If you’ve researched SEO techniques, you may have come across the terms white hat and black hat. These terms are used to categorize SEO methods as either “good” (white hat) or “bad” (black hat). It’s often more complicated than to say that every method is either completely good or bad, of course, but it is true that search engines do look down upon certain techniques. However, some of those techniques were once seen as completely white hat. Over the years, though, these once-key strategies have become quick ways of getting your website removed from searches. Here are some of these white hat techniques that are now frowned upon.
Keyword Stuffing
When search engines first rose to popularity, it wasn’t unusual to find a giant list of keywords at the bottom of a webpage. Often, these keywords were made invisible, but they were still there. They existed only for search engines. Some websites attempted to fit these keywords into text, but that often led to awkward writing that wandered off-topic a lot. Today, keyword stuffing is considered horrible SEO that no professional website should engage in.
Multiple Pages for Multiple Keywords
Have you been on websites that have separate pages for different keyword variations? For example, a septic tank service may have pages for septic cleaning, septic upkeep, and septic care. The content on these pages is likely going to be nearly identical, even if the actual phrasing of the content is different. Making multiple pages is no longer useful, and most search engines will negatively view these pages, especially if the content is the same with different keywords and page metadata.
Buying Links
Having other websites link to your site can be a great boost to where you’re listed in search results. It shows that others consider you a valid source or reliable partner, so it boosts your credibility. But you must get these links naturally. Years ago, people would actually pay other websites to link to them. This would lead to large link directories that were full of nothing but links to other sites. Today, Google and other search engines do not allow paid links and will remove websites that use them. This is something you absolutely need to avoid.
Now that you have an idea of what doesn’t work, are you ready to learn what does? BlendIM’s team of experienced SEO professionals is here to help you rank in search engines and improve your conversions. Contact us today to learn how.
