Search Engine Optimization: Black Hat or White Hat SEO?
If you are looking for a search engine optimization company to do some SEO work on your website, make sure you choose the right color hat. There are a lot of companies that take a quick and unethical approach to SEO, known as black hat SEO, while there are a smaller number of companies that implement ethical SEO work, known as white hat SEO. The key to choosing the correct color, which is obviously white, is this …
Before you even think about taking on a search engine optimization company, the first thing to do is shop around and see what’s on the market. The same principles would apply if you were to buy a new computer. I would look at some models, prices, and what each model has to offer. If an SEO company offered a service that guaranteed you the top positions, it is very likely that it would wear a black hat. No SEO company can guarantee top rankings as they have no direct control over search engines and their ranking algorithms. However, they may mention that the top ranks are highly achievable due to their previous success with other clients.
Make sure to look at the company portfolio page (if they have one on their website or just ask them) and do some research on their clients. This can be done by looking at the performance of the client’s website within search engines for the selected keywords that they have been optimized for. Another good idea would be to write a courtesy email to the customer asking for a reference on the SEO company that you have used to optimize your website.
The most important gift about a black hat SEO company is how they would describe their services. If a company cannot go into detail about how it does its work (which means it is very vague), and this involves justifying every step of its work, then it would be best to avoid its services. A proper SEO company will be more than happy to explain their services in detail and justify their reasons for using such techniques. If you can’t understand the techniques they use, be sure to do some research on the internet and read SEO articles that explain each technique. If you find that your work fits within the lines of your research and that everything is ethical, then this is a company to put on your list.
One last point to mention, a company must emphasize the phrase ‘patience is the key to success with SEO’. If a company claims that it can achieve results very quickly, then it is time to start running. In theory, successful SEO on a website will take time for the results to start showing (most cases 3-6 months, but it could be longer).
Would you like to know what could happen to your website if you hire a black hat SEO company, regardless of how big or small your website is in terms of brand recognition? An example would be the story of the German BMW website. They hired a black hat SEO company to do some work on their website and that resulted in their site being banned from Google’s ranks. Therefore, it is better to do your research on SEO by reading articles like this one and questioning companies’ approach to search engine optimization. This will ensure that you have selected the clean white hat and that your website does not tarnish from the black.