Avoid Keyword Stuffing Right Away Google is penalizing

When starting the journey of SEO writing, the most common terminology one can hear is KEYWORD. Users type related words in search box of a search engine. Different links appear on SERP page. A writer create content on different searched queries after their analysis.

But what happens if the write uses searched queries in his content so often that it sounds unnatural in the context of the content??? It is then said to be “Keyword Stuffing.”

History

In the initial digital era of the 1990s to 2000, when Yahoo led the search engine, Keyword stuffing was a means of ranking high on SERP. However, with the advancement in algorithms, and especially after the Google, this technique becomes a major setback to websites.

From now onwards, Google penalizes, and de-indexes web content overloaded with keywords. And search engines label this approach as Black hat SEO. Therefore, we highly discourage using black hat tactics. In the long run, such methods cause immense loss to websites.

Definition

Google has published some spam policies that de-rank the content on SERP which also includes Keyword stuffing, Google defines it as:

“Piling up the web content with similar keywords without context or unnaturally to manipulate search engine ranking results”

Take an example to better understand it. Let’s say ‘automobile’ is our main phrase and the content produced against this keyword would be:

“Looking for information on automobiles? You have come to the right automobile place. Our automobile website offers automobiles for sale, automobile reviews, and automobile tips. Explore the latest and wide selection of automobiles with our automobile service today……………”

Here, it is clearly visible that the “automobile” has been used in excess without the need, producing dull and unnatural content.  

Keyword Stuffing Pitfalls

It has serious consequences. Below are listed some of the reasons to avoid it:

• It negatively impacts user experience because the content sounds inhuman.
• It is a negative SEO technique that will promptly de-rank the web content.
• Pages with overuse and repetition of key phrases will immediately be penalized if web crawlers notice keyword spamming.
• Moreover, search engines may permanently delete and de-index web pages.

Methods of Doing Keyword Stuffing

Here below, I am discussing some methods of keyword stuffing. All these techniques manipulate SERP page for the desired results. So, search engines label such approaches as black hats.

Let’s take a look of them one by one.

Visible and Invisible text

Using primary key phrases repeatedly in unnatural way in your content to engage the audience is called visible keyword stuffing. 

However, if such keywords are employed invisibly, such as matching the font color with the website, or using them within meta tags to hinder them from readers is called invisible keyword stuffing. It attracts the reader’s attention easily. 

Spamdexing

It is a comprehensive term that encompasses the techniques employed to maneuver SERP results. This tactic is also referred to as Web-Spam. It can be done using different approaches such as:

Article Spinning or content spinning

As the name suggests, it is the method of spinning or rewriting another’s piece of content using different key phrases and words with the aim of generating genuine and original work.

Cloaking

Delivering different pieces of content to readers and search engine spiders to attain a high rank in SERP without creating unique and authentic content. 

Doorway page

Another approach in spamdexing is to create low-value and low-quality web pages for certain key phrases to rank high in search results. It typically involves redirects and adds zero to a low value to the knowledge of the reader.

Metadata Stuffing

The HTML tags that provide insight into web page content and consist of relevant information are called meta tags. So, stuffing metadata means to add repetition of key phrases. Sometimes, SEO professionals flood metadata with such words that are not even related to the content.

Analyzing keyword density

The first and foremost way to identify stuffing is by analyzing keyword density. Here is the formula to identify repetition of primary or target key phrases in content. Also add LSI words in your blogs.

Keyword density = (total no. of times a keyword appears/total number of words in the text) *100. 

The recommended density is 1-2%. So, if the article is about a “healthy lifestyle”, this keyword should not be more than 20 times for a 1000-word article.

Strategies to avoid Keyword Stuffing

There are numerous ways to create top-notch content without overloading it with primary key phrases and targeted SEO words. Let’s explore some of these methods.

1. Put all your effort into producing well-researched and quality content for the audience. Not only will this set you apart, but it will also expand your vocabulary, eventually reducing the risk of spamdexing. 
2. Writing a reasonably long and detailed article is another effective way to get rid of repetitively used similar words. Long articles necessitate the inclusion of more information and scenarios, hence leading to the use of a greater variety of words and phrases. 
3. Incorporating synonyms also adds value to the content and helps to reduce the repetitive use of primary key phrases.  
4. Adding long-tail words into the web content resolves the issue because they are less competitive and target specific user queries, reducing the likelihood of consecutive repetition. 
5. Use the primary keyword naturally in the content. Also avoid forced insertion of the primary searched queries.  

Conclusion

Keyword spamming is no longer an SEO-friendly technique. Widely used search engine GOOGLE has updated its algorithm and strictly de-rank and penalizes such website which are using black hats’ SEO. 

It is always better to stay consistent with quality content rather than manipulating search results to rank higher which eventually falls you down. Producing genuine and authentic content while following standard rules will eventually pay you back and last longer. Here we have another blog on writing Google loving content.

Adapting ethical SEO techniques along with producing users’ friendly content is the way forward for sustainable growth and ranking high on Search Engine Results Pages (SERP).