Internet Marketing, SEO: Divining Its Future From The Past
In the near beginning ? there were the simple search engines. These programs would index the pages or URLs that were submitted to them. These search engines "spidered" or "crawled" the page and extracted various information that they deemed necessary to determine the relevance of the page.
In the beginning after that ? webmasters began to realize that there were certain things they could do to manipulate the search engine results by faking their own relevancy.
The reason this was possible (and relatively simple) was because these early search engines based their results almost entirely on information that webmasters could easily control, change, and manipulate on their side. From this, the first forms of White-Hat and Black-Hat SEO made their appearance (though they weren't called that in the early days, of course). These early techniques could be called spamming, or, if you wanted to be a little more accurate, they could be called dirty rotten tricks that did nothing but pollute your chances of ever finding what you actually wanted.
Some of these tricks included stuffing the meta tags with keywords, and often unrelated keywords (ever wonder why gambling or adult sites would show up when you were looking for cross stitch patterns?), or hiding keywords on the page or using questionable redirects.
Search engines began to evolve to combat these attempts at manipulation, some people even developed algorithms to determine the relevancy of a given site.
In the beginning ? of algorithmic search engines ? things started to look a little better. Results were more relevant and it was harder for webmasters to manipulate their rankings.
But not impossible.
Slowly those same unethical SEOs began to discover ways to artificially build their rankings. Link farms, link spamming, and link purchasing, all emerged as methods to unnaturally raise their rankings. And once again the search engines changed, developed, and evolved their algorithms to protect their natural search results.
Not all was bad though. Overly aggressive SEO firms were punished, if not banned, but SEO companies that practiced ethical techniques became an unexpected ally. The thing is, a search engine's livelihood is determined by its ability to provide relevant results. So the search engine optimization firms who included relevant content as a major part of their strategies became very useful to the search engines.
In the present ? unethical practices still exist. Everyone is looking for the "quick fix" solution and keep turning to Black-Hat practices despite the historical precedents. Everyone wants to believe they can outsmart the search engines simply because they lack the patience or ability to do it the right way.
And things have begun to turn even nastier than before. Some companies are no longer content to simply cheat their own way up the ladder, but fell the need to try and pull others down. This has come to be termed "Negative SEO" and includes practices like Google Bowling and false copyright complaints.
And once again, the search engines will adapt to compensate for this kind of behavior.
In the future ? will we see an end to this behavior? Unlikely. Closing a door somewhere always seems to open another somewhere else. And in the intensely competitive online world, everyone is always on the lookout for a way to get the leg up.
Just remember: history has shown us that sometimes having the leg up just means that its easier to knock you over. And, if you've employed questionable SEO to get that leg up ? in other words, not maintaining your balance ? the search engines won't hesitate to start pushing.
Hard.
Andy Eliason is a writer at Main10, a Utah SEO firm that employs only ethical search engine marketing techniques. Visit their website if you'd like to learn more.
Related Tags: seo, search engine marketing, seo companies, google bowling, negative seo
Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles
Recent articles in this category:
- Using Weights With Yoga - 3 Reasons Why You Should Be Doing It
By putting these two together that you are fulfilling the wants and desires of your respective syste - 3 Elements Of Your Classified Ad That Are Key For Your Success
Classified advertising is still an effective way to promote your products and services. When doing c - 2 Ways To Make Your Next Classified Ad Work
If you want to have success with classified advertising, then you will want to generate a lead. With - What Not To Do When Running Classified Ads
Classified ads are a great way to build your business brand and to get qualified prospects to your b - 6 Tips For Writing Winning Classified Ads
Are you currently running classified ads with little to no response? If so then you may benefit from - Best Ways To Market Your Product
Marketing the products properly to improve the sales rates is very important in any kind of business - Find The Best Digital Printing Services Company
Aside from price considerations, other aspects you need to look into include the company's turnaroun - Choosing Eco-friendly Designs For A Kitchen Cabinet - What Are The Advantages?
You may like the idea of having a bamboo kitchen cabinet if you have an environmentally friendly att - Choosing A Kitchen Cabinet - What You Need To Pay Attention Before Buying
You can turn you kitchen, which is the most often used place in your home, more appealing by install - Supply Promotional Bags To Extend Your Client Base
Although plastic shopping bags and tote bags are the most liked variety, it is worth noting that the
Most viewed articles in this category:
- Color Psychology - Logo Design
When we see colors, we connect with them instantly on a subliminal level. No one can be sure if our - Phonewords - 13, 1300 And 1800 Numbers As Marketing Tools
In the Concise Oxford Dictionary, image is described as "the character or reputation of a person or - How My Father Treated His High Blood Pressure Naturally?
My Father treated his high blood pressure problem in a natural way recently, without any doctor's tr - The Secret to Effective Business Card Marketing
Marketing a business may come in different forms. You may opt for print advertising or cash in on th - Putting Junkmail to Good Use in Your Company
The junkmail that you receive is just tipping over with treasure for you to use in your company. It - Create A Natural Looking Stone Wall With Joint Compound And A Stencil
Interior stone walls are expensive, tedious to install, and needless to say; a back breaking experie - Eyes Wide on the Internet
How could I get tired of advertising seminars or conferences? Not only can I count on scoring - Sports Betting Online
Online betting is just another rapidly growing diversion in the visual community. You will bet on th - Custom Banners Have the Power to Convince Target Audience
Are you eager to inform the masses about your new launch? It is quite obvious that you would really - Quartz Infrared Heaters: What's Not To Like?
In case you haven't heard, quartz infrared heaters are the "hot" item this heating season. Although