The birth of the internet has both been a blessing and a curse in the last few decades. While it does spread information faster and easier to everyone all over the world, it also spreads wrong, deceptive information just as quick.
Sometimes even quicker which is so baffling.
Today, even though there are still a few, of them fake news / information running around out there, it’s now a bit more controlled. Mostly because Google, Facebook and Twitter has been developing a few countermeasures, for these things. In a logical sense of view, you may say that Fake news / information in general can affect you and your site. Your whole Optimization campaign might be jeopardized. But logical guesses isn’t our thing here. Today, we’ll finally learn the truth.
The most basic question that can seep into your mind as an SEO, is if these fake news/content, can indeed bring your campaign, website and your whole career to a screeching halt.
If your site “accidentally” (or if you’re brave, intentionally) has links going to a fake site, or has information that’s not completely true, this can automatically fall within one of Google’s commandments. And this is to watch out for “behaviour that manipulates links to your site of outgoing links from your site” just so you could try and manipulate search results. If you then fall in this category, you have an absolutely 100% chance of being penalised so bad.
The weird thing here is that, algorithmically, if Google thinks you’re providing relevant content, fake or not, you could still rank. However, don’t expect to reach the top or even stay in one place for a long time.
Once people themselves find out that the content they’re looking at isn’t genuine, we get another effect. People will be spreading the information that this particular content is fake or isn’t true. And the all-seeing Google can see these things as well since it’s a user-centric system.
A good example of this weird phenomenon, is Wikipedia.
Calm down, Wikipedia lovers. Hear me out.
Wikipedia is an extremely powerful site that is at times, really hard to overtake on the search results. This is mainly because of the amount of traffic it gets. Every time someone out there wants to verify or find out different details about anything, they immediately go to Wikipedia.
It’s also a site that anyone can contribute information to. If you’ve got a login, you can offer your content on it.
And that’s the main reason why fake data can get to it. Albeit for only a while. Someone else will always end up correct things.
It can then be predicted that one day, genuine content and its truthfulness will be added to the different ranking factors for Google. And at this point, now that there’s a Core Update that’s actually directed to a specific niche or industry, that shouldn’t be impossible.
Ways you can pass as a site that doesn’t spread fake content:
Trust me, these days it’s better be safe than never. One of the very first things you should do is that you need to research your material. All those facts you need to be sharing to your audience and then to the world should all line up and check out. Which is more important if you’re doing daily blogs for example. Shameless plug.
Yes we’re humans and we make mistakes. In an event that there’s something you’ve written, whether it’s in your content or your article section, make sure you get to update it quick. For articles, place a section on top saying you’ve updated the information in it and the date in which you’ve updated it. This makes sure that the people that got to see your article earlier won’t condemn you because you’ve made a few mistakes.
Site your sources. If you’ve been preaching too much hokey pokey stuff, it’s easy to label you as a fake. To back up your claims, mention where you got your information. Hyperlink back to them too. Not only is it a way of sourcing your material, it’s also a way to gain link juice. But in an honourable type of way.
Lastly, Content. Whatever you do or whatever you’re trying to reach, avoid trying to mislead or manipulate your way out of the depths of the low ranks of search. The more you try to scam your way up the ranks, the more reasons Google will have to push you further out of history. Anything that’s slightly devious in the eyes of Google will be the end of you.
Be truthful with your content. Present what you want to give or sell out to the world and let the waves of Google carry you to different places.
