19 Apr Stay Away from These Four Common SEO Tactics
When it comes to SEO, there is a lot to learn. However, not everything you read online is true, and not every recommendation is one to follow. There are some that can hurt your long-term SEO performance, so knowing which SEO tactics to avoid is crucial. Luckily, there are plenty of online resources available that can help.
4 Common SEO Tactics to Avoid Like the Plague
#1 The Use of Automated Auditing Tools
Automation, while it may be time-saving, it rarely addresses unique needs. In the case of doing an SEO audit, some use automated tools for their SEO audit. Allowing an automated tool to guide your SEO strategy doesn’t ask questions and can’t address your unique needs. A good SEO strategy needs to be morphed to fit your needs and is crucial for a solid foundation, especially if you want to make it easy for a search engine to discover your webpages.
#2 Black Hat SEO Tactics
Some “experts” will recommend certain tactics that help make your site rank higher; unfortunately, some can come back to bite you. What is known as a “black hat SEO tactic,” these methods may work in the short term, but in the long run, it will cause your site to be penalized and potentially banned from search engines. Black hat SEO doesn’t abide by search engine guidelines, while “white hat SEO” does. So avoid anything or anyone who promotes quick results. After all, slow and steady wins the race in the end.
What are Some of the Most Common Black Hat SEO Tactics?
• Keyword stuffing
• Doorway or gateway pages
• Cloaking
• Buying links
• Content automation
• Hidden/invisible links or text
• Duplicating content
#3 Using Assembly Line SEO Strategies
Unfortunately, many large SEO agencies use an SEO strategy that is like an assembly line. Meaning they do the exact same tactics and methods for each client. While this may be easy for the agency to manage, there is no room for customization, which is a dangerous thing to do. Every client has unique needs, and this needs to be addressed to get the best results. What works for one company may not work for another, so stay away from any agency that does not base their SEO tactics on what you need.
#4 Believing Performance Drops are Always Related to Algorithm Updates
In certain cases, algorithm updates occur, and they can make your organic traffic and rankings drop. While performance drops happen, they are not always associated with algorithm updates. One doesn’t always go with the other, and performance drops can occur for other reasons. Manual actions, significant content changes, technical issues, competitor changes, and even seasonality can all be at fault. So before you take the easy way out, investigate and find out the root cause of the problem.