#1 Guaranteed RankingsMany SEO scams center around some sort of guaranteed rankings. Claims like “Guaranteed #1 ranking on Google”, “Guaranteed first page ranking on Google”, “Guaranteed #1 ranking on all search engine” are simply impossible to substantiate (when referencing organic results). If you read the following article from Google, you’ll see a section titled No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google. Google goes on to say “Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings”. Since you’ve heard it directly from Google, you should make sure to avoid any company that offers such a guarantee.

#2 They know someone at Google, or have a special relationship with GoogleFalse! Again, no SEO company has “special relationship” or access to a “priority submit” for Google. Any SEO firm that makes this claim is simply lying to you.

#3 Offering free SEO trial servicesSEO is tedious and very involved. The process required to achieve great results requires days of work, and no legitimate company is going to do this for free. Additionally, if in return for the “free trial” they ask for your FTP username/password or ask access to your hosting account, just imagine what they could do. Avoid promises that sound too good to be true!

#4 Submissions to thousands of search enginesSo what. Google, Yahoo, MSN/Bing, and AOL accounting for over 95% of the search market. Just focus your attention on the ones that matter.

#5 Undisclosed or secret SEO strategiesHmmm, a magic potion? A crystal ball? Is Harry Potter involved? Any legitimate SEO company should be able to explain what they will do to your site, as well as outline their link building strategy. Firms who reference “SEO trade secrets” are likely planning to use black hat SEO techniques that will get you banned by all major search engines at some point.

#6 Top Ranking within 48 hoursWe’ve already discussed the concept of guaranteed top rankings; LET ALONE adding a deadline to this promise. The only way to guarantee this would be with Pay Per Click (PPC).

#7 The lowest priced SEOIf an offer sounds too good to be true, it is. As we mentioned, SEO is hard work and takes some serious time to do correctly. You’re better off learning how to do it yourself, rather than paying some “SEO expert” who claims that he can do it for an absurdly low price. You get what you pay for!

#8 We work with someone at Google, or are partners with GoogleNo they don’t, and no they are not. Google has no such partnerships in the SEO world. Plus, no Google employee would jeopardize their jobs by illegally associating with any such firms.

#9 We know the Google Algorithm, we are Google Algorithm expertsThe algorithms used by search engine are complex, and dynamic. At best, people may know about certain aspects (link popularity, content, meta tags, etc). By the way, knowledge of the important aspects of SEO should be a given if you’re in the SEO world.

#10 Avoid SEO companies that take ownership of contentAnything you pay for, should belong to you. Make sure that any agreement you sign does not give ownership to the SEO agency you work with. This content can be held hostage, or even worse, be sold to a competitor.

We hope that this article will help you avoid the most common SEO scams.

1. Make Your Site SEO-Friendly From the Start
Plan and build your site with SEO in mind. If you’re just beginning, check out these helpful tips. Keep your page topics focused, add keywords to your content, and tag your images, too. If you’ve already built your site, go back and revamp. (Another reason it’s great to be able to update your own site!)

2. Help Your Customers Find You
Before your future customers can visit your site, they’ll need to find it, which means that first, search engines need to find your site. Make your site more attractive to search engines so they can index it by strengthening your site’s SEO (search engine optimization). Start here for some helpful hints, and read on for even more ideas.

3. Help Your Neighbors Find You
Optimize your site for local searches (keywords plus a location) with these helpful ideas.

4. Create Great Content and Keep It Fresh
Keep your content lively and current. Start with good, informative content and update it regularly. Include seasonal messages and offers, change images, add current products. Your site should look and feel open for business every day, with new information that keeps customers coming back.

5. Key Up Your Keywords
Use the most-searched keywords to raise your chances of being found. Google’s Wonder Wheel keyword research tool is one great, free way to find the top search terms for your business.

6. Set Your Site Apart with Metadata
Add unique title, description, and keywords to each of your site’s pages. Search bots pay close attention to this metadata. Also, make sure subheads on each page contain a keyword or two, and don’t forget to tag your images.

7. Build Your Own Buzz

• Start a blog to share your expertise, connect with new customers, and build your network.
• Reach out to bloggers, local news sites, and online journalists who write about your area of business. Promoting yourself online takes some initiative – but with a little work and these tips, you can give your site a higher profile.
• Add social media to your site to expand your reach and get the word out. Place Twitter and Facebook buttons on your site. Share your site through Digg or StumbleUpon. And take a look at this post for more great ideas.

8. Research, Analyze, Measure
It’s also important to measure and to analyze your growing traffic to see how you’re doing and where you could improve. Check out our top 20 free SEO tools to help you achieve your goals. Your site is a work in progress, and you can always keep improving it.

- See more at: http://www.smallbiztechnology.com/archive/2011/06/8-free-ways-to-grow-your-site%E2%80%99s-traffic-and-3-that-cost-money.html/#sthash.rPJwIggw.dpuf