A long time ago… on search engines far far away…
One thing I noticed when watching the new Star Wars film is that Jedi training is the perfect analogy for learning Search Engine Optimization. SEO, much like becoming a Jedi, is not a skill you can master overnight. It requires a lot of time and dedication to become an expert. Stray too far from the path and you become one with the dark side. Digital marketing is something that has to be learned and relearned, with constant rigorous training. We list down some similarities between the two vastly different worlds.
The Force = Google
Google in this analogy represents the Force. The Force in Star Wars lore is basically an energy field that connects all living things in our galaxy. (Or they could be the midichlorians if you want to get specific… and you like the prequels.) It surrounds all and binds the galaxy together. It is all encompassing. Similarly, in the internet, Google is everywhere. It is a free tool that is everyone’s go to search engine which makes it a very powerful force in the internet. If you understand how Google works – how its algorithm ranks websites, then you can easily learn SEO. A majority of Google analytics training programs focus on understanding the inner workings of Google. Like in every great epic where there is a conflict between 2 sides, harnessing the power of Google can result in two ways. Understanding it and using it for the good of others by spreading relevant and important information to the people the right way makes you a white hat SEO. Understanding it and using it for one’s own selfish gains makes you a black hat SEO.
The Light Side = White Hat SEO
White Hat is an SEO technique where you conform to Google’s guidelines. It avoids tricking the search engine. This perfectly fits the Light Side of the force where they only use the Force for good. It focuses on creating content for users rather than search engines. This means that they build links by creating relevant content instead of making content for the sake of getting indexed by Google. Google Adwords training can prepare SEO Specialists to recognize the type of content they can utilise to have a successful campaign.
The Dark Side = Black Hat SEO
Black Hat, on the other hand, is an SEO technique where they manipulate Google’s SEO to get ahead of the rankings. However effective it is in the short term, Google’s algorithm updates always penalises their quick fixes which in turn ruins their rankings further. Like in Star Wars, the Light Side always prevails in the end.
Jedi = SEO Specialist
As you might have guessed by the title, SEO Specialists are the Jedi Knights in this analogy. Like Jedi Knights, SEO Specialists just don’t become one overnight. They start out as a Padawan or a student. Jedi training similar to SEO training requires a lot of effort from the participants. Luke Skywalker spent a lot of time in Dagobah learning from Jedi Grand Master Yoda. It took a while for him to get the hang of it. But, eventually, because of necessity and practice he was able to transform himself into a Jedi Knight. Similarly, SEO Specialists have to master the different facets of SEO and they have to put in a lot of time and effort to become good at it.
Sith = Black Hatters
For the ones that prefer to operate on the dark side of things, black hatters can be compared with the Sith. Essentially, if one takes the easy road to power, a quicker road for reaching one’s goals, that’s just flat out cheating. And wrong. Yes, dark side characters in Star Wars look cool, but like in real life, there’s a reason why they still lose in the end.
In SEO, black hat techniques tend to get quick and easy results, yet never lasts in the long run as compared to white hat SEO. Also, quick and easy efforts to rank websites always gets destroyed whenever Google updates their algorithm and ranking rules.
By the way, shady SEO’s, don’t expect clients to stay with you once you give them positive results that would just one day soon, blow up like Alderaan. Yeah, you’ll be able to deliver excellent results in SEO but nothing would compare to results that would last long term.
The lesson here? If you want to do your job right, taking the easy road to success won’t do. Sorry Darth.
There is no denying that doing things the right way is the only way to go, most especially in SEO and retaining your clients properly.
Mastering SEO is straightforward so long as you focus on understanding Google and other search engines.
Speaking of which, watch for our post next week where we talk about the best and most modern sources of SEO Training.
Do you like Star Wars or SEO as much as we do? What other similarities between SEO and Star Wars did you notice? Sound off in the comments below. And May the 4th be with you!
Post written by: Trish Magsaysay and Aj Aviado
