This is an important paradox of search engine optimization: as an optimizer you must try to improve your rankings in a number of ways, without coming under scrutiny from search engines or crossing the line into manipulation or artificial boosting. Such underhanded techniques are collectively known as Black Hat SEO.

Search engines are constantly updating their algorithms to avoid being gamed, and aggressive attempts to boost rankings can be harshly penalized by much lower rankings, or even a complete removal from the engine’s database.

In fact, beyond a basic improvement of site structure to facilitate crawling and indexing, search engines would perhaps like nothing better than to have no op‐timization at all, since it would enable them to find websites that are ‘naturally’ relevant, popular and thus reliable.

However, optimization is an undeniable and natural consequence of the intense competition for web traffic, and is now a fact of reality for search engines and a necessity for site owners. Ethical, user‐driven optimization can be good for eve‐ryone involved: you, the searcher and the engine.

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