There’s a war going on. You might not have clocked it, but it’s happening alright. Every time you type anything into a search engine — probably Google, unless there are any Jeeves die-hards out there — you’re participating in the conflict. This is the war for SEO.
For those of you who haven’t had to suffer through a 4pm Friday meeting on SEO — reconsidering all the life choices that led you to this point — allow us to explain. SEO stands for search engine optimisation; essentially, how to make your website clamber up the Google rankings, and garner more clicks.
Websites use a number of tactics to raise their SEO game. Some are a bit iffy — like hiding paid-for ‘affiliate‘ links — and result in a slap on the wrist, if caught. Others cram as many searchable terms into their articles as they can.
And then there’s the art of publishing something earlier than you might expect it to be published.
And yes, we at Londonist — like every digital publisher out there — are sometimes guilty of this one. But on this occasion, we’ve been well and truly thwarted. Stragglers in an F1 race. One of the cars that spins out and bursts into flames, seconds after the red lights go out.
But who is this Lewis Hamilton of SEO, forcing us to choke on their Google dust?
These guys:
Just look at it, greedily guzzling up all that nutritious Google juice — three years before most normal people even start considering where they’ll watch the World Cup. We’d be furious, if it wasn’t so damn brilliant.
The article isn’t just an empty holding page either. It’s populated with a curated selection of bars and pubs across London. Sure, some of these venues might not be open in three years time. Why not pop into one of these bars this weekend, and ask them if they’re screening the build-up to Qatar Vs Croatia. If it’s BBC or ITV. Go on, see what the bar staff say.
What’s more, we didn’t even search anything remotely like the terms in the article’s headline to come across it. We were actually looking for obscure ceremonies in London pubs. It’s terrifying how powerful this article’s SEO gravitational pull is already. Just imagine what it will be like in three years time. A dystopian future emerges when anyone searching anything is immediately offered Where To Watch The World Cup 2022 In London.
But we’re not giving in. Oh no. And so it is that Londonist proudly presents… Where To Watch The World Cup 2026 In London. Straight to the top of Google we go!
Last Updated 07 February 2019