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Black Hat Confession

Services for Real Estate Pros with Buzz Marketing Pros

December 26, 2007 11:40 AM

Black Hat SEO

I confess I read the black hat SEO forums regularly...I learn a lot from them, even though I don't employ black hat methods. Those guys are the ones who know how to make serious money on the Internet, although it's high risk, and most of us can't afford to take those risks. It's kind of comical, how black hats are portrayed - as though they should go to jail or something. The only laws they are breaking are the "Google" laws.

Granted, a number of them make money off porn and gambling sites. However, they're the ones that keep several steps ahead of the search engine police, and guide the way for the rest of us. Because, let's have a moment of gray hat honesty here, if we were all good little Google-ites, none of us would be ranking particularly well. We wouldn't be blogging like mad, obtaining links wherever we can "legally" scrape them up, writing Squidoo lenses, and paying lots of money (Yahoo: $300, link value: priceless) to join directories that don't really bring us traffic, just fat fancy links with lots of juice.

So I have a lot of respect for them, read their blogs and forums, stretch my mind, and come up with new ways to promote sites while remaining within the "legal" boundaries. Well, pretty much, anyway.

This is a reprint of my black hat confession on Seo Diva. I'm not in the mood to rewrite it, and I don't think it will matter this one time anyway.

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Lane Bailey

Century 21 Results Realty - Suwanee, GA

Realtor & Car Guy

So, care to pass along some of the juicy black hat techniques, and their gray hat, white hat and red hat implications?

Dec 26, 2007 11:50 AM

Chris Griffith

Downing-Frye Realty, Bonita Springs, FL - Bonita Springs, FL

Bonita Springs Listing Specialist - Agent

Yes, I'm all ears, too, or rather eyes. I just thought I'd park here in case there was healthy discussion.

Dec 26, 2007 12:20 PM

Kay Frenzer-Zeeh

Buzz Marketing Pros - Chandler, AZ

Real Estate SEO

LOL I can't give away my secrets!

Dec 26, 2007 12:21 PM

Bill Gassett

RE/MAX Executive Realty - Hopkinton, MA

Metrowest Massachusetts Real Estate

Kay - The picture says it all when it comes to most Realtors and SEO knowledge :)

Dec 27, 2007 12:35 AM

Pam Graham

All Real Estate Options - Jacksonville, FL

Jacksonville, Clay & St Johns Counties

I can't believe you would be caught in a black SEO forum. Do you have no morals??? :) Their title does portray that they should be hauled away to jail and throw away the key.

I checked out your Seo Diva blog and loved the lego men!

Dec 27, 2007 04:09 AM

Pam - NO ONE KNOWS IT'S ME! I use a fake name.

Bill - I absolutely love that picture! Gotta use a little humor ;)

Dec 28, 2007 10:34 AM

Josette Skilling

Keller Williams Capital Properties - Bethesda, MD

It's interesting what they do for quick bucks even though they know the sites will come down very quickly. Some of these guys have made an art out of it. It's not really that secret!

Dec 30, 2007 02:07 AM

Ryan Martin

Pacific Continental Realty, LLC - Bellingham, WA

Bellingham Commercial RE Broker

Kay - I think that is great idea to lurk in black hat seo forums. The more you learn, the better off you are. A lot of people tend to think of seo as black and white and it is not. There is a HUGE amount of gray area. SEO is a lot like real estate, it is a profession where you have to constantly assess the cost of risk.

Dec 30, 2007 02:14 AM

Josette - they make lots of bucks very quickly, and trust me, they have methods that are totally secret, which brings me to...

Ryan - lurking has taught me a lot, and shown me some ways to make legit money on the Internet. You are right, there is a lot of gray hat, although you don't read much about it online. I like your phrase "constantly assess the cost of risk" - you hit it right on the nose!

Dec 30, 2007 04:06 AM

Riel Roussopoulos

RealtyXL Marketing Inc. - Vancouver, BC

Real Estate Marketing Expert

Google itself has created the problem.

By monitizing links in the first place, the value of a link is no longer just from an information point of view

a link now has a dollar value as stated by google adwords and adsense

So why wouldn't people try to maximize through whatever means available to then the value of their own keywords.

Black / Grey / White ... its' all ranking manupulation through awareness that there is a system as opposed to being blissfully unaware of just how much of the flow of infomation and $$ google does actually control (for all their "free" services and products).

my 2cents on it :)

Dec 30, 2007 05:29 AM

Margaret Hokkanen

SurfTheTurf.com, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA

→ Carlsbad Real Estate

Can you post a few black hat site links for the rest of us to visit?

Jan 23, 2008 02:05 PM

Riel - you're right on target - sorry I missed your comment.

Margaret - those forums are far too dangerous for nice girls like you to go slumming in!

Jan 24, 2008 10:16 AM

Ryan Trask

3plains - Shakopee, MN

Black hat SEO's & Spam kings. We love um - creative internet revenue artists

Jan 24, 2008 07:31 PM

Nate Alexander

First Team Real Estate - Long Beach, CA

The Long Beach Home Pro

some of the best SEO guys frequent the black hat scene...just to stay current on what IS still white hat.

Jan 29, 2008 02:36 PM

Some of the best SEO guys and gals are black hats too! I have obtained some really decent and helpful tools and white/grey hat tips from black hat sites.

Jan 30, 2008 03:30 AM

Mike Frazier

Carousel Realty of Dyer County - Dyersburg, TN

Northwest Tennessee Realtor

Kay,

You are one of the best SEO people I know. I always enjoy soaking up knowledge from you. Thank-you very much for helping us "SEO rookies"!

Jan 30, 2008 03:40 AM

Black Hat Confession

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Kay Frenzer-Zeeh

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