SEO is changing fast. To stay ahead and get better search rankings in 2025, you need to avoid common mistakes. Here are some key things to focus on to improve your SEO strategy.

Stop Overcomplicating SEO

It's easy to get lost in an overwhelming amount of SEO information. The most effective way to improve is to focus on a few key areas rather than trying to do everything at once.

Our agency focuses on these things:

• Schema implementation

• Bottom-of-funnel blog content

• Collection page creation and updates

• Internal linking and link insertions

• Tiered links

We don't spend much time on technical SEO or other types of link building. By focusing on these five key areas, we achieve better results for our clients.

Don't Try to Optimize for Every Search Engine and LLM

Many people want to optimize for every search engine and LLM (Large Language Model). LLMs use different knowledge bases to train their models. For example, Perplexity uses Yelp, while others use Google.

It's better to focus on Google. Studies show that ranking high on Google also increases your visibility on LLMs. The basics that work on Google also work for LLMs:

• Good content

• Site structure

• Schema

• Backlinks

You can't optimize for Google, chat, and other platforms simultaneously. If you try, your content and links will be scattered, and you won't achieve good results on any platform.

Stop Wasting Time

The best thing you can do in SEO is to watch what works, test it, and do more of what works. If something doesn't work, stop doing it and try something else.

Don't wait for things to be perfect before you act. You can't wait for:

• Perfect content

• Perfect backlinks

In today's rapidly evolving SEO landscape, it is essential to take action. If you wait too long to plan your SEO strategy, it will likely be outdated by the time you start using it.

If you run a small to mid-size business, you can act faster than bigger companies. Speed is your most significant advantage in SEO. You can test things and get results faster than your competitors.

Start Building Backlinks

Many SEOs build backlinks by:

• Paying for them

• Doing PR

If you write great content, links will come naturally. This works if you already have a high-authority site. But if you're starting from scratch, you need to build links.

Everyone can create content and set up a schema. Building links is a key way to stand out from your competitors. In the age of AI, links show that you are an authority.

Don't Publish Unedited AI Content

Unedited AI content usually won't rank high in search results. Google doesn't penalize AI content directly. It is similar to many other AI articles on the same topic. It's not new or unique.

You should still use AI for content creation. It makes the process faster. But after AI creates the content, have a human:

• Edit it

• Add more information

• Fact-check it

• Improve the structure

• Add better internal links

This process will still be faster than writing from scratch.

We've also tested using only human writers for some articles. So far, these articles have performed better than our AI-assisted content. It's more expensive, but it might be worth testing.

Start Using AI

Utilize AI to streamline your content creation and workflows. Use it to generate new ideas and refine your strategy.

AI can help you with:

• Keyword research

• Data analysis

If you're not using AI, you're missing out on a powerful tool. One of our employees is dedicated to exploring ways to leverage AI to improve our work.

Don't be left behind. Start testing AI tools daily to see how they can help you.

Level Up Your SEO

To succeed in SEO in 2025, avoid overcomplicating things, focus on Google, act fast, build backlinks, edit AI content, and use AI to your advantage. By focusing on these key areas, you'll be well on your way to achieving higher search rankings and driving more traffic to your site.

Ready to take your SEO to the next level? Check out New Seas for expert guidance and strategies!