Google No-no's

Let’s face it – when we’re talking about search engines results, 9 times out of 10, we’re talking about Google. Google has become synonymous with search engine results for most web surfers, savvy or otherwise. So, if you want your website optimized for search engines, it’s really Google that you’re worried about (and, maybe Yahoo and MSN, just for the few people that use those).

Now, for those in the business of search engine optimization (and those not in the business), Google has always been and will always be a bit of a mystery in terms of how it works and what it likes and dislikes. There used to be several “tricks” that one could use to fool Google into ranking your site high. But, not long after each trick was devised, Google would outlaw its use, resulting in low rankings. Then a new trick would have to be invented and the vicious circle would continue. This has been very frustrating for us honest web developers who try to legitimately get our clients’ websites ranked high without having to resort to cheating.

Now, any site found to be incorporating questionable tactics to get high rankings can be banned by Google, temporarily (until the site becomes “honest”) or permanently.  Believe me, you don’t want your site banned by Google! It’s like having your store moved from a prime downtown location to some hidden back alley. Not good.

So, here is a list of no-no’s as far as Google (and quite probably other major search engines) is concerned:

• Overloading with keywords/phrases. If your site is about dogs, don’t have a sentence that uses the word ‘dog’ 7 times. Yes, use your keywords as much as is reasonably possible, but if your copy doesn’t read naturally, you’re probably overdoing it. Ding!
• Hidden text – e.g., white (or very light) text on a white background.
• Hidden links – tiny, virtual invisible links to other pages or from other sites to yours.
• Duplicate content – having two identical (or very similar) pages.
• Doorway pages. These are pages that exist for no other purpose than to direct traffic to your site. Generally they’re filled with different keywords and links so that it looks like your site is more popular than it really is.
• Using software that automatically submits your site to search engines.

The rule of thumb is this: If it feels like you’re cheating, you probably are and will get caught. Maybe not now, but eventually you probably will and, if website traffic is important to your business, that’s a chance not worth taking!

For more info, see http://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html.  Also check out http://www.highrankings.com/forum/ - a great forum for what to do and what not to do to get good search engine results.