What is White Hat SEO?
To help you understand and apply search engine optimization (SEO) effectively, we asked SEO specialists and marketing professionals this question for their best insights. From optimizing search results ethically to providing value with engaging reader-centric content, there are several definitions provided for white hat SEO that may help shed light on applying SEO for the best results.
Here Are 10 Definitions And Examples Of White Hat SEO:
- Optimize Search Results Ethically
- Dispel the Myth of White Hat SEO
- Avoid Tricks or Shortcuts
- Publish Genuine High-Quality Content
- Provide Value Rather than Manipulate Algorithms
- Stick to the Rules
- Protect your Goods and Maintain Quality
- Don’t Game the Search Engines
- Work with your Audience
- Provide Value with Engaging Reader-Centric Content
Optimize Search Results Ethically
White hat SEO is the ethical and approved way to improve a website’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). It involves optimizing a website for humans (not just search engines) and focuses on creating quality content that people will want to share and link to.
An example of white hat SEO would be ensuring that all of your website’s titles, meta descriptions, headings, images, and other elements are properly optimized for each target keyword. You would also create valuable content that people want to read and share, rather than churning out low-quality articles purely for the sake of ranking high on Google.
Natalia Brzezinska, PhotoAiD
Dispel the Myth of White Hat SEO
Google states that it is against the rules to do anything to manipulate search results for your website. Therefore, technically all SEO is black hat. So as SEO users we have to live in the world of gray hat SEO.But in the contradictory universe known as Google, Google’s own John Mueller confirmed that “internal linking is super critical for SEO,” since it tells Google what is most important on your website. So always have at least three internal links on each page of your site that you deem important.
Eric Rutin, Easy Marketing Lessons
Avoid Tricks or Shortcuts
White hat SEO refers to the activities that are performed with the intention of optimizing and marketing a website in a manner that is in compliance with the recommendations made by the Google search engine. They do not permit the use of spam or other strategies that Google has regarded to be unethical for the sake of website positioning (e.g. black hat SEO).
In other words, all shortcuts and tricks are put aside. Said tricks can give a clear boost at the start of a campaign, but are very often detrimental to the site in the long term. Especially if there is a so-called “Google algorithm update.”
Lukasz Zelezny, SEO ANT LTD
Publish Genuine High-Quality Content
White hat SEO is about providing quality content that is written for users, and not just for search engines. Many publishers publish low-quality, poorly researched content because they know that in some niches, it is possible to rank with poor content if you have a strong domain, or if you can find low-competition keywords.
However, Google is getting smarter all the time, and increasingly devaluing content that doesn’t provide value to users. A good example comes from product reviews. It used to be possible to rank review articles even if you hadn’t tried out any of the products featured in the article.
Today, Google is much smarter, and it is rare that it ranks flimsy content that is clearly designed purely for the profit of the publisher. It goes to show that white hat SEO pays off in the long-term, as Google gets more sophisticated.
Show respect to your readers by providing quality content, and don’t try to outsmart Google with cheap hacks!
Michael Sandford, Pink Wafer
Provide Value Rather than Manipulate Algorithms
In my personal opinion, white hat SEO is a set of ethical SEO practices that focus on providing value to the user, rather than manipulating search engine algorithms for ranking purposes. An example of this would be creating informative and keyword-rich content that is designed to help the user, rather than simply stuffing keywords into the text in an attempt to boost rankings.
Other examples of white hat SEO include link-building practices that focus on quality over quantity and avoiding black hat techniques such as keyword stuffing and link farms. Overall, white hat SEO is about following the rules set by the search engines in order to provide a good user experience, rather than trying to game the system.
Sunny Kumar, TheWPX
Stick to the Rules
White hat SEO is the practice of optimizing a website or web page for Google search with the intent to rank higher and earn more organic traffic. This can be achieved through a variety of techniques such as link building, on-page optimizations, keyword research, and targeting. The optimization strategies, techniques, and tactics used should comply with the search engine’s guidelines and should not violate the search engine’s terms of service.
An example of white hat SEO would be creating high-quality content that targets a particular keyword or phrase, and then building links to that content from relevant websites. This will help to improve the site’s authority and rankings in Google search results.
Matt Davies, Slingshot Search
Protect your Goods and Maintain Quality
White hat SEO is like an umbrella that you can use to keep your goods safe and maintain excellent quality. White hat SEO strategies help your search engine boost its ranking by incorporating and maintaining smooth, high-function features for a better customer experience. When you apply these to your SEO strategies, this will bind your tactics to a safe set of operations. Additionally, it makes your site more appealing and attracts more leads.
Chris Walker, Superstar SEO
Don’t Game the Search Engines
To me, white hat SEO is all about having an ethical approach to your organic growth strategy. Many SEOs will try to game search engines by building low-quality backlinks, for example by approaching low-quality bloggers and trying to pay to get a link on their site.
Naturally, this is something that search engines frown upon, and it’s something that can harm your website over the long term. To me, link building is all about providing value and establishing real relationships with publishers, not trying to get a quick win with unsafe SEO tactics.
Holly Lawton, Pearl Scan
Work with your Audience
I think of white hat SEO as the practice that is done with the goal of helping your audience. You have a blog post or a product that you know can benefit people, so you do what you can to get it in front of those people—sharing it with influencers, making it as easy to find as possible, making it easy for search engines to understand, etc.
Black hat SEO, by contrast, is done with manipulating the search engine in mind. You’re looking for tricks that will make the search engine think your content or product is helping people, whether or not it actually is.
Tom Dines, Elm Content and Strategy
Provide Value with Engaging Reader-Centric Content
Nowadays, white hat SEO is creating reader-centric content that provides value and is engaging. For example, you can create a super beefy, keyword-rich page about “resource management software.” (That’s what Mosaic is.) You could have a lot of words but not say anything unique or of impact—basically regurgitating everything that is out there.
Alternatively, you could write a keyword-rich and beefy page about how to manage resources, plan and staff projects and calibrate workload—with or without software. You could even give some industry-specific examples. The latter option is a much more informative and helpful page for the reader. It’s still SEO content, but it’s meant to be helpful first and foremost.
Charlotte Bohnett, Mosaic
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