Because digital marketing efforts are above everything else now, competition to rank your website higher in SERPs is cut throat. The brands use many ideas for SEO yet, it happens that ranking is not up to the desired goal. Thus, brands knowingly or unknowingly resort to a few practices which supposedly give quick results. However, little do they know that it is affecting the site.
These are called Black Hat SEO practices. Here are some of those which you should avoid.
1. Duplicate Content
This is major and the worst malpractice that you can do while working on your SEO. Google keeps on modifying its search algorithms on a regular basis in which only the unique and original content gets indexed. So once a specific content has been indexed, it won’t get indexed again. I.e. if you have copied the content, it won’t be of any use. So aim to create original content.
2. Spam Blogs
There are many Softwares out there that create blogs with keywords just to get the ranking. However, that doesn’t help because once it is recognised that that content is not relevant to the topic, the search engine stops indexing your blogs for the SERPs. Their only purpose is to get more clicks on the link, no matter if it’s just a one-time thing.
3. Paid Backlinks
A major part of your brand’s Google ranking is based on the SEO links. There are many sites nowadays that sell many links for a few bucks. However, Penguin update by Google tracks down such link selling websites. It had an adverse effect on the ranking of those sites as well as on the sites that paid to them. They were penalised for this malpractice.
4. Invisible / Hidden text
Many times, websites publish a light gray coloured text on a white background so that more keywords can be used on the page. Though it’s barely visible for us because it’s placed in some corners. However, Google bots have automated systems that can track the tiniest flaws on the page and thus, penalizes the site.
5. Stuffed Keywords
Writing on the topic your site excels in is all right. You can write as much as you want. However, that doesn’t mean you should keep on mentioning the keyword every now and then. With the latest algorithms, Google can easily track it down and it might affect your ranking. A lot of keywords also gives an impression of a spam site and make it lose the authenticity. Keep the keywords balanced.
6. Writing for Google
Always remember that though you write considering the SEO and rankings, in the end, it is for your customers. So make sure they are in the centre of your writing. Write for them, not Google or any other search engine. Try to connect to the customers. Once you strike a perfect chord with them, they’ll help you getting a better ranking unknowingly.
7. Link farms for SEO
There are many sites or a group that help other sites get more reach and popularity through link exchange. It is called Link farm. Generally, they have low-quality content which is irrelevant to your brand and content. It doesn’t get you anywhere. It might look like a regular page, however, it is full of hyperlinks. Google tracks it down.
8. Cloaking
You might have experienced that you search for a specific product on a web, you click on a link that you think is closest to your search, but you end up completely different page having irrelevant content? That’s cloaking. Creating two different sets of a content for search engines and readers. It is deceiving the search engine and tricking the users to click on your links.
9. Social Media Spamming
Sometimes the brands select the target audience on social media and message them the link to the page that they want a better ranking for. They spam the users with many messages in the hope that people will click on the links they have sent. This spamming results in creating a negative image for the brand and also loses the credibility.
