SEO Dictionary & Marketing Glossary

What is Black Hat SEO?

Black hat SEO uses techniques that violate search engine spam policies to manipulate rankings. Examples include keyword stuffing, cloaking, and spammy links.

SEO and Marketing Terms: Black Hat SEO

Black hat SEO uses techniques that violate search engine spam policies to manipulate rankings. Techniques that follow search engine guidelines are commonly called white hat SEO.

The search guidelines are not a static set of rules, and practices may be reassessed as those guidelines change.

Black hat SEO includes tactics such as keyword stuffing, hiding text specifically to manipulate rankings, cloaking, doorway pages, spammy links, and other methods meant to manipulate rankings instead of serving users. These tactics may create short-term movement, but they can lead to penalties, loss of visibility, or removal from search results.

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