Search engine optimization (SEO) is a part of every website life cycle. Since Google consistently changes its algorithm, SEO experts are forced to change the code on every web page to keep up with the search engine giant. A technique called “black hat SEO” has been developed for people who try to game Google into giving the website a higher value than competitors. Unfortunately, these methods have become mainstream techniques, and many unsuspecting webmasters incorporate them and find their website penalized by Google. Before you decide to optimize your website, know the top Google SEO myths to avoid being penalized.
Meta Tags and Google
Meta tags were one of the first implemented techniques used by search engines. The two prime meta tags you’ll find on web pages are “keywords” and “description.” The keywords tag is used by some uncommon search engines, so it’s still slightly useful. Some webmasters stuff the keywords meta tag with dozens of phrases to improve index rank in Google. However, Google does not include the keyword meta tag in its algorithm, so stuffing code into this part of your web pages does not improve rank.
The description meta tag is still used by Google, but webmasters should only insert one or two sentences in the code. The description should be carefully considered, since this is the snippet seen on the search engine results page. The description should display an overview of the web page. Additionally, Google does not always honor description meta tags if the algorithm does not detect valid text. If this happens, Google’s algorithm will replace description meta tags with other text within the page.
Create Multiple Domain Names for Better Rank
An old technique used by webmasters is creating multiple domains to promote one business entity. Webmasters bought several domains and interlinked them together to pass PageRank and improve organic search results. However, Google now penalizes this practice. The common term given to people who host dozens and even hundreds of domains is “domain farm.” A domain farm webmaster attempts to saturate the search engines with dozens of domain names, so his websites dominate the search engine results. These websites normally have similar or identical content, but the business is indexed several times in the search engines. Google has added domain farming into the company’s guidelines as a black hat method. Consequently, a webmaster who runs a domain farm can have all of his work devalued by Google and ultimately cost thousands of dollars in lost revenue. For some webmasters, Google may remove the domain farm altogether from the index.
Doorway Pages Bring in More Sales
Doorways are one-page websites that point to the main domain of the business. Similar to a domain farm, these sites were popular as a means to get several websites into the search engine results page. Doorway sites are distinct from domain farms in that they have one page of links and very rarely have any content. A doorway website may rank high in Google for a short period of time, but very rarely does the page keep its rank.
Keyword Stuffed Content
Keywords and keyword phrases are the main component of website content. Google has perpetuated the increase in the need for content on websites. Google has hundreds of factors it uses to rank a web page, but one known way to boost search engine rank is by writing content that uses keyword phrases. Keyword phrases that focus on a website’s purpose increase search engine rank for that phrase. For instance, if a website design company wanted to rank for the phrase “website design,” the webmaster needs to focus on this phrase within the page content. However, keyword stuffing is a blackhat technique that can lead to a penalty.
Many people write articles with the intention of including keyword phrases at a certain percentage throughout the article. There is no documentation from Google that recommends a certain percentage of keywords. In fact, Google has stated that writing naturally on pages improves search engine rank performance and helps webmasters avoid a penalty.
Duplicate Content and Articles
One of the most popular myths on the Internet is that duplicate content increases search engine rank. The myth has made webmasters believe that articles should be posted on several websites with links that point back to the business domain. In fact, duplicate content should be avoided. Duplicate content devalues a site, and it causes erratic behavior from Google. Duplicate articles should not be hosted on several e-zine sites. Instead, create content rich articles and host them on your own website. Monitor your content for theft to avoid getting stuck in Google’s content duplication filter.
These five SEO myths are the most popular reasons webmasters incorporate poor optimization on a website and find their domains buried in the list of results. Ensure you read the Google webmaster guidelines before incorporating any SEO on your website. Additionally, be careful of scams that promise to bring your web page to the top of the search engine ranks. Many SEO experts use black hat techniques that do more harm than good for a website. Follow the Google guidelines, and a slow, gradual increase in rank will be accomplished.
