Different People, Different Ethics
Image courtesy of Joseph Gilbert
We learn ethics in school, in law class, journalism, business and more. But did you know ethics are important in SEO? In a world where unfortunately many people claim to be SEO experts and try to get the best of you, it’s important to develop a code of ethics for yourself, your clients and agencies you work with.
“From the very beginning, we must understand that the issues involved are very complicated, and highly subjective. What is good ‘ethical’ SEO to one person might be stooping to the deepest depths of evil to another. Defining ‘good,’ ‘bad’ and ‘best’ practices is at best aiming at an undefined moving target,” says Krissi Danielsson in an SEO Chat blog post all about SEO ethics.
Not everyone will feel the same way and have the same ethics. It’s very personal, and everyone has their own morals. However, there are some things you should just not do in SEO. Here are some of the best practices we have heard, whether you are an SEO professional advising others or trying to market your own business.
Black Hat V. White Hat SEO
First of all, try to stay away from the so-called “black hat SEO,” or the use of aggressive SEO strategies that focus only on search engines and not the human audience while not paying attention to search engine guidelines, according to a Webopedia definition. These bad tactics can include keyword stuffing, invisible text and using unrelated keywords. If you’re found guilty of using black hat SEO, be prepared to be banned from the search engines. Black hat SEO is also referred to as unethical SEO, so you should really stay away from it! In contrast, “white hat SEO” is the opposite and refers to SEO tactics that cater to the audience and follow search engine rules. It occurs when you use appropriate keywords and keyword analysis, link building to build link popularity and writing good content for human readers, according to Webopedia.
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Danielsson says there is simply a difference in opinion. Some SEOs believe search engines are the good guys and provide a free public service while some experts believe search engines are the devil. She says those that think search engines are the bad guys usually use black hat methods.
“As a result of inadequate and spam filled SERPs, these SEOs believe the search engines are not fulfilling their stated goals and terms of service,” says Danielsson. “Because of that failure on the part of the search algorithms to provide relevant spam free results, black hat SEOs believe there is no legal or moral obligation on the part of the SEO or the website owner to follow them either.”
Ethical SEO Guidelines
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A Search Engine Land article by Tom Schmitz talks about six ethical guidelines to consider in SEO. First, follow search engine guidelines completely. You shouldn’t just be trying to impress search engines just to rank higher in results, but it is important to make sure your content is appropriate and gets past the eyes of the search engines. Check out , and Bing Webmaster Guidelines for more specific information. Don’t just pay attention to the written rules however, Schmitz warns.
“Webmaster guidelines are not all-inclusive. There’s plenty you can do to improve ranking opportunities or incur search engine penalties that you will not see in these documents,” Schmitz says. “Rather than treating these guidelines as a simple checklist, it’s vital to also appreciate and follow the spirit of the rule.”
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Danielsson suggests thinking of search engines as businesses with their terms of use like any other business you would be in a partnership with. If you think of it that way, you can put other feelings aside and just abide by a kind of contract.
Next, Schmitz suggests separating non-SEO from SEO. For example, the design of your website is extremely important and can help attract both new and old visitors to your site, but it’s not a traditional aspect of SEO.
Another tip is to be aware that good SEO takes time. It’s not a quick fix and is part of an overall long-term strategy your business your employ. Schmitz says to manage your expectations appropriately. This is especially important when thinking about traffic. Don’t expect that just because you have a ton of keywords set up that you’ll all of a sudden get a million visitors to your website. Also, SEO results can take any where from six weeks to six months to produce good results, and SEO is essentially a cold war, says Schmitz. Keep up with your business’s competitors, but don’t worry if they seem to produce faster results. Quality over quantity always wins! Also as Danielsson says, some businesses are in it for the long-term and some the short-term.
Image courtesy of The Open University
“Some webmasters are in the business for the long term, with the intention of building search engine rankings that will have staying power…Other webmasters want to remain in the search placements for the longer term, but are far less concerned about the techniques used to achieve those rankings,” Danielsson explains.
Here’s another thing to keep in mind. Don’t just take any opportunity that comes your way. For example, guest blogging has been the subject of much speculation in SEO over the past few years, but it actually can be hurtful rather than beneficial. Guest blogging happens when you pay someone to write content for you outside of your company or purchase professionally copyrighted content, but many writers double-dip, Schmitz says. They were paid to write and were paid to insert links on behalf of clients or employers. This is also more of a short term solution. If you really want original content produced often, hire someone full time!
“Stick to sustainable practices or be certain short-term efforts closely align with your client or employer’s business goals — and with the search engines’ guidelines,” Schmitz says. “Just because an opportunity exists does not mean you should go there.”
Image courtesy of Zuleyka Zevallos
Also make sure you communicate. If you’re doing SEO for a client, make sure to inform them all about both black and white hat SEO. Some people don’t even know what SEO is, so full disclosure of what can happen in SEO is best!
“Failing to inform the client of the potential negatives of a grey or black hat practice is not acting in anyone’s best interests,” says Danielsson. “In fact, a lack of full disclosure of possible filters, penalties, and outright banning as a result of proscribed actions is not acting in the interest of the client.”
Danielsson also says there are actually two different clients in SEO, your client and search engines, and SEOs can experience a tug-of-war since both clients usually want different things!
“Since an SEO professional has in effect two clients, there is really more than one set of ethics involved. First, there is the ethics in relationship to the website owner client. Second, and also very much a part of the ethical question, are the search engines themselves,” says Danielsson.
The SEO industry doesn’t have a regulated licensing board like in medicine or law, but there is an SEO ethics code and badge you can place on your website. Check out SEO Socially for more.
Do you believe SEO can be ethical? What ethics and guidelines do you suggest? Let us know by commenting below or interacting with us on social media.