Why I think sustainable visibility is just as important as SEO
I’ve been writing about SEO, blogging, and online visibility for years. I still believe in these things - they’re not wrong or out of date, although it is fair to say that the nuances have been constantly moving over the last couple of years.
But I do think they’re only part of the picture.
Knowing what to do and actually having the time or space to do them are two very different things.
Our modern lives move fast.
There’s work. The day to day stuff like supermarket shopping and bills to pay. Time with our family and friends. Keeping ourselves healthy and getting fresh air. And, dare I say it, a little downtime to mentally switch off too.
So, when current marketing advice tells you to do more - post more, write more, optimise more - there’s no wonder it all starts to feel a bit much.
We get so much information and advice being thrown our way. In my field of work, I’m constantly seeing things like:
How to make your business look credible
What trust signals customers look for
How to improve SEO
Staying visible
Creating content that performs
What to do to get AI search to show your content
And yes, I do write about an awful lot of those things too.
These strategies need to fit into real life
But none of the strategies I share will work if they don’t fit into what’s happening day to day in your life.
There’s no point in staying on the cutting edge of change and ingesting more and more information like it’s your favourite piece of coffee cake (yup, that’s one of mine) if you haven’t got the bandwidth do do anything with it.
Maybe instead it would be helpful for us to have more of the following?
Energy and headspace so we can actually focus
Simplicity in our lives by removing expectations
Support, so we’re not trying to do everything ourselves
Supporting people by doing, not just planning
I’m changing my business offer right now, so I’ve been quietly working away on my website. It means updating the content but also bringing the design up to date and thinking about how I can help people get things done, not just plan or strategise.
My ideas are evolving as I go and 🙋♀️ I’ve experienced first-hand how easy it is to stay in planning mode.
Refining ideas
Tweaking things
Waiting until everything feels ready
But what’s actually going to get me to where I want is taking some action. Publishing the post, sending the email, and putting something out there before it feels finished.
Oh, and doing that consistently.
Help to keep things moving forward
If you’re struggling to keep up with modern search and marketing - the social media posts, the blog posts, the reviews, the directories, the Google profile - you’re not doing anything wrong. It’s just that running a business today asks a lot of us.
So, if things are feeling a bit overwhelming, here’s what I’ve found helpful:
Pick one thing to complete this week
Think about finishing, not perfecting. It’s the exact reason why I shared my new services with my newsletter list way before my website was ready to launch. I wanted to get something out there before I drowned in the never ending perfecting cycle.
Think about making things simple
Take smaller bite sized steps, make a post shorter, or an idea less complex. If you’re reading this, you’re seeing that simplification in action - none of my usual weighty SEO content, just a nice, easy to read post.
Support yourself to be successful
Ask for help, take things off your to-do list, or book time out of your diary to focus. I’ve done all of that recently, and leaned on my family and business buddies for support and feedback.
So yes, that’s where I’m at
I still care about helping people show up and get found online.
But, more and more, I care about whether that feels sustainable. Does it fit into your life, and is it something you can keep doing without burning out.
And that’s the direction I’m moving in too.
