Chen Reznik-Moran, Former Emboodo’s content writer

I’m a runner. Not a professional one, and not planning on being one, but I love running, and I’m currently doing it 3-4 times a week, just recently ran my first half marathon.
I’m also a content writer and an SEO project manager, and it’s basically the same thing. I mean, running and doing SEO. Except for the sweat and the aching feet.

Short or Long Distances

SEO is actually organic search results marketing, and its younger and much more attractive sibling is paid marketing. Paid marketing is like running sprints, you put all your efforts and energies into it and you get quick results. If you run faster than your competitor, you’ll win the race.
But the story of SEO is a bit different, well, a lot different, because SEO is for the long run, just like running a half marathon, a full one or even an ultra marathon. And why is that?

The Long Run SEO

First of all, you have to be a bit crazy to make it work. Waking up at 4:30 AM almost every morning to practice, going back and forth for hours without an immediate destination, being tired most of the time… And that’s just the SEO, running is hard too!
Now seriously, SEO requires dedication, ongoing work, and not giving up even when things aren’t going as well as you’ve expected. There are fallbacks from time to time, so you have to be creative, get up and get back on track. Like in a marathon, it doesn’t matter if you’re not the fastest one, because it’s more about calculating your steps correctly, dividing your efforts according to the track conditions, and passing all these “walls” on the way.
Most importantly, you have to realize that this is a task for the long run. You will not see immediate results, you may see small improvements after one month, after 2 months, but the main difference will be after a few months of educated work.

The End is Just the Beginning

What happens after you get to the marathon finish line, meaning – reaching the first places in Google’s search results for the main keywords? Then you just keep on going to the next race, to improve your rhythm, to improve locations with more keywords, to maintain the first places as long as possible.
Ending a race is a great chance for new goals, there will always be new ones, you can always run faster or longer, you can run up the hill or drink a glass of wine every few kilometers. SEO work never ends, because there’s always room for improvements, you can always decide on new goals and start running again. The competition never ends, even if you’ve gotten really fast and stood on the top of the podium, next week someone else will stand on that podium and downgrade you to the second place. The competition is good and healthy, but don’t get too complacent, or you’ll soon find yourself getting lost in the second results page.

Don’t Do It Alone

I’ll get it clear – you can run a marathon by yourself, and you can do SEO work without any assistance. Let’s be honest, it’s no rocket science.
BUT, getting help from someone who really knows what he’s doing, can significantly improve your results, save you from injuries and make the distance much more enjoyable. So get a running coach, and hire SEO experts. You will not be held cheap for that, you still have your running abilities and persistence, you still own a winning product or service, it’s okay to get help, it will only make you stronger and appreciated.

So we’ll see you on the starting line!