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A few years ago I was challenged to learn all I could about SEO. I watched hours of SEO YouTube videos, I watched countless SEO TikToks, I read all the SEO blogs, I joined all the SEO communities and I bought many SEO training courses. 

Many of the “experts” had some common SEO recommendations, but they were miles apart on other aspects of the topic. I also looked at all the materials offered by Google, including hangouts, published documents, blogs, and forums. 

After quite some time, I found a resource on YouTube that taught me the most valuable ingredient to successful SEO. Though, at the time it didn’t click. It took me several more months to truly understand the proper workflow and all the ingredients to make it work.

After all this time and work I put into studying SEO and the proper processes, required components, and necessary ingredients – it all boiled down to a leap of faith. Everything I had learned up to that point was only theory.

After close to a year of learning all I could about SEO and devising an approach and plan, everything I had learned was only theoretical. I hadn’t tried it on a site. I had no idea if any of what I had learned would actually work.

What’s worse, is that I am someone who thrives on instant gratification. What the gurus failed to tell me is that when you start out with SEO on a brand-new site, there is no such thing as instant gratification. In fact, I soon figured out that it takes 6 months to even begin to see a seedling sprout from my hard work. 

SEO takes lots of work combined with lots of patience.

The most valuable ingredient, I finally discovered later in the journey, is trial and error. I had a lot of starts and stops in the launch of my first site just following my plan. 

It was clear to me by the second year that the most powerful activities are testing and analyzing the results. 

Every audience to a site is different. Every industry is different. The data will help you understand each of these better and will help you to gain more success.

I eventually set up a lab to test how specific things would impact my rankings and influence Google searchers to click on my sites. This has been a huge factor in the secret to my success.

Everything I read and watched from the gurus was that SEO provides “passive” income. While this can be true, it certainly is not accurate on a newly launched site.

Some teach that it can take up to 2 years to realize 90% of a site’s traffic potential. I have not yet experienced this as most of my sites have not yet seen a growth plateau even after 5 years. I do have sites that have decreased in traffic, but for all of those, there is a clear reason as to why.

I do not have a site that is a failure – and any that have decreased can easily be reanimated.

It is very important to note, that on many of my sites I can easily land on page one for new keywords – in fact, this can happen within minutes of publishing a piece of content. But it wasn’t always like this.

When I first began, it took months for a new keyword to even appear in the Google Index and ranking Page 1 would take a bit of finesse and a lot of patience. I was able to develop a set of blueprints that are a predictable and repeatable process in which to build a new site up to where it can rank for specific keywords.

Passive Income is not something I’ve been able to achieve. To me “passive income” means the ability to “set it and forget it.” In other words, something like “The Field Of Dreams” – “Build it and they will come.” I’ve not yet achieved a point where I could simply build a site and leave it alone and have it continuously generate income growth for me without any other work.

In fact, I don’t believe in the notion that “passive income” is something that is fully possible. I do have sites that I have not touched in some time (these are ones that have experienced a decline in traffic), but still produce income. In order to see increased sales, I believe you cannot be truly passive and hands-off.

Further impacting the possibility of “passive income” are the constant changes that Google makes. You can bet on algorithm changes with Google. In fact, they make this very clear.

Even those following strict white hat practices are subject to the changing algorithm. However, the impact may be positive for those following the guidelines to the letter. But every site has the potential for an initial decline after an algorithm change.

Experimentation is at the center of my success blueprint. I use informed experimentation and try all new things within the best practices of the guidelines published by Google.

Even if you do your best to stay strictly compliant with the guidelines, there is always a potential risk.

As an example, when artificial intelligence tools first began cropping up as content generators, there was no official Google stance. It was after examination of this content that Google found the information to be easily created, sometimes factually incorrect, and a rehash of content already ranking, but created to attract search engines rather than edify humans.

After some time, Google labeled AI-produced content as, “against Google guidelines.”

So don’t be surprised when an experiment eventually results in a loss of ranking. This can all be corrected (if you are following the guidelines). So, I don’t stress about it.

I have created a set of blueprints with predictable and repeatable processes that I use on every site I launch. I have gone to great lengths to produce a specific set of steps and checklists to help me remember all the ingredients and setups I need to do to have the most success possible.

I have gone to great lengths to produce a process that is efficient with my time. That means focusing on activities that will bring me the most impact from my time investment.

Rule #1: Time is money. Be careful where you spend your time.

In life, if you are the kind of person that doesn’t follow the rules, you can expect your luck to run out sometime. The same is true with SEO. If you choose not to follow the guidelines, you can expect your luck to run out and Google will give you a manual penalty that may be very difficult to reverse in some cases (because you are intentionally not following the guidelines).

It is true that you can often get away with “black hat” techniques…for a time. You don’t need to dodge the guidelines to be successful. I can show you how.

Rule #2: Be an upstanding SEO. Follow the guidelines.

I’ve worked with people who have nearly zero patience for most of my career. They have always wanted everything yesterday. Time to market is a key to competing in business. So patience is a difficult concept for business owners.

If you own a traditional brick and mortar business that is successful, then you can afford to be patient. Adding a digital presence for your current, successful physical business can only help you grow your reach and revenue.

I have seen so many businesses install a revolving door for digital marketers that can’t meet arbitrary expectations leaving their strategies half done.

I believe using freelance or contracted SEOs for your business is cost ineffective. I recommend building an in-house team. Then allow that team to direct hire resources for specific roles, or contractors for some roles (not all – and only certain roles).

If you are small business, mom and pop, then I recommend handling SEO yourself. With the right business plan and blueprint, you can easily manage this yourself.

Patience is the key – remember, it will take 6 months or better to see the needle move and to get your first lead or sale.

Rule #3: Be patient. Learn to accept delayed gratification.

No pain no gain. No risk it, no biscuit. No guts, no glory. Hard work pays off. 

These are some old cliches about hard work and how you can benefit from it. Nothing good comes easy. And I can tell you, SEO won’t either. I can remove the pain of learning it – but you still have to put in the work.

Consider these quotes:

• “Nothing will work unless you do” – Maya Angelou
• “Chop your own wood and will warm you twice” – Henry Ford
• “Work hard in silence, let success be your noise” – Frank Ocean
• “If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time” – Steve jobs
• “Work hard, have fun, make history” – Jeff Bezos

Rule #4: Play the lottery if you are looking to “get rich quick.”

In working with various SEO courses and training information, you will be encouraged to use “Nofollow” attributes on your links to external sites. “Nofollow” essentially tells Google not to follow the link during its crawl, thereby ignoring the external site and your mention of it. 

Allowing an external link used in your content to be crawled by Google causes the crawler to extend or share the “search juice” with the other site. It’s a selfless act, it’s encouraged by Google, and it’s actually rewarded behavior by Google.

Rule #5: Be selfless, share the search juice.

Of course, I like to make money. What I have learned over the course of building successful sites with powerful SEO, is the way to effectively monetize.

I believe, and I have proven, that if I produce great informational content that teaches people about the topics they have an interest in, they will reward my sites with purchases. Think of it like an app for your smartphone that has in-app purchases, but not quite as sinister.

I have several links to various resources I use every single day for my sites. They are proven and solid. Some of these links are affiliate links where I earn money if you buy the resources. Other links I provide do not offer affiliate programs and I still offer them (and earn no money from your purchases) because they have been important to my success – and believe to your success, as well.