Do all the recent Google updates have you in a spin? Are you trying to keep up with Penguin, Panda and all the update versions – along with speculation and possible fixes discussed across the blogosphere?
It has people running in circles, watching stats like a hawk, and making all kinds of changes to their sites in hopes of recovering in the search results – or in hopes of not getting “hit” in the first place.
It seems pretty obvious that Google is not done updating. Not by a long shot.
Good grief, let’s hope not anyway! Right?
Expect more updates before the year is out. 
I haven’t experienced a drop in rankings or traffic through any of the Google updates. In fact, my web traffic just continues to improve.
Of course, I’ve been marketing my business and websites online since way before Google even existed – or Facebook either, for that matter…
Speaking of Facebook, their updates are causing quite a fuss too. Particularly the new option to pay to promote your Facebook Page updates so that they actually show up in the newsfeed… for people who already Liked your Page!
Sure, that’s just plain crazy. But Google and Facebook are both constantly growing and changing – and both are FREE for you to use to market your online business.
Should you just give up and throw in the towel with Google and Facebook because of their latest updates? Absolutely not!
A big part of online marketing is meeting your market where they are, and they are definitely using Google and Facebook.
That said, you should never put all of your eggs in one basket.
And your online marketing strategy should never be based on current trends alone.
You absolutely must diversify both your traffic and your income sources for your business to survive long-term on the constantly changing web.
Like I said, I’ve been successfully doing business online since way before Google or Facebook were ever even on the scene… and before there were even search engines or social media sites to work with at all.
Market Your Business Like Google Doesn’t Exist!
Let’s face it: Google DOES exist, and it’s a great source of highly targeted free traffic. That said, focusing all of your efforts on Google is more detrimental to your success in their results, than simply marketing your business properly – which is the very thing that what will put you in better favor with Google.
That seems backward, doesn’t it? But Google is not running your business. And honestly, they could care less if you rank well or not. Their primary objective is offering relevant search results, and taking care of their paid advertisers. Period.
So what’s the trick? Targeting specific keyword phrases with content that Google deems highly relevant, and popular or authoritative (trusted).
That may not seem like the case at the moment, given some of the recent shifts in their search results. But like I said, Google is nowhere near done updating.
Stop Playing Defense, Start Playing Offense!
It’s time to ignore all the updates, and get back to marketing your business.
What does that mean exactly, and how do you “play offense”? Here’s a quick list of all the bases you should be covering in your online marketing strategy:
You should still be optimizing every piece of content, or every page/post you create. Don’t dismiss SEO altogether, as Google is a huge traffic source. Even if you’re experiencing a loss in rankings and search engine traffic right now… keep in mind that Google WILL shift again.
Focus on Long Tail Keywords, as they are more specific and tend to convert better – and they don’t tend to be affected as harshly by the Google updates!
(It’s actually rude NOT to optimize your content so your market can easily find your information online!)
The purpose of this post isn’t to tell you to “ignore Google” or to “forget SEO”, but rather to properly (and aggressively!) market your business online… which is exactly what will land you those good rankings you’re after.
Have Questions?
Leave a comment below if you have any questions about the marketing strategies listed above, or if you want to share something that is working really well for you. I’ll answer questions in new posts, for everyone’s benefit. 
While you’re promoting your site like a real business, stay away from trends & tactics that have zero purpose outside of manipulating search results. Things like link building networks, automated SEO tools, etc – that you wouldn’t even waste your time & money on if Google didn’t exist – should be completely avoided right now (actually, always in my book, but especially now).
Best,
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