Do you stop your SEO once you get to be no.1 or no.2 in Google?

Once your links ranks in the first places in Google for your chosen keyword, do you relax from your SEO work or keep on building links?

It's always a mistake to be complacent once you have attained the top ranking. In fact, the battle is never done and once you let your guard down, others will find a way to overtake you. If I ever get the top ranking for a particular keyword, I will do my best and put in more effort to retain that position at all cost.

You should never stop working on your SEO when you become #1 or #2 because all the other sites are working their way up as well, so don't stop building links and adding fresh content just because you're ranking good. You wouldn't want someone to overtake you, now would you?

Absolutely this. I've made the mistake of getting there naturally and not working to keep my position before like I should've. It's important to continue working on it long term or you'll just be replaced by the next person who -does- pay attention to it.

I never got far enough into my own personal website to focus too much on SEO but I think it's something that is never completed. If you want to stay on top, you need to keep doing whatever it is that you're doing right

Well, I'm going to buck the trend - I've never bothered with SEO past the name of the site and a few of the forum names. That's it. I don't spend any time on SEO at all.

Despite this CycleChat has been #2 in Google for years for "cycling forum" - the only reason I've never got #1 is because another guy has the domain "cyclingforums.com" with a cycling forum there.

I'm the same with GeeksChat - other than putting a little bit of consideration into the naming of the site itself and the individual forums within it, I have done absolutely no SEO work. I've just posted new content with some substance. That alone has (in the past month) brought us five pages forward in Google for "geek forums". (We're not quite 'first page' yet, but it will come).

Google loves original content more than tricks and gimmicks!!

Cheers,
Shaun

You have to keep working on your SEO. If you get to the top and then stop, there will be a competitor that could easily take over your position. You should never stop the SEO process.

No I would never stop working at SEO. Once you stop you will start to drop down the rankings when the others are trying to catch up to you. Never stop SEO or your site rankings will drop.

Well, I still haven't reached no1, but still, why stop? You should continue your work in order to maintain your position.