I have not written about SEO in a while, but it seems to me like everywhere I turn there is someone telling someone else how they should go look for niches with a low number of competing pages. They use the logic that since there are relatively few people directly competing for the niche with content, it should be easy to win.
First of all, this makes no sense. There are more than six billion people on the planet. Just because there are relatively few people competing for the international power-lifting championship, that does not mean that I can win easily. Why would I expect the number of competitors to be a direct measure of the strength of the competition on the internet?
Well, I wouldn't. And you shouldn't either.
Engineering Secrets Revealed
Let me tell you something I have learned as an engineer. Just because something is correlated to something else, that does not mean one thing is the cause of the other. This construct is actually called the cum hoc ergo propter hoc logical fallacy. Just because you notice that A occurs when B occurs, that does not mean that A causes B.
What am I talking about? Well, just because you may notice that you can win some niches with low numbers of competing pages, that does not mean that you are winning them because there are a low number of competing pages. You are wining them if and only if two things are true:
- SEO Thing 1: Your page is optimized for the keyword that you are trying to win (on-page SEO).
- SEO Thing 2: Your page has more authority than other pages that rank for that keyword (off-page SEO).
It is as simple as that. It does not matter if there are 10 competing pages or 10 Million. If you are optimized for the keyword and you have the most authority, you will win. Of the two things, Thing 2 is by far the most important.
Adobe Knows About Authority
Don't believe me about this authority thing? Google the term “click here” without the quotes. You will find that the download page for Adobe Acrobat Reader is not optimized for “click here.” Read it if you like. Take a moment to update your copy of Acrobat Reader. While it is downloading, contemplate the fact that their download page has a TON of authority for that “click here” keyword because of the millions of pages linking there with the anchor text “click here.”
God help anyone who ever introduces a product called “Click Here” – they have not got a prayer of ranking for that product name.
See, backlinks are the key to authority — that is why products like Leger's 1 Way Links and 3 Way Links are so popular. Backlinks are the key to authority.
But Why The Correlation Between Low Comp and SEO?
So, why is low competition often correlated with easy rankings? Often it is because it is a crap keyword that no one wants and no one is talking about. For example, I completely dominate the phrase “elvis aaron presley collectible necktie”. There are only 1700 pages in competition with me. Why did I win? Because of the low competition? No. I won because no other sites had pages with any authority for that keyword. Simple as that.
So, when you are looking at the competition you need to look past the number of competing pages in Google. Look at the authority including the backlinks. If you want to learn all about how to win at that game, check out the Ultimate Link Building Report. That will set you straight.
Thanks,
Mark
Thanks Mark. I’m still learning the proper way to do SEO – and see conflicting techniques every day. I appreciate your straightforward approach and explanation of the logic behind it! I’m tired of hearing others say “do this because I say it works”. I need the reasons behind the idea – thanks for providing that.
Good basic stuff right there man! Can’t argue with it, it’s great to know the basics lol.
I love it man. Keep pressing the realness dude.
Outstanding! The section on Acrobat Reader made me chuckle, but it real does illustrate the power of authority and backlinking.
Hey Mark, interesting stuff here. I’m still learning, but the learning is easier with people like you!
Great Post but I think you meant to say that there are over 6 BILLION people on this planet.
@Don — Wow. That many? Man. Guess I need to count again. LOL
Thanks for that catch. Updated the post to correct the typo.
@Steve — you are welcome, sir. Don’t feel badly. We are all still learning because G is changing the rules every day. That is what makes this exciting.
@Carolyn — Glad you liked it.
@Joe — ‘Sup? I love it when you drop by man. Love that latest vid from you man.
@Steve — Glad you liked that Adobe thing. That has been true for a long time.
Thanks Mark,
I also have heard about low competition keywords being easier to rank for, but it does make sense that you still need to put in the work to get it ranked high. Thanks for your article its a great reminder.
Barry
Great post Mark!
It’s amazing how easy it is to get carried away with the next big trick or system.
Honestly, if you believed all of the hype, internet marketing (and online business in general) is the most convoluted, secretive, competitive and impenetratable industry on the planet which noone makes any money from!!
I’ve lost count of the number of “must-have” business models and systems I’ve come across, especially in recent times.
One thing’s for certain, you can’t buy common sense “in a box” and it lasts a lot longer than “a limited time”!!
Oh well, more money for the rest of us willing to trust ourselves I suppose!!
Keep up the good work.
Cheers,
Kristy
Good article Mark. Thanks for letting me know where I can pick up the Elvis tie. I still tear up a little every time I think of him. He died too young–just like “3” Dale Earnhardt.
Hey Mark,
The biggest hurdle I have to overcome is the lack of getting traffic. I think that’s probably the biggest hurdle most marketers have. There are so many self-appointed gurus out there proclaiming to have the latest and greatest book on SEO it makes me want to puke.
I want proof. Proof that they know what they are doing and that after I spend my hard earned money on their product that if I do exactly what they tell me to I’m going to get more traffic.
I can go right now and right a book on how to get backlinks just by doing a little bit of research. Just because I wrote a book does that mean I know what I’m talking about. NO! The problem is all the information I got from my research was bogus. It may sound good to the uninformed person, but to the trained SEO expert, they know it’s garbage.
I just wish someone would create a product for less than $497 and would truly tell you how to get more traffic to your site, without leaving out their little secrets that they are using to generate thousands of visitors a day. All they really care about is the next dollar they are going to stuff into their pockets.
I’m done venting now.
That’s why I come to your blog to read because I know it’s not BS. Thanks for being truthful to your readers.
Later,
Jeff Sargent
Hey Mark,
I made a mistake in my previous comment and I want to fix it.
In the last sentence I said “because I know it’s now BS”.
What I meant to say is “because I know it’s not BS”.
Sorry.
Later,
Jeff Sargent
Jeff;
No problem — I fixed your previous comment. Thanks for your comments on the post.
This traffic thing is a bit tricky too, because you really need traffic that will convert — not just any traffic.
So, my recommendation is always to break it down. If you need 100 visitors per day, where do you want them to come from. It there a clear call to action once they reach your site. If search is the source, are you targeting the right keywords (high OCI if appropriate, etc).
All traffic is not created equal….
Mark,
I’ve heard that 3-way links may eventually be caught by Google as they improve their algorithms. In that case, 1-way links should be the safest for the long run. What is your opinion comparing 1-way and 3-way links? Thanks for the analysis.
Doug (I’m an engineer too, actually a physicist working as an engineer)
It is definitely true that G can do anything that the want for any reason. And, they have lots of resources. However, I personally think that 3WL is a low profile operation, and that the likelihood of G taking specific action against 3WL is low. However, I don’t really know — anything is possible.
If I could only choose one service, it would be 1WL due to the flexibility of the system and the number of links you can get.
Some of the best engineers in my department are physics guys — mostly solid state quantum mechanics types.
Thanks Doug.
Mark
There are many ways of doing keyword research, and the only way to determine if what you are doing is right or wrong, is to see if it actually works.
I actually wrote a post about this on my blog today, which you can take a look at here: Keyword research tips
It’s generally about why you should use the “allintitle:keyword” command in google, and how to take advantage of it.
P.S. I have completely redone the design on my blog, and decided to link here, as this is one of the few blogs I bother to read on a regular basis ;o)
I think the content of this post if common sense personally. Naturally, the pages with the most authority ( significant backlinks) will win. Also, you are the first for the phrase “elvis aaron presley collectible necktie” because there are only (9) pages that are really competing for that EXACT phrase NOT 1900.
-Signed
“First time reading one of your post”
@Justathought — agree. Problem seems to be that common sense is in short supply.