In a recent discussion on Reddit’s r/SEO forum, Google search attorney John Mueller warned against relying too heavily on third-party SEO metrics.
His comments came in response to someone’s concerns about dramatic changes in tool metrics and their perceived impact on search results.
The call was sparked by a site owner who reported the following series of events:
- A 50% drop in their website’s Domain Authority (DA) score.
- An increase in spam backlinks, with 75% of all their website’s links acquired in the current year.
- An increase in spam comments, an average of 30 per day on a site that receives about 150 daily visits.
- A discrepancy between backlink data shown in different SEO tools.
The owner, who claimed to have never purchased links, is concerned about the impact of these spam links on their site’s performance.
Mueller’s perspective on third-party metrics
Mueller addressed these concerns by highlighting the limitations of third-party SEO tools and their metrics.
He stated:
“A lot of SEO tools have their own metrics that are tempting to optimize for (because you see a number), but at the end of the day, there’s no shortcut.”
He cautioned against implementing quick fixes based on these metrics, describing many of these tactics as “smoke and mirrors.”
Mueller highlighted a crucial point: the metrics provided by SEO tools are not directly related to how search engines evaluate websites.
He noted that actions such as using opt-out files do not affect metrics from SEO tools, as these companies do not have access to Google data.
This highlights the need to understand the sources and limitations of SEO tool data. Their metrics are not direct indicators of search engine rankings.
What to focus on? Value, not numbers
Mueller suggested a holistic SEO approach that prioritized unique value over specific metrics like Domain Authority or spam scores.
He advised:
“If you want to think long term, finding ways to add real value that are unique and wanted by people on the web (along with all the usual SEO best practices as a foundation) is a good goal.
However, Mueller acknowledged that creating unique content is not easy, adding:
“Unique does not mean a unique combination of words, but truly something that no one else gives, and ideally, that others cannot easily give themselves.
It is hard, it requires a lot of work and it can take a lot of time. If it was quick and easy, others would do it – and probably already do – and have more practice at it.”
Mueller’s insights encourage us to focus on what really matters: strategies that put users first.
This helps align the content to Google’s goals and create lasting benefits.
Key takeaways
- Although potentially useful, third-party SEO metrics should not be the primary focus of optimization efforts.
- Dramatic changes in these metrics do not reflect changes in how search engines see your site.
- Focus on creating unique content instead of chasing tool-based metrics.
- Understand the limitations and sources of SEO tool data
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