I don't believe in SEO. I've always felt that they're just one tiny step above spammers. When one contacts me, I just tell them to go f* themselves.
Sick of SEO Scumbags
111–120 of 132 posts
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#112I'm sick of SEO people pointing the finger at "evil" SEO people. SEO is basically gaming search engines instead of contributing anything of value. It's not a respectable business, it's a self-perpetuating protection racket. If there weren't any SEO people we wouldn't need any SEO people. You only hire an SEO for one of two reasons: 1) too cheat Google, and 2) to compete with all the other sites that hire SEO's... The…
At its root, legitimate SEO means making your site easy for a search engine to understand. It's easy, if you're tech savvy, to forget that even the simple techniques that legitimate SEO comprises are beyond most business owners, and simply aren't performed by most web designers and developers. So there is a niche for decent people to do SEO. Unfortunately, competitive pressure drives a lot of unethical practices in the field.
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#113I don't believe in SEO. I've always felt that they're just one tiny step above spammers. When one contacts me, I just tell them to go f * themselves.
I've never hired an SEO in my life, but if I ever do, you can bet I'll hire someone I was ABLE TO FIND BY SEARCHING.
And yet, I get contacted via email by at least one a day. What a waste of time.
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#114It doesn't take a SEO to 'game' Google. Case in point: "Santorum". No SEO was involved, just organic gaming of the system.
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#115I'm sick of SEO people pointing the finger at "evil" SEO people. SEO is basically gaming search engines instead of contributing anything of value. It's not a respectable business, it's a self-perpetuating protection racket. If there weren't any SEO people we wouldn't need any SEO people. You only hire an SEO for one of two reasons: 1) too cheat Google, and 2) to compete with all the other sites that hire SEO's... The…
so you're saying the best website should win without "cheating" right? its not that simple. you could make the same argument about all advertising/marketing. the best product should win on its own standards, without advertising, right? for example, wouldn't we all have better insurance rates if geico, progressive and esurance didn't have to spend their money on advertising? But the truth is these insurance companies…
As always, there is a thin line between cheating and being ethical.
You know... marketing by itself is not unethical, though when you use tricks to induce people to buy something even though you know it's not good for them, the line is crossed. Like when a large fast food restaurant starts giving toys away if you buy their food... inducing children to annoy their parents so they buy unhealthy food just to get the toys. Or when you show sports people smoking a cigarrete, linking the image of smoking with a healthy life.
Of course, if all that matters is making money, then cheating the search engines (or peoples perception, in the case of marketing) is fine.
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#116Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#117This post is full of sloppy writing and sloppy thinking. The author doesn't even define SEO, or "scumbag SEOs." Are all SEOs scumbags? What should they be doing instead?
We can do a lot better than lazy, vague, completely meaningless rambling.
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#118Can we blame Google a bit here too? They have set-up a system that people can game, and it causes tremendous collateral damage. Our site is under a constant barrage of fake accounts and content trying to generate links to other sites. Meanwhile, a competitor passed us in Google search results after getting 500,000 links over a week from a single domain in China. I hope slow, steady and honest wins, but it doesn't fee…
I don't think it's fair to blame google in these situations -- they dev. their algorithms to expect that sort of stuff, but I imagine a lot of it is tweaked daily. Keep in mind Google hires very intelligent people to deal with these problems: we have to expect that they're giving it their all to resolve them day by day.
Every scenario is going to be different. As for slow, steady & honest winning the race? I certainly hope so, but it's up to you to define where the finish line is. Being honorable & operating a business that doesn't do nefarious stuff for short-term gain is one of my end-goals.. and it might hurt in the interim :)
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#119I'm sick of SEO people pointing the finger at "evil" SEO people. SEO is basically gaming search engines instead of contributing anything of value. It's not a respectable business, it's a self-perpetuating protection racket. If there weren't any SEO people we wouldn't need any SEO people. You only hire an SEO for one of two reasons: 1) too cheat Google, and 2) to compete with all the other sites that hire SEO's... The…
SEO is like wanting to win in sports, everybody wants to be first. You do SEO becaus you want to become number one in google search results. Nothing wrong with that.
SEO people are like sports coaches. You have good coaches and bad coaches. Good coaches will help you with an effective training programs, and analyze the competition. Bad coaches will tell you to use drugs.
Good SEO people will help you win by improving your site and inbound links, bad SEO people will help you to win by cheating.
Nothing wrong with wanting to win, though...
Re: Sick of SEO Scumbags
#120The double-talk on HN never ceases to amaze me. On one day Google is close to dying and there are lots of alternatives out there and on the next day the very same people are writing that "SEO = Google pagerank ownage" as if Google was the one and only search engine which mattered. So which is it? Are Google's days numbered or not?
It may be tempting to attach a single "HN voice" to this community, but this is a place of many people with different opinions.