Over the years, Google has created many bots and algorithms to detect Black Hat SEO Tactics

It is important to understand what your boundaries are in order to have a successful SEO campaign.

Actual SEO Media, Inc.

Actual SEO Media, Inc. Discuss the difference between black and white hat SEO strategies and why to stay away from black hat SEO.

HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES, June 8, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- There is no doubt that search engine optimization (SEO) is extremely important for business growth and marketing. It's been a hot topic of discussion in the digital marketing realm for many years. The more society becomes reliant on the Internet, the more businesses need to make their SEO strategy a priority. However, not all SEO is good SEO. There is a difference, and brands need to be careful about who they hire to build their SEO and how they go about creating their strategy. Actual SEO Media, Inc. wants to help people understand the differences between black and white hat SEO and the consequences black hat SEO can bring.

Black Hat SEO: A Manipulative Strategy

Marketing over the years has always been a difficult and ongoing race, and digital marketing is no different. Companies will use certain tactics to catch a person's eye or make their advertisements relatable to current hardships or common desires many people are striving for.

For instance, certain colors, such as yellow and red, can be very striking. Many print ads use these colors to draw the consumer's eye to a particular product. During the Great Depression, not many people had the money to leisurely purchase products. Therefore marketers had to work extra hard and use sympathetic messaging to get people to buy things like alcohol or see upcoming shows. They would say something to effect, such as "escape reality by coming to see this traveling show" or "feel good again after purchasing this drink."

A lot this type of marketing is often frowned upon because it can be very manipulative. Consumers are much better today at detecting manipulative messaging. This is not unlike what black hat SEO is today. However, the difference in black hat SEO is that it is more about manipulating the search results ranking to get more clicks and traffic. Ultimately, this still manipulates the user into thinking this is a trustworthy source for whatever they are looking for. Customers do not like it, and neither do the search engines.

There are many different black hat SEO tactics. The list of exploits seems to get longer and longer as time goes on. As long as there is money to be made, there will always be someone who is out looking for a fast and easy buck, regardless of how exploitative it is.

Unmasking the Dark Side: The Sinister Tactics of Black Hat SEO

1. Key Word Stuffing- Keyword stuffing is overusing the main keyword in an article. This is one of the most commonly known black hat SEO tactics. While there is a minimum number of instances people should use a keyword for their content to rank well, there is such a thing as overuse of the keyword. Not only does it trigger the search engine's algorithm to rank the page lower, but it also looks and reads awkwardly. Readers will be able to catch on quickly to what is happening, and people will more than likely click off the site and go somewhere else where it's easier and more enjoyable to read.

2. Duplicated Content- While content creation can take a lot of time, it is still extremely important that it is done properly, and creating duplicate or auto-generated content is not the way. Search engines, such as Google, will be able to pick up on duplicated content. It is no different from plagiarized content, even if the creator is plagiarizing themselves. If the content is all the same, that doesn't give much to the user who is trying to find out more information.

3. Hidden Text- Hidden text is a practice many people can relate to, especially those trying to make their word count on a school paper. Take just a handful of words that don't mean anything, make them disappear into the background color of the page and boom, the word count is achieved. School teachers back in the day may have been fooled by this trick, but search engines like Google will not. They will drop a site's ranking faster than faster than Twitter stock drops under Elon Musk's leadership.

4. Gateway Pages-These can also be known as doorway pages. These types of pages are essentially a funnel that leads users to a different page. It's like adding a "content" page that does not offer any valuable information. These pages will often consist of slightly varying URls and many links that typically lead to one page. Gateway pages can often be confused with landing pages. However, the difference is the landing page can stand on its own and actually provide useful information, whereas a gateway page cannot. These pages are created only for ranking purposes and not for users' benefits.

5. Cloaking- This is a tactic that gives the search engine crawlers and the user two different experiences. The search engine crawler will see a page that is fully optimized with relevant content. However, the viewer may get a completely useless page.

White Hat SEO: Unleashing the Three Musketeers

In contrast to black hat SEO, there is white hat SEO. These are acceptable strategies that will not only help websites rank better, but users will be more willing to stick around longer and possible even become long-time users of the site. While white hat SEO tactics may take longer to show results, it will be worth the effort.

1. Valuable Content- Nothing beats creating valuable and relevant content for users. People go online for all kinds of reasons, so if one source is not giving them what they want, they will not waste time before they click away to a different site that does have what they are looking for.

2. Fulling the User's Intent- When someone looks up something such as easy five-minute recipes, they will want to see recipes that are easy and only take five minutes. Therefore, it is important to create titles and URLs that are accurate to the content itself.

3. Creating Mobile-Friendly Sites- Most people today use their mobile devices, such as phones and tablets, more than a PC or laptop. In fact, owning a desktop or laptop of any kind is becoming more rare. Therefore, sites that are created with mobile devices in mind will rank much higher. It is important to keep the many differently sized mobile devices in mind for even better ranking.

The Jedi Masters of White Hat SEO, Guiding Businesses to the Light Side of User Delight and Search Engine Domination!"

When creating a website, designers need to always have the user in mind. The creator and the user can think very differently from each other. What may make sense to the creator may be confusing to the user. Therefore, everything from the content to the layout of the website should be created with a user's ability to navigate it in mind. It should also contain information that a user will need or want to know. For instance, it is always a good idea to anticipate some questions users may have about the information a website has. A website can add value to its site by creating content that answers these questions with blogs, FAQ pages, or with keyword articles.

Overall, it is always best to use good white hat SEO techniques. It is better for both the website owner and the user. Black hat techniques will only result in angry users, low rankings, and penalties from the search engine, which can cause irreversible damage. Therefore, website owners need to be careful who they hire to help them with their SEO. There are always going to be people out there trying to exploit the system so long as there is money to be made.

As a leading Houston SEO company, Actual SEO Media, Inc. empowers its clients to maximize their digital marketing potential. By harnessing the power of search engine optimization, the company helps businesses expand their online reach and establish a stronger presence on the Internet. Actual SEO Media, Inc is an expert at understand the do's and don't for SEO, and only practice proper white hat SEO strategies. For more information, contact the office at (832) 834 - 0661 or by email at info@actualseomedia.com.

Jamin Mootz
Actual SEO Media, Inc.
+1 832-834-0661
email us here

Houston Digital Marketing Consultant, White Glove Full Service Digital Marketing Consultants Houston