The majority of digital marketers consider search engine optimization, also known as SEO, to be the single most effective digital marketing method they use. When done right, SEO can drive tons of free organic (free) traffic that skyrockets leads and sales.
There are two ways to SEO: white hat and black hat. White hat SEO involves following Google search engine guidelines to increase webpage rankings. Black hat SEO consists of looking for loopholes within Google’s algorithm and then exploiting them to improve search engine rankings. While both are focused on increasing organic traffic, there are some major differences between the two. The last thing you want to do is get on Google’s bad side and have them penalize your site.
We’re going to run through why white hat SEO is the preferred way to improve search engine rankings to higher organic traffic.
So what is white hat SEO?
White hat SEO is a search engine optimization technique that falls within the guidelines of major search engines like Google. These strategies can help webpages improve their rankings without resorting to shady tactics that exploit search engine algorithms and loop-holes in the system.
What are the differences between White Hat SEO and Black Hat SEO?
At the end of the day, both methods try to achieve the same thing- increase traffic to the designated websites. Google is the search engine that SEO strategies are focused on since more than 86% of people use it for their online searches.
As mentioned earlier, there is a difference between white hat SEO and black hat SEO. There are a few points to understand so that you have a clear picture of how these SEO strategies differ.
White hat SEO uses popular keywords in the specific niche that are surrounded by helpful and interesting content to drive traffic
Black hat SEO focuses in focuses on turning out mediocre content that is often copied from other websites.
White hat SEO takes advantage of alt text for images and uses the right keywords within the content
Black hat SEO spams content with keywords and even makes some text invisible
White hat SEO involves a good amount of time spent on keyword research
Black hat SEO abuses keywords by stuffing them wherever it can
White hat SEO follows all the guidelines put out by search engines such as Google, uses genuine link-building techniques like guest posts
Black hat SEO involves buying links.
We can think of Black hat SEO being the evil twin brother of white hat SEO, the main problem is that black hat SEO creates content with only search engines in mind, not real people. Black hat SEO is very sensitive to algorithm changes and there is a chance you get penalized and see your search engine rankings drop – that’s why you should stay clear of black hat SEO.
White hat SEO strategies
If you want to go with an SEO strategy that has long-lasting results, then we advise you give white-hat SEO a try. To give you an idea of what will be helpful to get your content to rank higher in the search results, here are some of the most popular white hat SEO strategies that are being used today.
Create good content
Always think about your audience when you are writing content for your website. Craft content that is interesting and informative. Your goal is to deliver value to your readers. Create blog posts that are relevant to the keywords you use within them, it will make it more likely for visitors to keep reading your content and continue browsing your website.
Satisfying user intent
It’s no secret that people want to see content that is directly related to the keywords they type into a search engine. User intent involved understanding what people are searching for and delivering that experience to them. That means that you will have to optimize the site’s content to match the keywords people are using to search for something, as well as deliver content that is related to them. This involves using subheadings, bullet points, relevant images and videos.
Optimize for mobile
Over 65% of internet traffic today comes from mobile devices. This means that if your website is not mobile optimized or responsive, it will have high bounce rates. This is when someone goes to your site, but almost instantly leaves. This is why it’s important to make your website look as great on mobile devices as it does on a desktop.
When should you use white hat SEO?
White hat SEO works equally great for every industry, we recommend going full white hat SEO – this is because you don’t risk of getting penalized by the search engines. Google has a highly advanced algorithm that keeps getting more and more intelligent with the use of AI. What works as a black hat tactic today may get you penalized tomorrow, leading your website to drop way down the search results.
To sum it all up
Now that you know that white hat SEO is the way to go, you can start optimizing your site’s content. The strategies mentioned in this blog post will help you increase organic traffic without worrying about getting penalized for using them. This takes a bit of time and effort to perfect, but at the end of the day, it is all worth it in the long run.
If you are having difficulties with optimizing the SEO of your website, you can always contact us for assistance. We have been working with websites and applying various SEO techniques to help our customers rank since the early days.