Smashing Magazine has a good article today on the truth behind Search Engine Optimization “black magic.” It’s something I’ve been saying for years — SEO isn’t rocket science, and “companies” who claim to provide (expensive) SEO expertise are merely taking advantage of the general public ignorance on the subject.

Most website owners perceive SEO as a dark art, shrouded in mystery. They have heard phrases like “gateway pages” and “keyword density”, or have been bamboozled by technobabble about the way websites should be built. All of this has left them feeling that SEO is the purview of experts. This is a misconception reenforced by certain segments of the SEO community, keen to justify their fees.

Google’s aim is simple: connect its searchers with the most relevant content. If you are more worried about a good ranking than providing relevant content, then you are going to be fighting a losing battle.

If your web developer did his/her job right in the first place, the “SEO” has already been done. It is up to the company to then generate relevant content on a regular basis. That is the real “secret” of optimized web exposure.