Dusting off my keyboard

2007-03-19T12:06:00.000-07:00

Today I saw a video by GreyWolf who obnoxiously jeered into his video camera and demanded that people posting redundant SEO news to "back away from the keyboard".

I agree with the argument that there is a lot of crap out there - a lot of regurgitated 'news' that is sucked down from one source and then spit back out in the form of a blog. But I couldn't care less if people do this sort of thing. What did he think, RSS feeds, free blog software and easy data transference would create less junk on the web?

Personally, I get most of my day to day information from SearchEngineLand. But I really don't concern myself with people who spend their time copying and pasting information. Newspapers call that "syndication". I don't care if I read an article from the NYT or from a syndication on someone's blog. Anyone with a background in computers will understand the power of redundancy. And no one is going to look at that video and think to themselves, "ok, I think I'll quit writing about SEO because I'm just a small guy."

But it's sure to piss off many SEOs who will likely bitch and moan and gripe and complain and....blog about...and LINK to Wolfy. Look what it did for Dave Pasternack.

SEO Garden

2006-02-24T09:39:00.000-08:00

I was at a search engine conference in New York a couple of years ago and was discussing the fate of SEO, how the industry was changing and what could possibly lie ahead for those of us who make a living through Search Engine Optimization. And that's when I came up with the garden analogy.

As someone who has been an organic gardener for over 10 years, I have come to understand a great deal about the interconnectedness of soil, seeds, fertilizers, plant diseases, destructive insects and, most of all, patience. Although agriculture and the Internet are seemingly unrelated fields, I can see transference in much of the knowledge gained from the study of sustainable agriculture to SEO, specifically as it relates to "black hat" and "white hat" techniques for success.

Simply put, "black hat" SEO techniques are designed to "beat the system" and can produce quick and effective results, much like dousing plants with ammonium nitrate based fertilizer such as 'Miracle Grow'. However, "black hat" SEO is not a long term, sustainable strategy. By contrast, "white hat" techniques involve creating a content rich focus whereby a website will continue to improve over time. Positive results from white hat SEO may come more slowly than by using black hat techniques but the gains persist over time and do not require constant attention by SEO resources.

I like to compare "black hat" SEO techniques to 'chemical' agriculture. By chemical Agriculture, I mean farming practices that rely heavily upon chemical inputs - broad spectrum insecticides, chemical fertilizers and genetically modified seeds.

In contrast, "white hat" SEO techniques correspond to sustainable agriculture where crop rotation, companion planting, natural soil building and seed acclimation are the techniques of success.

When a farmer chooses to infuse crops with chemical fertilizers, he will quickly find out that more and more fertilizer must be applied every year in order to sustain high yeilds. Like chemical agriculture, SEO from a black hat perspective creates an unhealthy addiction to the various inputs supplied by the SEO professional. A website engaged in black hat SEO cannot stand alone and maintain its high search engine position for very long. If the SEO leaves the company or quits paying attention to the site, the website will eventually be "outed" by the search engines and will find itself removed from the search engine index.

White Hat SEO, like sustainable agriculture techniques, requires more planning and patience. It takes time to build healthy soil (or web content). However, once a foundation of quality has been produced, it can stand the test of time.

People often fall into the trap of judging "black hat" and "white hat" techniques and, if one believes Google is God, then that judgement certainly has some relevance. However, those of us who take an agnostic approach to SEO can see 'black hat' and 'white hat' for what they are, techniques.

For companies who have a brand and a domain name that is intended to be around for years to come, "white hat" SEO offers safety and sustainability and will create a healthy foundation for success that is not entirely reliant on an SEO resource. For companies who are looking for a quick sale and have no desire to create brand awareness, "black hat" SEO may make sense.

As someone who carries Cherokee Indian genes, I find it easy to connect with Native American wisdom that emphasizes actions with the seventh generation in mind. Are your actions good for your grandchildren's grandchildren? It is obvious to me that an agricultural system that depletes soil life and is addicted to petroleum based (fertilizer and pesticide) inputs is not good for the seventh generation. Perhaps there is a moral imperative to move away from this food production technique that sacrifices nutrition and health for color and volume.

As to SEO, a choice is available and it is essential that business owners are aware of this choice when hiring an SEO consultant. If the future of a domain name is important, white hat SEO is imperative. Otherwise, black hat is an option. It is when this distinction is not known by a business engaging an SEO, that it becomes a question of morals.

SEOgarden

Dusting off my keyboard

SEO Garden