Bad SEO Practices:When Boundaries Melt Difference Between Optimization & Spamming

 

There is a fine line that divides optimization and spamming, which shall never be erased. An overload of optimization techniques could result in spamming. So, what are the various ways which when used in excess, can melt the boundaries between optimization and spamming?

Stuff the Keywords

It is a general practice to use keywords on a webpage for the purpose of optimization. According to Google, a webpage that comprises of three to seven percent of keywords in that page’s content is considered to be well optimized. Thus, it is generally recommended to all search engine optimizers to stick to this keyword density, because any keyword density exceeding the stipulated margin is considered to be trying to increase its page rank through unwanted or undesirable means. This overkill of keywords is also known as keyword stuffing and is considered to be a common spamming trick. Hence, such websites or blogs are red flagged by Google.

The Page that isn’t?

Apart from usage of excessive keywords, there is another way to misuse the keywords to attract more traffic towards a blog or website. Even though the keyword density seems to be in accordance with the standards, the content on the page may not be related to the contents of the website. This is a common spamming practice, which we come across in our mailbox. Sometimes, a few unethical hackers place alluring links on the spammed page, so that if the user clicks the link, the hacker will be able to copy all the details of the user, including his/her IP address. This is spamming plus hacking and it equals to crime! Beware!

Open the wrong Door

Another very bad SEO practice is to create doorway pages. It is very easy to create doorway pages, as it only requires basic HTML knowledge. The coder puts a phrase or sentence (with the keyword) in the form of a link. When the user clicks the link, the page redirects to the website, which has nothing to do with the actual keyword. Once again, it is a serious case of spamming, generally practiced by bad optimizers to increase link juice. Many websites made use of doorway pages in their WebPages, just to increase their web ranking in the search engine. Thus, the HTML pages were tailored for particular search engines only. But nowadays, search engine spiders are able to identify such pages, enabling the user to avoid this hassle, altogether.

The Invisible Keyword

At times, a desperate blogger may use invisible keywords, just to increase the keyword density of the page, which in turn will increase the number of viewers. Nevertheless, Google has its own ways to track down such malpractices and acknowledges that site to be a spam. If a certain website is observed to have a sudden boost in its web traffic, then that site has a great chance of incorporating bad SEO methodologies.

The Rip Off

The sad part is that many small time business owners, with little (or zero) knowledge about internet and SEO, hire some person (or firm), who promises to bring their website in the front page of the search engine at the earliest. They are completely oblivious to the SEO techniques and some might not even comprehend the importance of keywords and their optimum density. If the owners could take out time to learn about good SEO practices, they can help increase their online popularity, the right way!

[note]About Author: Jeet believes in sticking to ethical and white hat link building and SEO methods. He writes about internet marketing and methods to promote blogs and websites.[/note]