You’ve probably read those sales pitches which promise that you can use search engine optimization to become a millionaire overnight. There are plenty of unscrupulous SEO experts and of course, con artists out there who are on the lookout for a quick buck from people who are, well, on the lookout for a quick buck. These people tell you that if you adopt their less-than-ethical strategies, great riches can be yours in no time.
Of course, these come-ons are more hype than substance and even supposing for a moment that you really could make a lot of money in the short term by flouting SEO best practices, would you rather make money right now or have a business which is sustainable and continues to grow and generate revenue year after year? Hopefully the latter – because if you’re going for the quick cash-in, you’ll only be left disappointed, with nothing to show for the work you’ve done.
So how do ethics and SEO tie in? Let’s start by looking at white hat (ethical) vs. black hat (questionable/unethical) SEO.
Black hat SEO involves trying to get a high ranking in the search engines in ways which violate the letter or the spirit of ethical SEO practices. Some examples of black hat SEO include:
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