Using Hidden Comments to Improperly Stuff Keywords
Published December 09, 2008 - RSS/XML Feed 
Proper SEO for your website should include the judicious use of relevant and focused keywords. In indexing web pages, major search engines like Google, Yahoo!, and MSN depend on websites and their webmasters to provide appropriate keywords. However, keyword stuffing, or the overuse of keywords on a web page, can get your website banned from one or more search engines.
Keyword stuffing is not a new phenomenon. It has been used as a “blackhat” SEO technique since before Web 2.0 came along to covertly improve website search rankings. One keyword stuffing technique that major search engines are catching onto is the utilization of hidden comments that are placed out of view to users but not to search engine bots.
Uses for Hidden Comments
Hidden comments are nothing new on web page coding. Hidden comments can be utilized legitimately on a web page for accessibility or usability issues. ALT tags for images and form labels are good examples of hidden comments that help a user with the web page. Another place for comments not seen by a web page user is in the actual HTML coding. A web page author may leave an HTML comment that helps explain the code that follows for other programmers who need to read the coding.
However, when webmasters or SEO firms use hidden comments on a web page to fill with keywords and key phrases in the sole purpose of improving search engine ranking, trouble occurs. One broad example of covert keyword stuffing is the use of cascading style sheet coding, or CSS, to add hidden comments complete with headings. An example of a hidden comment with heading might look like this:
<div style=’visibility:hidden’>
<h1>Keyword Keyword Keyword</h1> Lots of text room for keyword stuffing
</div>
This coding would be seen by search engines, but not a user unless the CSS preference was turned off on the browser. Without the CSS preference, the web page would show the above text as such:
Keyword Keyword Keyword
Lots of text room for keyword stuffing
As you can see, the coding could be a legitimate way to add helpful comments for other programmers or users with older browsers. However, when hidden comments are used in the above example to simply add keywords and not provide any helpful advice or accessibility, it is considered unethical and a form of “spamdexing,” or the use of keyword spamming in order to improve search engine indexing.
Search Engine Policies on Hidden Text
Major search engines have written policies against spamdexing and hidden text in particular. Google, for instance, states on its webmaster guidelines:
"Quality Guidelines - Specific Recommendations: Avoid hidden text or hidden links."
Google also provides web users a place to report spam and notes on that site:
Violating our Webmaster Guidelines by means such as hidden text, deceptive cloaking or doorway pages compromises the quality of our results and degrades the search experience for everyone. We think that's a bad thing
Yahoo! has also made a very clear stance on hidden text as spam:
Search engine spam refers to pages that are considered unwanted and appear in search results with the intent to deceive or attract clicks, with little regard for relevance or overall quality of the user experience. Some, but not all, examples include:
* Pages using methods to artificially inflate search engine ranking
* The use of text or links that are hidden from the user
These two major search engines make it very clear that using any method of hidden text to add keywords for the explicit purpose of search engine rankings is likely to get a page removed completely from their index.
Valuable Use of Hidden Comments
Where can you use hidden comments as a helpful tool?
- META tags – Use the META “description” tag as a place to provide a short, concise comment about the website.
- ALT tags – Some browsers may not show images, such as photos or graphics. Use an ALT tag to give a short descriptive comment about the image.
- HTML coding – In the actual coding, you can provide comments helpful to other html programmers.
- CSS – In stylesheet coding, it is acceptable to use hidden comments for the purpose of accessibility or easier usability.
Keyword stuffing is not a good practice, either in visible text or hidden comments. Not only is it deceptive to users, but it can get your website removed from search engines altogether. Be sure to use hidden text and comments to help your users, not your ranking.
Resources:
Read Related Articles About How to Optimize Your Site
- SEO Site Structure Principles
Learn the important guidelines for properly structuring your site for search engines. - Using Silo Structure or Maximum On Page SEO Effectiveness
A common problem for on page optimization is keeping the content within your website organized so that the search engines can make a clear distinction as to the theme or your pages. - Speed Up Your Website to Increase Traffic
Learn how speeding up your website can drive traffic and sales. Also learn common methods for decreasing page loading times. - How to Optimize Your Meta-titles, Descriptions and Keywords
The term "meta data" is used to describe information within the coding of your site that the search engines use to index your site. The search engine companies send programs called "spiders" out to gather information about your site and determine how to display it in the search results page. - How to Use Effective Meta Tags
Learn how to effectively use meta-tags to increase your search engine visibilty and referral traffic. - How Using GZIP Compression Helps Your Site's SEO
You might have heard some talk about how compressing your web pages helps with your site's SEO, but how does it help and how can you use it on your site? This article will provide you with some details on what file compression is and why it�s essential to the process of optimizing your site. - Alt Tags and Other Image Optimization Tools
Having an attractive site is important for making a good first impression on your visitors. This is why it’s crucial that you use great looking images to accompany your site copy and to communicate the overall “personality” of your company. - Traffic Conversion Strategies
Learn several great strategies for improving conversions on your website. - Static Links vs. Dynamic Links: Which Are Best for SEO?
Learn about the pros and cons behind static links and dynamic links, as well as which one is best for your SEO efforts. - Correct Your URL Canonicalization
Learn about URL Canonicalization, what it is, why it is important, and how to address this for your website. - How to Turn Your Website into an Online Community
How to build an interactive forum for optimizing and promoting your site - How Analytics Tools Can Guide Your SEO Efforts
Learn how and which analytics tools can improve your SEO efforts. - Split Testing to Improve Your Site's Performance
Learn how split testing can greatly improve conversions and user behaviors on your site. - Why You Need A Sitemap Protocol As Part of Your SEO
Learn about how powerful a Sitemap Protocol is in enhancing your website's search engine optimization. - SEO for Wordpress: Optimizing Your Blog With Wordpress Plug ins
A simple step by step game plan for boosting the SEO of your Wordpress blog, optimizing traffic flow and increasing visitor interactions. - The Importance of Avoiding the Use of Nested Tables
Learn about why you should avoid utilizing nested tables in your web pages from both SEO and browsing perspectives. - The Importance of Avoiding Keyword Stuffing
Learn about the dangers of keyword stuffing, how to detect it, and how you should correctly approach keyword usage. - Are Doorway Pages an Effective SEO Technique?
Learn about doorway pages, how they work, and if they are an effective SEO technique. - Understanding Javascript Redirects
Learn how javascript redirects work, when they are used, and better alternatives for redirecting users.
All Categories:
- General SEO Issues (25 articles)
- Promoting Your Site (24 articles)