are more backlinks always better?
The 'chase link volume' mistake.
13
Does bounce rate hurt my rankings?
The 'high bounce rate tanks your SEO' myth.
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