A ranking fixation is the focus of Aisle #9 in my series, “SEO is NOT a Candy Store.”

What’s a ranking fixation?

It’s when business executives and online marketers lack proper perspective.

I think it’s kind of silly when business executives get caught up with how well they rank – whether they are #1 or #7 for a keyword phrase on a major search engine.

It’s a myopic view of SEO and small business web marketing. It’s one thing to rank, but it’s another thing to rank and actually get traffic.

Shouldn’t it really come down to conversions and sales? Look at the keyword phrases that are actually converting. You shouldn’t judge a natural search engine optimization campaign just based on a few keyword phrases. Look at the whole portfolio of keywords to see how they are performing for your business.

Bear in mind that your organic keyword rankings are going to fluctuate. You will have to cope with changes in search engine algorithms, the competition, and updates you make to your own web site.

At the end of the day, you have to think about keyword phrases and whether they are supporting the business or just some words you think are important when they may not be at all. Effective small business search marketing demands the right perspective. What’s yours?