even though your article is dated as of March 2006, I believe the SEO matter you have mentioned here in your blog is more newsworthy than ever. Your article brings the entire subject of search engine optimization to the point. As a webmaster you really wonder nowadays how other website owners are getting the top spots in the search engine rankings.

I truly do not believe in Google’s concept of link popularity. Link popularity does not necessarily reflect the quality of a website. Furthermore, you can buy links in several web directories, news articles and press release providers. There are companies who do the job for you. There already exists a flood of SEO companies worldwide offering unethical methodologies to increase your search engine rankings.

So, do these SEO “strategies” really help search engines to “recognize” and “honor” the quality of a website? You find a lot of doorway pages, fake websites these days on the Google network on top positions. These websites and web pages are mainly built, published and submitted by companies with the only purpose to offer several links to their main site. Filled with ad banners, ad textlinks and some “SEO friendly” blablabla text to make visitors give the impression this is a “real”, “impartial” and “independent” website.

And I have to admit, these “fake” websites are getting better and more profesional. It will become more and more difficult for search engines to differentiate the “good” ones from the “bad” ones.

This is going to become a very difficult task for search engine providers in the near future.

I can only hope that search engine providers will punish companies more severely who are “polluting” the web day by day. Otherwise one gets the impression even search engines are supporting and promoting these techniques.

And web developers doing a good job will sooner or later ask themselves.

“Great, I did a good job … now what? … I end up like a “looser” because I believe I have made the right choice … and all these efforts for nothing? And the ones who have taken the unethical path in SEO will be rewarded?”

Does the internet make sense at all?

I hope more an more web developers and company owners will follow …

graphically & sincerely,

Marc Klein
mediaVinci - The art of invention
(formerly known as PIXEL INDUSTRIES)

Actually, I think your page proves my point. You need to know the “secrets” of the industry.

You say things like “sprinkle your keywords liberally through the text” and “It would seem that Google only counts the ALT text if it is a linked image so we link the image to the same page on which it is displayed.”

Linking an image to the same page? that’s against the user expectation and serves no purpose other than to purportedly raise your search engine placement. That’s the problem.

All that having been said, for this little site I’m working with, I’ll make sure they are doing all that you say…

Yes it takes some time and some patience but just follow a few simple rules and you CAN get in the top 10.

Go to my SEOkeywordExample site to see how it’s done.
The efforts are worthwhile IF people are searching for the content you provide.

I’m no SEO expert but it’s fun being able to beat the “professionals” in their own game. I’m at or near No.1 in MSN and Yahoo for “the coolest guy on the planet” and should be back in the top 10 in Google soon enough.

This is no full time job, just a ONCE OFF effort for some fun.

Wes.

Just stumbled across your blog and this post really hit home with me. I’ve been trying to ween myself of the paid search crack but am having a hard time kicking. It’s a full-time job to optimize your site for search engines, and like you mention, doing it the “right way” (without all the gaming and whoring) doesn’t benefit the business owner or the consumer looking for your service.

Anyway, good read and I hope people at y!, google, et all take notice and address these conflicts of interest.

Hope you are well.

Hill