Can SEO Go Wrong?
Just as in any organization or field, rules are made in order to provide people an understanding of expectations and limits. The same is true in the field of technology. Better known as white-hat and black-hat approaches, those who work in search engine optimization have choices about which to follow. The white-hat approach follows the search engine rules, emphasizes the development of sites promoting the human connection and user experience, provides opportunities for clicks that will lead to higher-quality content, and looks to improve growth of the site over the long term.
Black Hat Seo
The black hat approach takes more risks for quick rewards by attempting to fool or spam the search engines. While this method can produce immediate positive results, the risks are negative consequences such as penalties, potential bans, limited long range growth or even a failed business. Even Google has penalized itself for paid links and cloaking, a practice that shows webcrawlers one set of information and the site user something else!
Numerous big-name sites have suffered consequences as a result of poor SEO techniques. In 2011, Overstock was penalized for paid links after a competitor discovered that O=the company was offering discounts in exchange for backlinks. The site was downgraded from page one rankings for two months, affecting brand and revenue. JC Penny was penalized for 90 days for apparently buying links to achieve better page rankings.
It is best to use the search engine guidelines or webmaster forums to educate yourself on the white-hat techniques, thereby building a successful site aimed at your users.
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